Municipal Water Quality and Your Health Public Health Seminar Series February 3, 2004 UA,Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center Pima County Health Department City of Tucson Water Department

Tucson Water Supply & Delivery System CRW .

Water Treatment Plant Reclaimed Water Production Facilities CRW Recharge Avra Valley Wellfield Tucson Basin Wellfields Wastewater Treatment Plant Recharge and Recovery Avra Valley Aquifer Groundwater Recharge and Recovery Mtns.

Tucson Basin Aquifer

Potable System Overview

Safe Drinking Water?

Clean Water Act

Safe Drinking Water Act

Clean Water Act Passed 1972 SURFACE WATER Quality Purpose: “fishable, swimmable” water DRINKING WATER Quality Indirect protection of quality

Safe Drinking Water Act • Originally signed into law in 1974 • Authorizes EPA and states to set drinking water standards (regulations) • Protect drinking water supply from contamination • Limit contaminant levels in drinking water

Ground Water Test Requirements  Coliform Bacteria (2)     Inorganic Chemicals(15) Lead & Copper(2) Radiochemicals (3) plus Uranium starting Synthetic Chemicals (30) Volatile Chemicals (21)  Disinfection By Products Trihalomethanes (4) plus Haloacetic Acids (5) and Disinfectant Residuals starting 2004  Unregulated Contaminants (11)

How Fast Might These Contaminants Affect You?

Over 90 standards 2 “ACUTE” REST “CHRONIC” ACUTE Nitrate & Fecal Coliform Chronic All the rest

(calculated lifetime risk)

Protecting Public Health To meet regulatory requirements Tucson Water sampled, analyzed, and reported:  16,599 drinking water results in 2001   4200 drinking water results in 2002 and 2003   16,000 - 17,000 drinking water results in 2004

(anticipated)

EPA & Tucson Water Sponsor EMPACT - Water Quality Information Program “Environmental Monitoring for Public Access and Community Tracking”

What’s the Quality of Our Drinking Water?

Community asks for information:

    Sodium Hardness Mineral content (TDS) pH    Chlorine Coliform Bacteria Contamination

Expanding the Program

EMPACT also Reports on

    Nitrate as nitrogen Fluoride Trihalomethanes Temperature

Pima County Health Department • Bacterias – Cryptosoridium reported cs 1-2 per year – Giardia reported cs 45 per year – Legionella reported cs 3 per year – Fecal coliforms

Pima County Health Department • Immediate notification by media, posted signs • Diamond Bell, Mercury, and health departments role • http://www.epa.gov/safewater/mcl.

html#mcls

Near Real Time Water Quality Information

What is Tucson's Water Quality? http://www.ci.tucson.az.us/cw/viewer.htm?Title=City%20Water

What is My Water Quality?

http://www.ci.tucson.az.us/mw/viewer.htm?Title=MyWater

Live Example http://swehsc.pharmacy.arizona.edu/ coep/water/index.html

Contact Info • SWEHSC – Marti Lindsey, 626-4468, [email protected]

• Pima County Health Department – Babs Johnson, 740-8315, [email protected]

• Tucson Water – Fernando Molina, 791-5080 x1469 – Dan Quintanar, 791-5080 x1372

Any Questions?