Working to provide pure drinking water in all households by 2024: Minister

• February 20, 2022, 12:51 am

Bokaro, Feb 19 (UNI) Jharkhand’s Minister of Drinking Water and Sanitation Department Mithilesh Kumar Thakur has said that the government has set a target of providing pure drinking water to all the households of the state by the year 2024.
The department is working expeditiously in this direction by preparing an action plan and he himself is monitoring it regularly.

The minister, who arrived in Bokaro to attend a programme on Saturday while addressing the journalists in the Circuit House said that the agencies performing the works related to laying of water towers and pipes for drinking water supply, whose performance is slow and not satisfactory will be blacklisted. He said that any negligence in construction work will not be tolerated.

The minister said that the present government has provided pure drinking water facility to the homes of 11.50 lakh people so far in spite of various adverse circumstances during its tenure. Soon a review meeting will be held with the divisional level officials in which review will be done on various points/progress, Thakur said.

The minister said that the government is working in the interest of the state and is taking decisions after in-depth study, deliberation, contemplation on various demands of common people. He said that some parties are unnecessarily giving weight to some matters and this has nothing to do with the government.
UNI XC-AK RKM

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By Cuthbert Mavheko

Every year, March 22 is set aside to commemorate World Water Day. On this day, which was first observed in 1993, the world’s attention is focused on the earth’s most important resource water.

Water is a basic human right, every human being in the world must have access to safe, clean drinking water and sanitation for them to live a healthy and dignified life.

In respect of the right to water, section 77(a) of the Constitution, states that: “Every person has the right to safe, clean and potable water… and the State must take reasonable legislative and other measures, within the limits of the resources available to it to ensure the progressive realisation of this goal.’’

In light of this, it is incumbent upon central government and local authorities to ensure that every man, woman and child in the country has safe, clean and potable water. The bitter truth, however, is that local authorities in the country’s urban areas have ignominiously failed to provide safe, clean water and proper sanitation services to enhance the health and social wellbeing of the urban population. Sad to say, this has often exposed urban residents to diseases like diarrhoea.

The following illustrations buttress this pertinent observation: In June 2020, there was a diarrhoea outbreak in Luveve, Bulawayo which reportedly claimed the lives of 13 people and infected nearly 2 000 others. It is widely believed that the diarrhoea outbreak was caused by raw sewage, which contaminated drinking water. In October the same year, about 100 people, mostly children, were treated for running tummies in Mzilikazi, Bulawayo and surrounding suburbs after drinking contaminated water.

The local authority last year recorded 40 cases of the diarrhoea outbreak, caused by contaminated water, in Emganwini suburb. Such outbreaks have, over the past few years, also been recorded in Harare, Gweru, Kadoma and other cities.

Without claiming the expertise or the competence of a qualified environmental scientist for an exhaustive and illuminating analysis of such a wide and complex subject as water pollution, one would, however, not be totally off the mark to conjecture that water pollution is not unique to Zimbabwe, but is actually a worldwide phenomenon.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) designated the 1980s as International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade. Its goal was to bring about ‘’safe drinking water and adequate sanitation by 1990 for billions of people in developing countries’’.

However, a study published in the magazine Environmental Health a few years ago, says water in many developing countries is not pure and clean as it has been contaminated by synthetic chemicals emanating from the dumping of chemical-laden matter into lakes, rivers, streams and dams.

Seeing that pollution has affected surface water, more and more nations are reportedly turning to underground resrves, which they believe can be depended on to provide pure and clean water.

This year’s World Water Day theme: Groundwater draws the world’s attention to this hidden water resource that has always been critically important, but has not been fully-recognised and utilised in sustainable development policy-making.

The study published in the Environmental Health magazine further states that many people in both developed and developing nations are now getting their household water from aquifers. For those not in the know, aquifers are vast networks and bodies of water under the crust of the earth, which flow slowly like underground rivers. This underground water comes from surface water, which soaks down through the soil and rock formations, finally emptying into the oceans.

This network of underground water is said to be quite extensive. According to some geological studies, some of this underground water extends as much as 4,8km below the earth’s surface. In the top 0,8km of the earth’s crust alone, it is estimated that there is more than 30 times the amount of fresh water than what is contained in all the lakes, rivers, streams and inland seas on the surface put together.

This vast reservoir of underground water was long assumed to be safe from contamination, since the water is purified as it passes through layers of soil. However, it has been confirmed that underground water is not immune from pollution. Chemicals from agriculture have reached and contaminated this water. So has infiltration from toxic waste from industrial waste repositories, at times raw sewage can leak out of aging pipes and befoul ground water.

It is no hidden secret that in some countries, enormous quantities of industrial wastes are poured into lakes, rivers and streams. This toxic waste soaks into the ground, thereby polluting aquifers. It has been estimated in scientific studies that up to half of all underground water is contaminated by either disease-producing bacteria or toxic industrial waste.

Researchers have found that pollution of underground water is also caused by such varied “non-industrial” sources as leaks from underground diesel/petrol tanks, lead and cadmium dissolved from water pipes as well as garbage that is dumped haphazardly.

To add insult to injury, rain water can no longer be relied upon as pure and clean. Researchers in the United States say tonnes of nitrogen oxides and sulphur-dioxides spewed into the air by emissions from automobiles, coal-burning power plants and other industrial sources do not stay in the air. Instead, they come down as dry acidic powder or mix with moisture in the atmosphere and come down in rain, snow and fog as nitric or sulphuric acid.

The researchers further state that acid rain or acid fog is responsible for a wide variety of harmful effects that include dead lakes, decimated forests, lifeless soil, aggravated respiratory conditions and other health problems.

• Cuthbert Mavheko is a freelance journalist based in Bulawayo. He writes here in his personal capacity.

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Business

20 Mar, 2022 04:00 PM3 minutes to read

The Turitea reservoir. Photo / Supplied

New Zealand’s creaking water infrastructure could face more pressure if a workforce shortage isn’t addressed.

Water New Zealand chief executive Gillian Blythe says it’s estimated the industry will need an additional 6000-9000 skilled workers over the next 30 years if safe drinking water standards are to be met, along with improved environmental outcomes.

A national strategy has been developed outlining what the Three Waters industry will need over the next decade and how to attract the workers.

We Are Water – Ko Wai Tātau Three Waters Workforce Development Strategy is a joint collaboration between Waihanga Ara Rau Construction and Infrastructure Workforce Development Council, Water New Zealand, Department of Internal Affairs, Taumata Arowai, Connexis, and others in the industry.

Blythe says a highly-skilled workforce will be essential if the sector is to address the long-term lack of investment in infrastructure and meet future growth needs.

The strategy has come up with a roadmap including four strategic goals.

They are to respect Māori interests and knowledge, create intuitive career pathways, design for career progression and design a long-term, values-aligned strategy to strengthen recruitment, skills and training throughout the sector, and across all regions of Aotearoa.

The goals are further underpinned by 14 recommendations including establishing a focused outreach into schools, finding a united industry voice, and developing leadership and mentor programmes.

Blythe said young people aren’t thinking about water as a career.

She said some don’t think about how drinking water is sourced, what happens to wastewater, or even stormwater until there is flooding.

Related articles

Blythe said the water industry needs to be made more visible so they’re encouraging people to join the sector – along with providing opportunities for those wanting to change their careers.

Waihanga Ara Rau assurance general manager Mike Grumball says the ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce development strategy that inspires people to join the sector.

“We need to look at how we can attract people into the sector who are just starting out in their careers as well as those with transferable skills from other sectors, including people heavily affected by Covid-19.

“We also want to ensure greater diversity, and this means a particular emphasis on recruitment and support for Māori, women and people retraining from other sectors.”

Grumball said the next phase of the strategy will involve working with the industry to explore how the recommendations can be implemented.

He will present the findings and next steps at two webinars being hosted by Water New Zealand in the coming weeks.

The first will be held on Monday, March 28 from 3-4pm. The second will be held on Wednesday, April 6.

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Right-wing firebrand Candace Owens challenged fellow conservative pundit Matt Walsh to a blind bottled water challenge saying she could distinguish Dasani water from others.

Dasani water is arguably the most unpopular bottled water of all time. It is so unpopular that it became a meme and even the subject of an SNL sketch. People joked amid the Covid pandemic how shelves were full of Dasani water while competing brands in the vicinity were completely sold out. Walsh, 35, of The Daily Wire, noticed his colleague Owens, 32, criticizing the taste of Dasani water, and responded by declaring that “all bottled water tastes exactly the same.” This sparked a casual Twitter war between the two that culminated in a blind bottled water challenge for $100.

READ MORE

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“One thing I would like to understand is why Dasani water tastes so disgusting,” Owens wrote on Saturday, March 19. “How is it possible to make water taste this bad? Someone out there knows the answer.” Walsh quipped in response, “The anti-Dasani propaganda in this tweet and the comments is outrageous. All bottled water tastes exactly the same. And there is no difference between bottled water and tap water. It’s all indistinguishable.”

The anti-Dasani propaganda in this tweet and the comments is outrageous. All bottled water tastes exactly the same. And there is no difference between bottled water and tap water. It’s all indistinguishable. https://t.co/mysGF4RBb8

— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) March 19, 2022

 

 

“Wow. The lack of education in this tweet is astounding,” Owens alleged. “Imagine believing there is no qualitative difference between Dasani water & Evian or Voss. There’s a lot I could say here but we are colleagues so I am going to take the high road and tag @michaeljknowles to take my side.” Walsh accepted the challenge and wrote, “I’ll bet you 100 dollars that you can’t identify Dasani in a blind taste test. Meet me in the break room next week. I’ll bring the bottles. The gauntlet has been thrown down. The world is watching.”

I’ll bet you 100 dollars that you can’t identify Dasani in a blind taste test. Meet me in the break room next week. I’ll bring the bottles. The gauntlet has been thrown down. The world is watching. https://t.co/IOUHBzMDHj

— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) March 19, 2022

 

 

“I accept this challenge. And I welcome a film crew,” Owens responded. “Millions of people are suffering through the taste of Dasani and you think it’s some sort of game,” she added.

I accept this challenge. And I welcome a film crew.
Millions of people are suffering through the taste of Dasani and you think it’s some sort of game. https://t.co/RTv3vSs755

— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) March 19, 2022

 

 

She later realized Dasani water had begun trending. “Dasani water is now trending, revealing that the issue of its despicable taste has affected millions of households worldwide,” Owens joked. “We the people demand an answer from @dasaniwater corporate. Why does your water taste so awful?”

Dasani water is now trending, revealing that the issue of its despicable taste has affected millions of households worldwide.

We the people demand an answer from @dasaniwater corporate.

Why does your water taste so awful? pic.twitter.com/eZGQ9p1i2j

— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) March 19, 2022

 

 

That said, Twitterati seemed to be largely agreeing with Owens. “Drinking Dasani in front of me is the fastest way to lose my respect,” one tweeted.

“Imagine telling someone you need water and they bring you back a bottle of Dasani,” another wrote.

“Dasani tastes like water steeped in your car/house keys with a pinch of salt,” a comment read.

“She’s right…. I’ve always noticed a difference in Dasani water and never drink it because of the disgusting taste,” someone else agreed.

“Matt, you are dead wrong. I dislike all bottled water but Dasani is especially terrible. Candace-1, Sweet Daddy-0,” another chimed in, declaring Owens as the winner of the debate.

Drinking Dasani in front of me is the fastest way to lose my respect.

— 💙CriPPin’ Noir💙 (@CrippinNoir) March 19, 2022

 

 

imagine telling someone you need water and they bring you back a bottle of dasani

— reemz (@queenreemz) March 20, 2022

 

 

Dasani tastes like water steeped in your car/house keys with a pinch of salt

— N.F. Singh, deconstructing the deconstruction ✪ (@theSinghMan) March 19, 2022

 

 

she’s right…. i’ve always noticed a difference in Dasani water and never drink it because of the disgusting taste.

— Patrick77SF (@AfPatrick77) March 19, 2022

 

 

Matt, you are dead wrong. I dislike all bottled water but Dasani is especially terrible. Candace-1, Sweet Daddy-0

— R.F.M. (@Ramad8371) March 19, 2022

 

If you have a news scoop or an interesting story for us, please reach out at (323) 421-7514

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20 March, 2022, 02:15 pm

Last modified: 20 March, 2022, 02:15 pm

A rainwater harvesitng plant in Munshiganj union of Shyamnagar upazila in Satkhira — an area with prolonged crises of safe water — has contributed to change WASH (Global Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) behaviour in the area. Photo: TBS

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A rainwater harvesitng plant in Munshiganj union of Shyamnagar upazila in Satkhira — an area with prolonged crises of safe water — has contributed to change WASH (Global Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) behaviour in the area. Photo: TBS

Water and sanitation intervention at the community and institutional level using different technologies can change WASH behaviour even in areas with prolonged crises of safe water.

It is widely known that Satkhira usually falls into the clutches of natural calamities, such as cyclones, tidal bore etc. People have a scarcity of water for daily uses, let alone for drinking. 

Water, sanitation and hygiene intervention lessens all the miseries people face in the locality as well as ensure better health as they can now remain safe from water-borne diseases and avoid hassles related to water collection.  

During the participatory vulnerability assessment review by the internationally reputed organisation WaterAid, before 2014, it was found that there were dilapidated latrines at the household level. Now, many of them now use well-structured safely managed toilets after intervention.

Earlier, women and children used to walk two to four miles from home to collect water for drinking and other purposes. Children sometimes even missed their school hours on the day they went out to collect water. People were seen purchasing unsafe pond water from vans at Tk1 per litre.

But safe water has been ensured at community level through pond sand filters (PSF) in some areas.   

Making a comparison between the previous and present situation in the Munshiganj union of Shyamnagarupazila, Engineer Ravine Chakma, programme officer of WaterAid, told The Business Standard that they started the project in the upazila with a district-wide approach with a focus on WASH. 

When they started working in the region, they found that local people used to collect and drink rainwater and water from some other sweet water sources through the participatory vulnerability assessment system. But there was neither any system of purification of that water nor any such knowledge.

At the institutional level, there was no water and sanitation structure combined with inadequate facilities compared to the population number.

“We laid emphasis on two areas while working at the community level – how we can purify the pond water to make it suitable for drinking and how we can supply the rainwater by harvesting and purifying it at their doorsteps,” he said.

At the institutional level, WaterAid is providing a safe water and sanitation package while working on motivation regarding hygiene issues.

“We have ensured water supply and sanitation in 12 unions over the past five years through pond sand filter plant, reverse osmosis system and rainwater harvesting. But we face funding limitations as well as communication barriers. That is why we cannot provide water and sanitation to the people in remote areas, such as Gabura and Padma Pukur,” said Ravine.

It was found from the WaterAid data that they have installed WASH facilities in 22 community clinics and WASH blocks at over 40 schools out of the total 98 institutions in Shyamnagar. The reverse osmosis plants were installed for 300 families benefiting 1,800 members. 

They can support 100 to 150 families through one PSF. Under the present project, WaterAid has installed over 30 PSFs.

Ravine said the project, which was supposed to end in 2019 starting from 2016, has now been extended up to 2022. But it was not sure whether it will see any further extension.

“The problem of safe drinking water for the local people of coastal district Satkhira will be solved if the government adopts the concept of rainwater harvesting. We are trying to advocate for the rainwater harvesting model so that they can replicate it,” he said.

But till now, there is no such measure taken by the government of reverse osmosis or rainwater harvesting plant in solving the water crises in Satkhira, he added.    

“We have set up safe water plants at the places where the government has no plan to take up any such project within the next five years. Moreover, we have a responsibility to look after the plants for 10 years,” he said, adding, “We test water quality on 100% options before handing over the plant and we also conduct monitoring tests every six months on 5% options,” he said.         

During a visit to the TripaniBidyapith School at Munshiganj of Shyamnagar to see the water harvesting plant and sanitation point, it was found that WaterAid has set up a water reservoir with a capacity of 20,000 litres for nearly 700 students at the school. Earlier, the students used to drink the contaminated, dirty water from the nearby pond or carry water from home.

“We have set up the rainwater harvesting plant and sanitation point at the school in 2018 at a cost of Tk10.5 lakh with 20% ownership of the structure by the maintenance committee. We have installed rainwater harvesting plants in 41 schools and 17 community clinics in Shyamnagar,” said SoyedAsadul Islam, project manager of Rupantar and local project implementation partner of WaterAid.

He also informed that they consider the number of students of an educational institution and users of the community clinic while fixing reservoir capacity. There is a measurement of 0.25-litre water per child a day and the total rain water reserved in the tanks is measured for nine months.

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Hydrating is imperative for having good skin. But just drinking water all the time can get boring. So, if you want to add some fun and flavour to your hydration routine, here are the healthy beverages to try for healthy, glowing skin. 

1. Coconut water

Image credit: iStock Photo

Coconut water is extremely hydrating

Drinking coconut water goes a long way in preventing dehydration, which is often responsible for damaging the skin and impairing its ability to remain balanced.

It helps with electrolyte balance in the body

Drinking coconut water ensures you get enough sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium.

Coconut water contains a lot of micronutrients

The presence of vitamin B2, vitamin B3, and vitamin C makes it amazing for skin health. So a lot of skin issues indirectly go away due to the consumption of coconut water because it keeps the body healthy, even if we were to negate its direct skin benefits.

2. Wheatgrass juice

Image credit: iStock Photo

Wheatgrass juice has lots of nutrients

It has vitamin A, C and E, as well as iron, magnesium, calcium and amino acids.

An antioxidant-rich superfood

In addition to that, it has glutathione and chlorophyll. What do all these do? They help fight oxidative stress, repair and heal skin, and reduce inflammation. 

Fresh wheatgrass juice has skin, hair, and health benefits

Just one shot a day, first thing in the morning, and you’ll have amazing, healthy skin. Plus, you can grow it at home in a pot and cut it everyday instead of buying it.

3. Green tea with lemon

Image credit: iStock Photo

There’s no sin that a cup of hot green tea with lemon cannot forgive. Refreshing and calming, this really helps make the system feel cleansed. 

Antioxidants in green tea

Green tea already has catechins which fight the oxidation that kills cells, and the vitamin C in lemon juice helps provide additional skin benefits, while also fighting oxidative stress. 

Green tea makes skin glow

So if your skin feels dull and damaged, this is what you need. Just make sure you don’t have it on an empty stomach, because lemon and caffeine—however little—can cause acidity if consumed together. 

4. Rooibos tea

Image credit: iStock Photo

What is rooibos

Rooibos is not actually a tea, but a shrub whose leaves are dried and then boiled like tea. 

Rooibos fights sun damage to the skin

It has oodles of antioxidants, which fight free radical damage to the skin. The main antioxidant it contains is aspalathin, which is rarely found in other foods and drinks. It also has quercetin, which controls inflammation and helps soothe the system. 

Rooibos tea for topical application

Plus, if you apply rooibos topically, it really helps smoothen the surface of your skin as it has AHAs! Talk about being an all-round beauty drink!

5. White tea

Image credit: iStock Photo

Purest tea

White tea is even more healthy than green tea, as it is the type of tea which is richest in polyphenols. 

White tea has less caffeine than green tea

Not only that, but it has much less caffeine than black or green tea, which is important because there have been studies suggesting that caffeine can hamper iron absorption, although some studies debunk the possibility of this happening in healthy people. All said and done, it is definitely an antioxidant-rich drink which is great for health, and by extension, the skin. 

Lead image credit: Instagram.com/priyankachopra, Instagram.com/anushkasharma

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For more than two years the groundwater around Worden and Ballantine in Eastern Montana was unsafe to drink after the water district there discovered nitrates in the water in alarmingly high levels in 2019 — high enough to be mortally dangerous to infants.

It also left the Worden Ballantine Yellowstone County Water and Sewer District scrambling to find a new source of drinking water. Water treatment systems are expensive, complex and out of reach for many rural water districts.  

For the Worden Ballantine water district, relief finally came last year in the form of $4.74 million in federal aid that it will use to essentially build a whole new water system. Investigators were never able to find the source of the nitrate contamination, so the water district dug four new wells from which it now draws its clean water. 

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For Richard Parks, a fly fishing guide based in Gardiner and a water quality advocate with the Northern Plains Resource Council, it illustrates the difficulty and expense wrapped up in water treatment. 

He argues it’s one of the big reasons municipalities in Montana are looking for ways to relax the state’s water quality standards. 

“While removing nutrients is doable, it costs money,” he said.  

The state, during the last legislative session, passed Senate Bill 358 in an attempt to create a more flexible solution to how the state monitors and responds to water quality. It replaces the state’s old numeric system with a narrative system for quantifying the amounts of nutrients, like nitrogen and phosphorus, in the state’s waterways. 

Nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus are important fertilizers but too much in a stream or river can create dangerous algae blooms that choke the life out of a waterway.

Parks, who’s livelihood depends on the health of the rivers in Paradise Valley, believes the state’s implementation of a new monitoring system will damage the water quality in Montana. 

“A completely misbegotten and abominable step to take,” he said. 

The final clarifier at the Billings Water Reclamation Facility on Thursday, March 17, 2022. The clarifier separates out the bacteria which were used in the bioreactor.

MIKE CLARK, Billings Gazette

‘Not going backwards’

Louis Engels, the water quality superintendent for the City of Billings, sees it from a different perspective. He looks at the city’s new $75 million wastewater treatment plant, built in 2019, that’s designed specifically to remove higher amounts of nitrogen and phosphates from wastewater, and sees a pretty good system.

He’s convinced Billings and the other major municipalities in Montana are doing as much to keep the state’s waterways clean as just about any other group. Overall, Montana’s eight largest cities have collectively invested $260 million in treating wastewater to reach these specific levels. 

“We’re not going backwards,” he said. “We’ve invested more in water quality than anyone in the region.”

The law certainly doesn’t roll back water standards,” said Kelly Lynch, an attorney with the Montana League of Cities and Towns. Montana’s constitution requires that the state “maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment…for present and future generations.”

Lynch helped craft the legislation that became SB 358, which itself doesn’t dictate water quality standards but instead creates a framework for them. 

Stakeholders will spend the year evaluating the data that’s been collected from waterways across the state for decades and create a system that can set specific standards for the various watersheds across the state. 

Most importantly, the state-issued permits that dictate exactly the amounts of nutrients municipalities are allowed to release into their waterways remain in force and by law can’t be rolled back, Lynch said. 

Under those permit requirements, municipal wastewater treatment plants capture and remove roughly 90% of the nitrogen and phosphorus and other nutrient waste in the water they process.

Ryan Sudbury, deputy city attorney in Missoula who specializes in water quality issues, said his city has worked hard to be proactive and pragmatic in its approach to treating water.

“We just want to make sure the things we’re doing make sense,” he said. 

A large cover over the primary clarifier which separates smaller solids from waste water at the Billings Water Reclamation Facility on Thursday, March 17, 2022.

MIKE CLARK, Billings Gazette

Watershed specific

The state’s new plan for monitoring water quality moves to what’s known as an adaptive management plan, which allows regions within the state to create the standards that will address the specific type of pollution they see. 

“A site-specific approach would better serve the stakeholders in that region,” said Amanda McInnis, an area manager and wastewater specialist with HDR in Missoula. 

The adaptive management plan, specific to each watershed, dictates what’s required, she said. 

“We’ve got to look at all of the watershed,” she said. 

Brian Heaston, senior water resource engineer for the City of Bozeman, is hopeful SB 358 will do what it’s set out to do. A big part of that will be how it utilizes the science to dictate water quality, he said.

Rather than disregard the data that’s been used to create state standards up until now, he sees the law requiring municipalities to rely on good, accurate contemporary data to make decisions on how they satisfy water quality standards going forward.

“It’s utilizing site-specific data collected at a watershed site,” he said. “We’re building on the science.”

Parks, the fly fishing guide in Gardiner, believes data is the key if the state is going to use the adaptive management plan system and he’s not convinced the new law does enough to require the collection of good data moving forward. 

“You’ve got to understand where you’re trying to go,” he said. “Without the standard you’ve got no objective.”

Bozeman draws much of its drinking water from the East Gallatin River and the city has spent years and more than $250,000 studying the impact of nutrients on the nearly 30-mile stretch of the river before it meets up with the Gallatin. 

Collecting the right data from the right places allows the regions where these watersheds exist to better understand the impact nutrients have on their waterways and how best to protect them, Heaston said.

And the best way to do it is by requiring those specific regions to figure it out. The state’s too big to do it efficiently on a statewide level, he said.

“We believe we are a primary steward of the aquatic environment of the East Gallatin River,” Heaston said. “We want to see it succeed.” 

Point-source blues

One of the tallest hurdles the state faces as it works to better regulate water quality is what’s known as non-point source dischargers. 

Cities and towns across the state are relatively easy for the state to manage. The majority of municipalities in Montana have some type of water treatment plant, which the state regulates as a point-source discharger of treated wastewater. 

Point-source is the state’s designation for any recognized source of discharged wastewater, which typically means a city pipe releasing water into the wild. 

What’s harder for the state to regulate are non-point sources, those entities outside of municipalities that still release polluted water into a waterway. These sources usually exist on county land and come from agricultural and septic sources.

And the state has no system in place to regulate them.

It’s a concern for both municipal water managers and environmentalists. The state has seen record growth in the last two years and clean water advocates worry it will increasingly push development into more rural areas of the state. 

And that push, they say, could lead to higher levels of nutrient pollution finding its way into rivers and streams with no way for the state to regulate it.

“The state is going to have to address that in some meaningful way,” Heaston said. 

Engels, the water quality superintendent for Billings, agreed. The majority of nitrogen and phosphorus found in state waterways comes from sources other than cities and towns. And so municipalities can’t be the only ones responsible to keep the state’s water clean, he said. 

Solid waste comes off of a conveyor belt after being processed at the Billings Water Reclamation Facility on Thursday, March 17, 2022. After being processed, the solid waste goes to a landfill.

MIKE CLARK, Billings Gazette

Cost of clean water

The original numeric standards for wastewater discharge put in place by the state were never implemented. A lawsuit filed by the Upper Missouri Waterkeeper, a water quality advocacy group based in Bozeman, put the requirements on hold until the courts figured out the best approach. 

SB 358 was designed in part as a work around and Engels sees it as a better option anyway. The old numeric standard for water quality was never possible to reach, he said. 

“The technology does not exist,” he said. 

To get close, city water treatment plants would have to install reverse osmosis filtration systems and there still would be nutrient levels it couldn’t reach. And then there’s the cost, Engel said.

It would cost Billings $30 million to install a reverse osmosis filtration system and there would be no guarantee it would remove nitrogen and phosphorus down to the numbers required under the old numeric system. 

That’s a cost Billings would end up passing onto ratepayers, which no one likes, Engels said. But it would be especially burdensome on smaller townships — many with aging water treatment plants — that simply don’t have the resources or the population base to float the cost. For Engels it’s about prioritizing limited resources. 

Sudbury, with the Missoula city attorney’s office, agreed. 

“Even if we built it, it wouldn’t result in measurable differences,” he said. “We’re not opposed to spending money to treat nutrients, we just think there’s a better way to do it.”

Municipal water treatment systems across the state remove 90% of the nitrogen and phosphorus and other nutrient waste from their wastewater. To get at the remaining 10% becomes a game of diminishing returns.

“It’s incredibly expensive and incredibly energy intensive,” Heaston said. “Is the benefit worth the cost?”

Parks acknowledged it’s a complex problem with no easy answer. The problem, he said, is that the state’s water quality hangs in the balance. If the state gets it wrong, rivers and streams end up damaged, which can impact everything from Montana’s quality of life to its tourism industry. 

“I don’t think any of us pretend there’s a simple solution to this,” he said. “And that’s my problem with SB 358. It goes for the simple solution.”

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The Central States Water Works Association

The Central States Water Works Association, which holds its nineteenth annual convention in Cincinnati, O., on May 10-14, 1915, dates back to 1897. Late in that year an organization was discussed by a number of water works men, including C. W. Wiles, superintendent at Delaware, O., and a letter dated November 23 was issued and received generous responses. This letter was followed by another calling a meeting of all water works superintendents, presidents, secretaries, water works committees, boards of trustees, engineers and others interested in the maintenance of water works in the State of Ohio, to be held at Columbus, O., on February 17, 1898. The letter stated the purpose to be “organization of a society of Ohio for the benefit, education and improvement of its members in all things pertaining to the management and maintenance of water works.” This letter was signed by: C. W. Wiles, superintendent, Delaware, O.; J. O’Shaughnessy, superintendent, Columbus, O.; T. R. Cook, superintendent, Toledo; O. L. Hayes, president, Galion; A. W. Inman, superintendent, Massillon; John Fisher, secretary, Hamilton; F. C. Smith, superintendent, Washington C. H.; G. F. Cooper, superintendent, Xenia; W. A. Veach, receiver, Newark, O.: J. P. Malloy, superintendent, Sidney; Geo. Cotter, superintendent, Springfield; J. A. Bradner, superintendent, Fostoria; Geo. M. McPeck. secretary, Marysville; and C. W. Koons. superintendent, Mt. Vernon. The meeting was called to order, at the Great Southern Hotel, by J. O’Shauglinessy, and a roll call showed forty-seven present. At this meeting the Central States Water Works Association was organized, it being decided upon the suggestion of W. P. Sharp, chief engineer of the Cincinnati Water Works, not to make the society an Ohio organization, but one to include Ohio, Illinois, Indiana. Kentucky, Michigan, Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The name adopted was suggested by Mr. Wiles. Mr. O’Shaughnessy was the temporary chairman, and John Fisher, temporary secretary. By-laws were adopted and Mr. O’Shaughnessy was elected president, with C. W. Wiles as fire vice-president; J. P. Malloy, second vice-president; C. W. Koons, third vicepresident; A. W. Inman, fourth vice-president; John Fisher, secretary: Charles E. Rowe, treasurer. Mayor Samuel L. Black delivered an address of welcome to the water works men, and Professor John W. Hill, of Cincinnati, made an address. There was a question box, followed by discussion, and the program also included the reading of papers. The local committee of Columbus provided recreation. The delegates also by invitation attended a lecture by Professor Hill in the chapel of the Ohio State University on “Sources of Pure Water Supply.” On one evening the members joined with the delegates to the mayors’ and councilmen’s convention at a banquet tendered by citizens of Columbus. The association met next in September of the same year in Springfield, O. At this 1898 convention there were 53 active and 22 associate members. and_ at the next year’s convention, at Cincinnati, there were present 112 active and 46 associate members and 63 guests. The same number of active and associate members attended the 1900 convention in Columbus as in 1899. At the 1900 convention, William Allen Veach, of Newark, O.. was elected secretary, succeeding Mr. Fisher, who had been secretary since the association was organized.

Convention in Evansville.

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Foundation stone laid for construction of mega drinking water project in Jumla

Minister for Water Supply Umakanta Chaudhary laying the foundation stone for the construction of the Dhauligad drinking water project in Jumla district on Saturday.

JUMLA: Minister for Water Supply Umakanta Chaudhary has laid the foundation stone for the construction of the Dhauligad drinking water project in Jumla district amid a function in Jumla Saturday.

The project in the government’s priority has already been initiated and it would be completed in time, the Minister offered hope.

The 1.26 billion project is expected to benefit the total 44,163 households from Guthichaur, Chandannath Municipality and Tatopani Rural Municipality, said Surya Raj Kandel, director general at the Department of Water Supply and Sewerage Management.

The pipeline can handle 55 liters waters per second from the water source, 15 kilometers away from the district headquarters, Khalanga, said the Ministry Secretary Suresh Acharya.

The project is expected to provide a huge respite to local people, who have been deprived of drinking water for long, said former Minister of Karnali Province Naresh Bhandari.

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Tap water

Scientists are concerned that the allowable levels of toxic PFAS – known as “forever chemicals” – in UK drinking water are too high.

A BBC study found PFAS levels exceeded European safety levels in almost half of the samples taken. However, none exceeded the current UK safety level.

The chemicals are in many products such as non-stick pans, food packaging, carpets, furniture, firefighting foam.

They have been linked to a range of diseases, including cancer.

Guidelines from the UK Drinking Water Inspectorate state drinking water must contain PFAS chemicals at no more than 100 nanograms per litre (ng/l). Above that, action must be taken to reduce levels.

Working with Greenwich University, the BBC took 45 tap water samples. Laboratory analysis found that none exceeded the 100ng/l level.

But 25 samples did contain PFASs, and four had levels that exceeded 10ng/l, which, under the current guidelines, means local local healthcare professionals must be consulted, and levels monitored.

And almost half of the samples exceeded the European Food Standards Agency tolerable limit of 2.2ng/l.

Professor Roger Klein, a chemist and PFAS expert, said: “The significance of your results, even though they’re small, is that it underlines that this stuff is everywhere and that it’s in drinking water.

“It’s ridiculous that the UK Drinking Water Inspectorate has a level of 100ng/l before action is taken.”

Rita Lock-Caruso, Professor of toxicology at the University of Michigan, also said the results raised a potential health concern: “We’re finding health effects at lower and lower concentrations – in the single digits.”

Research has found the most common PFAS chemicals, PFOA and PFOS, have probable links to high cholesterol, ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, testicular cancer, kidney cancer, and pregnancy-induced hypertension.

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There is particular concern about the effect on children. Professor Philippe Grandjean, of Harvard University, said: “A woman may build this up in her body and when she gets pregnant, she shares that with her foetus. She eliminates part of her body burden into her milk. So, the next generation will get a huge dose, and the baby may end up having up to 10 times as much PFAS in the blood as her mother has.”

The US is considering reducing its regulatory level, from 70ng/l.

“We are beginning to think that there’s no such thing as a safe level and we want them to be as low as possible, because water is not the only source of exposure,” said former head of the National Institute of Environmental Sciences, Linda Birnbaum.

However, there is little public data about its presence or impacts in the UK.

Jersey pollution

Some residents on the Channel Island of Jersey believe they are suffering adverse health impacts from drinking water contaminated with PFAS.

In the 1990s the government of Jersey discovered PFAS had polluted St Ouen’s Bay aquifer, which was used by locals for drinking water.

After years of local lobbying, the government of Jersey has recently agreed to offer free blood tests for people with health issues in the area.

Sarah Simon is convinced PFASs have damaged the health of local people

“I have an autoimmune disease, my father has kidney disease, and my mother has thyroid disease,” says Sarah Simon, a lifelong Jersey resident turned citizen scientist.

“When I started talking to our neighbours, I found that many of the men had kidney stones and the women had thyroid disease. This can’t be a coincidence.”

PFOS and PFOA has been restricted and neither are manufactured in the UK now. However, there are still a raft of other PFASs which are still being used and aren’t regulated.

The BBC study found 18 different types of PFAS chemicals in the tap water samples.

In a statement, the Department for Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs said: “We have robust systems in place to identify the impact of a range of chemicals on the environment and human health and are working closely with regulators to better assess the presence of PFAS in our natural environment and their sources.”

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