On Christmas Day last year, when families were busy preparing dinner, the dreaded call arrived at around 1pm — another boil water notice.

For 9,500 people in East Cork, it meant no drinking water, after heavy rainfall compromised the water treatment process. 

The boil water notice lasted for six months.

In Ireland, more than 500,000 people are served by substandard water supplies.

The rural villages of Whitegate and Aghada sit on the edge of Cork Harbour, and in recent years have been subject to near-constant boil water notices, according to residents.

“We usually found our children had a tummy bug or two and then all of a sudden there was a boil water notice the following day,” said one local man out walking his dog near the beach in Whitegate.

“You could set your clock by it. You’d know what’s coming. If there’s heavy rain, there will follow a boil water notice.” 

In newsagents nearby, many can be seen leaving with drums of water. Another boil water notice was issued for the area on Saturday, again after days of heavy rainfall.

“Everyone’s buying water,” said Kathleen Carr. “You just don’t know if the water’s okay or not.” 

Ms Carr has been buying water for about four years, around the time when boil water notices began in the area.

“I have a son with special needs, so we were constantly buying water,” she said. 

“We were conscious washing him in the bath and stuff like that. It’s ridiculous. One time they’re [Irish Water] saying it’s okay and the next time they’re saying it’s not.” 

A boil water notice in the area ran from Christmas Day last year through to the summer, and although Irish Water says the water is drinkable, the community has lost confidence in the system.

Julie Dwyer installed a €1,000 water filter but still doesn’t trust the tap water.

After moving to the area three years ago, Julie Dwyer learned to live with “continuous” boil water notices but soon got fed up with buying and boiling water.

“About a year ago we actually decided to get a water filter put into our house which cost €1,000,” the mother of two said. 

“We could have got a cheaper one, but we wanted to make sure it was giving us clean drinking water.

“Luckily we’re in a position where we can do that, a lot of households can’t. Other parts of the country don’t have to do it so why should we have to down here?” she said. 

“We don’t drink the tap water now anyway because I wouldn’t trust it.” 

For Ciarán Martin, he’s been buying water most of the time for four years but has taken particular caution after his wife fell ill two years ago.

“She was pretty sick,” he said. 

“We buy about 20 litres per week. The biggest pain is carrying it to the car.” 

Siobhán Cunningham said the cost of buying water adds up.

“It does add to your shopping bill, certainly with the cost-of-living increase, that isn’t easy.” 

Shane Russell, chairman of the Whitegate Residents Association, said locals feel the methods of communicating these notices should be looked at amid concern from some people that the boil water notices come too late and people usually find out through social media.

“Social media is a good thing in some ways, but you shouldn’t depend on it really,” he said. “Not everybody uses Facebook.”

Mr Russell has welcomed a commitment from Irish Water to find a permanent solution to boil water notices, but he urged the utility company to make progress “as quickly as is possible”.

Raw sewage

As well as concerns around the quality of drinking water, Whitegate and Aghada are among the areas in Ireland that continue to discharge raw sewage into the environment, remaining far behind European standards.

A report from the Environmental Protection Agency has shown that every day 7.5m litres of raw sewage – enough to fill three Olympic-sized swimming pools – is pouring into Irish seas and rivers every day, 16 years after EU deadlines passed to meet treatment standards.

Some 32 towns and villages discharge untreated sewage into rivers and seas as they remain unconnected to wastewater treatment plants. This figure has been reduced by 18 since 2014 when Irish Water took responsibility for the sewage system from local authorities.

Irish Water plans to cease raw sewage discharges in 19 areas by the end of 2024, 11 more in 2025, and the final two by 2027.

For locals of Whitegate and Aghada, this can’t come soon enough.

Local man Don Hourihan said he feels “desperate” that raw sewage continues to be released into the harbour, claiming the pollution has depleted fish stocks.

“I used to fish in the harbour 50 years ago,” he said.

“There was a lot of fish in that harbour. There’s no fish there now.”

Works are underway to connect sewage systems in Whitegate and Aghada to a new treatment plant before releasing into the sea at White Bay Beach.

Mr Russell said the discharge of raw sewage is “completely unacceptable given the wonderful harbour we all live beside”.

“This project has been spoken about for a long time and it is great to finally see it underway in the area,” he said.

Irish Water expects to spend €1.1bn in capital investment this year and €1.2bn next year, and recently said most of the water quality issues arise from plants that predate the last 10 years when it became in charge of them.

Urgent action

At an Oireachtas committee last month, Tom Ryan, director at the EPA’s office of evidence and assessment, told the committee “it is essential that urgent action is taken” to improve river basin ecosystems that are failing to meet the legally binding water quality objectives and “prevent further deterioration”.

The EPA warned Ireland may be subject to legal action by the EU over potential failures to meet requirements for water safety.

As Irish Water continues to invest in fixing leaky pipes, sewage systems and water treatment plants inherited from local authorities, communities such as Whitegate and Aghada wait for the day when they feel confident to drink from the taps and swim at their local beach.

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Originally Appeared Here

• ‘Inactive company got the contract’

• ‘Water will come into Dukku end of November’

• We rely on ponds, water vendors – Residents

Despite gulping nearly N400 million, a Dukku regional water supply project failed to dispense a droplet of water, six years after the contract was awarded and supposedly completed.

In 2016, the Federal Ministry of Water Resources budgeted over N500m for the Dukku regional water supply.

Six years down the line and after payment of over N350m to two companies run by the same person, simply identified as Shola Oyeleke to undertake the project, the benefiting community is yet to see a single drop of water from the project.

The phase I of the project was awarded to Prorata Investment Limited by Upper Benue River Basin Development Authority while the II and the III phase was awarded by the Federal Ministry of Water Resources to Yekco Nigeria Limited.

Daily Trust on Sunday reports that residents of Dukku community have been for decades subjected to untold hardships arising from lack of potable drinking water and so most of the population resort to water from three ponds in the area for domestic use.

Cumulatively, both companies were paid about N400m from the first to third phase for the project. However, nearly six years after handing over the project to the contractor, our reporter observed that the supposed benefitting community has not yet seen the fruition of the project. 

How the residents fare with acute shortage of water supply

A visit to Dukku town by Daily Trust on Sunday in October showed that not a single drop of water was dispensed from the said water project carried out by Prorata & Yekco companies within the period under review.

For instance, within Dukku metropolis, a number of water dispensing points were erected in Gona, Balu, Nayelwa and Lafiya quarters but Daily Trust on Sunday could not visibly establish if these points supply water as most of the taps there were either not mounted or smashed.

In many instances, residents confided in Daily Trust on Sunday that a lot of households go to bed hungry, especially in the peak of summer as they couldn’t prepare meals because of lack of water.

Some who can afford it told our correspondent that at times, they resort to buying packs of sachet water popularly known as pure water to prepare meals.

Mustafa Isa, 25, a newly married man, said he spends not less than N10,000 a month in buying water from the vendors.

He said, “If households in Dukku can get respite from buying water, then half our responsibilities would have been taken off from our shoulders. I spend not less than N300 daily buying water for my family. There was a time I couldn’t get water from vendors. I bought a package of sachet water to prepare dinner at my house, otherwise we would have gone to bed hungry.

Malam Yakubu Muhammad (Alaramma), farmer, is a resident of Dukku who commutes for 15 minutes from his home to a lake on the outskirts of the town to get water for his family.

In an encounter with Muhammad at Kogin Dole Pond, he said he comes to the lake anytime he runs short of money to buy water from vendors at water selling points.

“You see, this is how we live our lives. We come here to fetch water. Other times, we buy if we have the means. Whenever I don’t have money to buy from water vendors, I come here with my bicycle to get the water for household chores. Sometimes, if I’m engaged in some work, I send my children down here to fetch the water. Now that you see me here, the children are at the farm and there is no water in the house. That is why I have to come myself. We use between 3 and 4 jerricans every day.”

Asked whether there are other sources of water around him, he said, “There are water tanks that sell to local water depots. But a jerrican there costs N70, meaning I’d need N280 if I’m to buy 4.”

Another resident who identified himself as Abubakar Muhammad said there were days his house couldn’t cook because there was no water. He described the perennial water shortage as one that is affecting many households in the town, subjecting hundreds of families to hardship.

“This lake is our major source of water. We source our water from here because this is where you get it free of charge. Looking at the economic situation, one can’t always have the means to buy water from vendors who sell a jerrycan at N40, and sometimes N50 or more. Here, we don’t have access to quality water. When this lake dries up, we resort to buying from water depots when we have the wherewithal, because there a drum costs up to N600. In my house, we consume one drum every day, which is more than N4,000 in a week.”

He called on the government to dredge the pond and provide other alternatives to the people of the area to ease their suffering.

 

Malam Siddi, 56, is the watchman in charge of the pond. His work involves preventing animals from getting into the pond to drink water and keeping an eye on the lake so that people don’t enter it with their shoes on. The reason for that, he said, was that people use the water for religious and household activities.

“People come here on a daily basis to fetch water. Others are vendors who get the water here and sell it out to people at the rate of N200 per two-wheeled cart. There are times you see many people coming here, especially during the dry season when water scarcity is at its peak. With much pressure on the lake, it dries up during the dry season because people come from different places and neighbouring villages to fetch water from it. I also source my water from here most of the time. I ask the vendors to take some jerricans to my house.”

The story of how acute water challenge is affecting the people of Dukku is almost the same with many residents of the town, especially the low-income earners.

Adamu Abubakar Umar, a 35-year-old Balu resident in Dukku, claims to spend not less than N12,000 monthly on buying water which is more than half of his monthly salary.

For Adamu Kudi, 38, a family man with 5 children, the story is no different. “I’m a labourer who has to work every day to get something to meet the daily needs of my family. Every day, I spend N350 on buying half a drum of water.”

Another resident, Abdulwahab Abubakar, said because of his limited income, he sources his water from a lake to save cost as one jerrican goes for N70 in his area. His appealled to the government to provide a lasting solution to the problem.

Different community groups in the town have made efforts in appealing to the government to end the menace. Bashir Isa is a 41-year-old Shabewa resident in Dukku. He said, “Access to safe drinking water is our major problem in Dukku, especially in Dukku South. The challenge is more severe during the dry season when most of the lakes which serve as water sources dry up. About 80 percent of Dukku residents are farmers, and a greater percentage of their farm proceeds is spent on buying water.

“There have been various interventions by successive governments. For example, the state government recently dredged some lakes in some villages. There are other individuals who are doing their best to ameliorate the  situation. As for the efforts of community groups, a certain community Association has visited some stalwarts, stakeholders and agencies and requested their intervention in addressing the issue. Currently, people are faced with water problems as the tap isn’t always reliable. We need machines and other engines to pump the water to all parts of the town.”

Water vendors make brisk sales

The business, according to some vendors, is paying reasonably well because they’re meeting their demands through it.

Some water vendors who simply identified themselves as Haliru, Idris and Sani said they make between 7 and 10 trips daily, especially when the business is good, realising between N1,500 and N2,000.

Malam Abdullahi, 50, a water vendor residing in Nayelwa quarters of Dukku, has been in the business for more than 15 years. He said he caters for his needs through the business because he makes N2,000 daily if the business is good. “A trip is N600; N400 goes to the owner of the water point, and we get N200 for each trip. I’m a family man with 1 wife and 6 children. We all rely on this business.”

How the project was awarded

A document obtained by our reporter from Upper Benue River Basin Development Authority (UBRDA) detailed how the Phase I & II of the contract were awarded and executed by a company named Prorata Investment with four months completion period in the sum of N94,763,735.82 and was captured in the 2016 financial year.

It was said to have been completed on 20th March 2017, after the site was handed over to the contractor on January 12, 2017.

The scope of the work also showed among other things, that the contractor should carry out construction of two boreholes and installation of Lorentz Solar pumps on the booster tank, construction of a 500m3 ground tank and booster pump house at Mayo Lamido.

Others are: connection of boreholes to the 500m3 and 250m3 ground tanks in Dukku and fencing of the entire scheme both at Mayo Lamido and Dukku.

However, in 2017 financial year, an addendum budget of N20m for the Phase II of the project was issued with the scope of work to construct 2No additional boreholes at Mayo Lamido, install Lorenzt solar pumps to each boreholes on the booster tank and connection of boreholes to the existing 500m3 ground tank. The second Phase was completed on March 12th, 2018.

In view of the above, Phase I & II of the project was executed between 2016 to 2018 by the Upper Benue River Basin Development Authority, and it claimed that at the time it completed the project, all the four solar boreholes were discharging water into the booster and were capable of filling the tank within two days at normal weather conditions.

However, in the financial year 2018 appropriation, the project was transferred to the Federal Ministry of Water Resources for the continuation with a budget of N250m.

In total, the whole project, according to the documents gulped not less than N364m; however, BudgIT, a civic organization that applies technology to intersect citizen engagement with institutional improvement and facilitate societal change told our reporter that N101.3m was earmarked for the project in 2016 financial year. 

Profile of the contracting company

According to extract of status report in respect of the company released by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), established in May 1983, Yekco Nigeria Limited (RC: 54948) listed seven persons as directors, one other as secretary and another one whose name appeared as director was also listed as person with significant control of the company.

However, the CAC revealed in the status column that Yekco Nigeria Limited is ‘inactive’ with the office address T. 10 Ahmadu Bello Way, Kaduna and with no specification of business activity.

Water can flow by end of November – Contractor  

Shola Oyeleke, who said he is the director of Yekco Nigeria Limited (though his name was not listed among the directors or secretary of the company in the document released by CAC) told Daily Trust  on Sunday on phone that presently the project is almost completed as it has reached 95 percent completion.

“In fact, it was completed based on the bill given to me from the ministry. But along the line, we found out that about a kilometre to the main tank from where the water will be distributed to the town; the pressure of the pipe could not carry it (the water). So, I complained to the ministry and the ministry wrote to the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) for an approval and we got an approval last week. So, hopefully in another two weeks we should come and replace the pipe that can take the water into the tank for the last stage to distribute water to the town.

“Other than that, every other thing has been completed. So, insha Allah before the end of November water will get to Dukku.

“The ministry did their feasibility study before the bill was made but alone the line, since nobody is perfect, we discovered that we had 16mm pipe so they now decided to increase it to 16bar 16mm and they had to seek approval from BPP so they got the approval which by next week or upper week, the pipes will get to the site and we will lay the pipes and water will come in to the town.”

“It is when we lay these pipes and water comes in that we will hand over and the project is completed.”

He confessed that his company carried out all the three phases of the project.

He said in the first place, the ministry did the feasibility study and came up with the bill, adding that he was not responsible for the bill.

“I followed everything in the bill given to me by the ministry. By the end of November, the project will be completed because in another two weeks by the grace of God the pipes will get to the site and we will start laying the two-kilometre pipes. And once that is done, we will just open the water as you can see the solar panels, pumps and everything is working perfectly. From the main source to the middle source, water comes in and there is no problem.

 “So, from the middle source to the end source is where the problem is because of the gravity of the way the water is flowing.”

Asked about the reticulation within Dukku town, he said they had already done.

He confirmed to our reporter that both Prorata and Yekco who did from the phase I to III of the project are his companies, adding that though they are different companies but he is the director of both.

“The 1st phase was awarded by the Upper Benue River Basin Development Authority and the 2nd & 3rd phases were awarded by the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.” 

Why we didn’t accept the project – LG chairman

Jamilu Ahmed Shabewa, the Executive Chairman of Dukku Local Government Area, said he personally visited the project site to assess how best the community could benefit from it.

He revealed that by the time he came onboard, the project was almost completed, adding that the project must have some hiccups somewhere hence no water comes in from it.

“We can say it is a technical problem and we appealed to the project’s sponsor to come and complete the project and hand it over to the local government. If that is done, we can play our own role to make it beneficial to our people.

“Sometime in April, a delegation from Gombe State Water Board was dispatched here for the purpose of handing over the project to us. But unfortunately, one cannot take over a project that has not been completed and is not viable. The aim is for water to enter the end tank and subsequently to the town. So, I don’t know how one can take over the project without a single drop of water from it!

“So, we raised our observations and duly informed the sponsor and the contractor of the project. We are impatient to see that this project is viable to ease the suffering of our people.”

He refuted allegations that some political opponents were vandalizing the project in order to sabotage it, noting that he hired a doorkeeper at the site.

He noted that presently, Dukku community relies on Gombe Abba water scheme which caters for only 15 percent of people’s demand. 

“Almost the whole of Dukku town depends on the murky pond of Kogin Dole for domestic purposes. The water is not clean enough but we use it all the same because we don’t have any alternative,” he added. 

This report was supported by the Daily Trust Foundation in collaboration with MacArthur Foundation.

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Originally Appeared Here

Bengaluru, Oct 27: One person died and several others have been hospitalised after drinking contaminated water in a village in Belagavi district, Karnataka Irrigation Minister Govind Karjol said on Thursday.

The state government has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased, the minister told reporters.

“On Wednesday in Mudenur village in Ramdurg Taluk of Belagavi, some people were hospitalised after drinking contaminated water and among them, a person named Shivappa Belleri died,” Karjol said.

The minister appealed to the villagers to use water from the Reverse Osmosis (a water purification process) unit installed by the state government in the village.

Karjol also asked people to remove dump yards around the borewells, indicating that the contamination of groundwater was due to the seepage of leachate.

“We are providing safe piped drinking water under the ‘Jal Jeevan’ Mission. Almost 80 per cent of the work is now over. In a month, every house in the village will get pure drinking water,” the minister said.

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Originally Appeared Here

Hundreds of thousands of Coloradans exposed to drinking water tainted by lead from aging, corroded city pipes or so-called “forever chemicals,” will see clean water faster thanks to a historic infusion of $500 million from the federal government.

The money, largely from the new Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, is being funneled through the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment over a five-year period and will allow miles of lead water delivery pipes to be replaced in towns across the state much faster than cities with little access to cash could achieve.

It will also be used to remove a set of chemicals known as PFAS, or poly and perfluoroalkyl substances, that are present in household and industrial products, such as Teflon and fire-fighting foam. The substances have been unregulated to date, although states and the federal government are writing new regulations to address the contaminants.

CDPHE officials said the money will double the agency’s capacity to fund its water quality safety work.

“The federal money is big,” said Nicole Rowan, director of the CDPHE’s Water Quality Control Division. “It’s a once in a generation opportunity to improve our infrastructure here in Colorado.”

To date, 67 Colorado water districts and communities, including the Academy Water and Sanitation District north of Colorado Springs, Limon, Louisville and Grand Junction, have expressed an interest in and are eligible for the funds, according to documents on file at the CDPHE.

Denver Water has been awarded $76 million to fast-track its lead pipe replacement program. The infusion will allow Denver to shave 1.5 years off the 15-year program, according to spokesman Jose Salas.

The City of Englewood also plans to apply, and will ask for $79 million to replace 8,000 lead service lines, according to Sarah Stone, deputy director of business solutions for Englewood Utilities.

Stone said the federal infrastructure funding will provide a critical boost to its efforts to remove lead from Englewood’s drinking water delivery system, if the city’s application is approved.

“We were extremely worried,” Stone said. “This means we can fund the program.”

Cities across the country, including Denver, Flint, Mich., Pittsburgh, Penn., Newark, N.J., and Washington, D.C., have been dogged by an increase in lead contamination as service lines age and corrode, allowing the lead to comingle with drinking water supplies, eventually reaching taps.

Denver Water, which is Colorado’s largest municipal water utility, has known lead was present at the tap in some of its customers’ homes since it appeared in routine sampling in 2013. The levels exceeded the benchmarks set under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

For several years, the utility ran pilot tests and negotiated with CDPHE and EPA over how best to eradicate the harmful metal. Though the amounts of lead found in Denver’s tap water samples varied, no amount of lead is considered safe to ingest, especially for young children.

The CDPHE issued an order in 2018 requiring Denver to begin adding phosphorous to its water, one of the most effective ways to reduce corrosion in pipes. But phosphorous is also a pollutant and causes problematic algae blooms in lakes and rivers. Adding it to the municipal drinking water supply would also make it harder for wastewater treatment operators to meet their own obligations to keep phosphorous out of rivers and streams.

Due to those concerns, Aurora, Metro Water Recovery, The Greenway Foundation, and eventually Denver, sued the CDPHE in 2018 to stop the order from taking effect.

The dispute was settled after Denver was able to obtain a rare variance under the Safe Drinking Water Act in exchange for agreeing to invest some $68 million over 15 years to replace lead service lines, offer free water filters to residents as they wait for the new lines to be installed, conduct community education programs, and increase the pH of the water supply to also help reduce corrosion in pipes.

Several cities and water districts are hoping the federal funding will allow them to mitigate their ongoing issues with PFAS contamination.

Roy Heald manages the Town of Security’s water utility. The town has been hard-hit by PFAS contamination attributed to Peterson Air Force Base. The PFAS chemicals from fire-fighting foam contaminated its groundwater.

Though the military facility has built a remediation plant for Security, it is considered a temporary facility, Heald said. With $450,000 in federal money from the American Rescue Plan Act approved earlier this year, Security is converting the plant to a permanent facility, one capable of operating for the decades it will likely take to clean up the groundwater.

“We’re happy to get it,” Heald said. “This work has to be done, and it’s $450,000 our ratepayers won’t have to pay.”

Jerd Smith is editor of Fresh Water News. She can be reached at 720-398-6474, via email at [email protected] or @jerd_smith.

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Originally Appeared Here

According to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center, there are approximately 200 varieties of apples grown in the U.S. Before slicing any number of them up as a snack, you may want to wash your apples to remove any residual dirt, residue, and the waxy protective coating added by distributors to preserve freshness, says Food & Wine.

McGill notes that apples have their own natural wax coating, but once picked, that protective coating is washed off by producers during the cleaning process. Therefore, a food-grade wax is added back to apples to increase their shelf-life. While perfectly safe to consume, USApple claims commercial wax has been used on apples since 1924 and has proven effective in maintaining apple quality.

The coating may be keeping your fruit fresh, but that shiny layer may also be preventing you from achieving perfectly coated caramel apples. In order to create an even coating, Cuisine At Home advises home cooks to soak apples for a few minutes in hot water with a dash of vinegar before proceeding with any caramel apple recipe. After scrubbing the apples with a towel to remove any wax, dry, add sticks, and start twirling those apples in a tilted caramel-filled saucepan. Now that you know the trick behind getting that luscious caramel to stick, what type of apples should you use?

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Originally Appeared Here

We got you.

Heading off on a trip can be more stressful than we need. Between lugging suitcases through the airport, delayed flights and boarding passes that aren’t scanning, it can be a lot.

And to top things off when we’re there, the water on display around Dublin Airport can be a nuisance if you don’t have any coins on you.

While you have the option of splashing out on some in duty-free or in one of the endless shops and cafes, it can be expensive to quench your thirst.

And of course, buying water at the airport is our only choice with the liquids rule at security.

While some people are cheeky enough to grab a bottle and go, not paying the €1 asked, there is a guilt-free way of ensuring you can get some water completely for free before boarding, writes Ellen Fitzpatrick.

@isthatmike03 My favourite travel airport hack ✈️ #fyp #london #comedy #adayinmylife #lgbt #travelhacks #travel #holiday #airporthacks ♬ BILLIE EILISH. – Armani White

TikTok user @IsThatMike03 has shared his hack in a video for making sure you get free water no matter what when you get to the airport.

Calling it his “favourite travel airport hack”, he shows himself taking a 1.5l bottle through security, but the catch is that it’s completely empty so it can’t count as a liquid.

Then when he gets past security and into the cafe and restaurant area, he simply asks one barman to fill it up with tap water – it’s really that simple.

While we’re sure he’s not the first person in the world to think of this hack, we certainly didn’t and we are glad to have had someone point out the trick.

Mike said: “You’ve got to get creative with the money-saving ideas.

“Every time I travel by plane, I like to bring an empty bottle of water to take through the airport security.

“Once I’m on the other side, I find the nearest bar or restaurant and ask them to fill it up with tap water for me.”

When it comes to Dublin Airport, there are water fountains past security, meaning it can be even easier to bring a full bottle on the plane – you don’t even have to ask anyone.

The Hydration Stations can be found on the Mezzanine level in Terminal 1, in the Arrivals Hall of Terminal 1, in the Departures areas in Terminals 1 and 2, immediately after security screening in Terminal 1, in all passenger boarding areas and in both baggage halls.

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Originally Appeared Here

SALT LAKE CITY — Lead in drinking water can cause serious brain and nervous system damage, especially in children, which is why the Utah Legislature passed House Bill 21, calling for the elimination of any trace of lead in school drinking water.

This bipartisan legislation was sponsored by Representative Stephen Hardy (District 16) and Senator Jani Iwamoto (District 4), and requires samples to be tested from water fountains in every school across the state.

FOX13 got an exclusive look at the team in action that is testing every school in the state to keep children safe.

“If you don’t sample all you can do is guess,” said Lead-Free Learning Project Coordinator Dylan Martinez.

Martinez acknowledges that this lead-free learning initiative is time consuming, but says a lot of different people are working together to get it done.

Currently, task is approximately 25 percent completed, with a deadline at the end of 2023.

“Lead targets every single organ system in the body, but it’s particularly harmful to the brain and nervous system. So lead poisoning can result in slow growth and development, learning and behavior problems,” said Utah State Toxicologist Dr. Alejandra Maldonado.

While everyone is potentially at risk, Dr. Maldonado says that children under the age of five are most vulnerable.

“With lead poisoning you don’t necessarily children don’t necessarily look or act sick. So the only way to know whether they’ve been poisoned is to test them,” she added.

Martinez says it feels really good knowing that children will be drinking water from a school that has been tested and found to be safe.

Dr. Maldonado echoed these sentiments, saying, “What a great story to be able to say that all the schools in Utah know their drinking water is lead-free.”

Parents can track the levels in their children’s schools by clicking here, where all the data the teams collect will be posted.

Eventually, levels for every water fountain in every school across Utah will be found at this site.

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Originally Appeared Here

RIYADH: Spooky season festivities began in Riyadh after the Boulevard was transformed into a venue-wide costume party during the “Scary Weekend” event, which took place on Thursday and Friday.

Dressed-up visitors were granted free entry to the Boulevard on the condition that they wore scary costumes.

The event was dedicated to showcasing terrifying disguises and parading the creative designs of Saudis and residents. The goal was to create an atmosphere filled with fun, thrills and excitement as people discovered the stories behind various character costumes.

One attendee, Abdulrahman, showcased a costume of the North American mythological creature Wendigo. The legend says that the folkloric creature is a malevolent spirit that possesses human beings, calls on feelings of greed and hunger, and cannibalizes people, feeding on their flesh. This was Abdulrahman’s first time celebrating Halloween in the country.

“It’s a great celebration, honestly, and there’s a spirit of joy… In terms of haram or halal, I don’t know about it. We celebrate it just for the fun of it and nothing else. We don’t believe in anything,” he told Arab News.

While Halloween has long been shunned across the Gulf, attendees at the event described the occasion as a form of harmless entertainment.

One eventgoer, Khaled Alharbi, said: “Actions are based on intentions. I’m just here to have fun.”

Alharbi came with his family, with members dressed as a bloodied doctor, nurse and consultant. They created a backstory behind their costumes, arriving at the Boulevard just in time for the city’s biggest costume party. Alharbi carried a two-year old family member dressed as witch, who playfully cast an insanity spell on the rest of the family.

This was also the family’s first time celebrating Halloween.

Nearby, another witch sat with velvety red hair and a festive hat, accompanied by her friend, dressed as Catwoman. Sitting on a sidewalk, completing their costumes with temporary tattoos, the two told Arab News about their experience.

“I tried to create a mix of jewelry and eyeliner tattoos. I think makeup inspires me as well. This is my first time celebrating Halloween. Last year I missed the date, so I will not miss it this time,” the witch, Ameera, said.

The pair added that the event was a great occasion to express their creativity and celebrate with the Saudi public. Both work in a hospital and said that dressing up was a great way to relieve stress and enjoy themselves.

“I support it. There’s an energy inside of us — we have to let it out. This celebration is the place to channel this energy. If there’s someone really creative and talented, who has a vivid imagination, they can let it out these days. For example, through drawing or cinematic makeup,” Ameera said.

Another attendee, Abdulaziz bin Khaled, decided to represent his love for Western movies and zombie gore, combining the two as he dressed as a decayed cowboy carrying a sign that read: “Be Careful It’s A Zombie.”

Bin Khaled said: “That’s my favorite type of movie: Cowboys, American wars, scary movies and Westerns. I love the Denzel Washington movie ‘The Magnificent Seven.’

“This is the second costume event they’ve had at the Boulevard. It’s really great and all the young men and women are out in amazing costumes. Everyone’s creating cool things inspired by movies and horror, and others. It’s so good that we can see this during Riyadh Season,” he added.

The event was complete with a fireworks show, enhanced sound effects and spooky decorations. A similar event took place earlier this year at Boulevard Riyadh City and Winter Wonderland on March 17 and 18.

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JACKSON, Miss (AP) — Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has extended the state of emergency over the water crisis in the capital city of Jackson. On the same day the emergency declaration was set to expire, Reeves said the state of emergency he declared on Aug. 30 would remain in place until Nov. 22.

Reeves and Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba have traded barbs over how much control the state and city will have to decide on a private firm to operate Jackson’s water system over the long term. City officials say an operator will be in place by Nov. 17, although a plan has yet to be finalized.

Reeves said extending the state of emergency would allow for a five-day transition period between the state’s management team and a private firm that will be chosen to operate the water system over the long term.

Jackson’s water system has been beset by problems for decades, and the latest troubles began in late August after heavy rainfall exacerbated problems in the city’s main treatment plant, leaving many customers without running water. Jackson had already been under a boil-water notice since late July because the state health department found cloudy water that could make people ill.

Jackson’s water crisis left most homes and businesses in the city without running water for several days in late August and early September. Since that time, “the state has invested nearly $13 million to prop up Jackson’s failing water system, distribute water, and restore clean running water to the residents of the city,” Reeves said.

President Joe Biden approved a federal emergency declaration on Aug 30. Volunteers and the National Guard distributed millions of bottles of drinking water. Water pressure has been restored, and the city’s boil-water notice was lifted in mid-September. But many residents remain skeptical about water safety in the city.

The Environmental Protection Agency announced in October that it is investigating whether Mississippi state agencies have discriminated against Jackson by refusing to fund water system improvements in the city of 150,000, where more than 80% of residents are Black and about a quarter of the population lives in poverty. Two congressional committees have also started a joint investigation into the crisis.

Lumumba’s office declined to comment Friday.

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Michael Goldberg is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/mikergoldberg.

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Water and Sanitation Minister, Senzo Mchunu reiterated the Ministry and department’s commitment towards the provision of water to the communities. This authoritative announcement was made during the launch of the Olifants Management Model Programme (OMM), today 27 October 2022 at Ga-Malekana Tribal Authority just outside Burgersfort in Limpopo.

The programme is meant to fast-track the potable and bulk raw water infrastructure with a view of ensuring that nearby communities and the surrounding mining, agriculture and other companies in Sekhukhune District, Polokwane and Mogalakwena Local Municipalities are supplied with adequate water by 2030.

Delivering his keynote address during the launch, Minister Mchunu indicated that this project is a huge milestone in our democracy, and it shouldn’t be taken lightly.

“This is a very good example of collective efforts, it is a three-dimensional partnership between government, private sector and more importantly the people of this area. This is a huge investment to the current and future generations, and it needs to be maintained” Minister Mchunu stated.

The programme, which is a collaboration between the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) and Lebalelo Water Users Association (LWUA) epitomises the effectiveness of public – private partnership where there is willingness to do so and will certainly go a long way in as far as addressing challenges in the water and sanitation sector is concerned.

Both DWS and LWUA consider reliable access to good, safe water as essential to life, nature, and economic growth, hence it is important to embark on water access projects that help bring safe, clean drinking water to communities in need.

The project scope amongst others includes enabling water supply to Mogalakwena by moving a portion of the Lebalelo scheme’s current supply from Flag Boshielo Dam to De Hoop Dam and developing reticulation and related infrastructure to benefit a total of 134 villages.

The estimated cost of the programme is R24 billion and will be funded on 50:50 contribution principle between government and the commercial users through the Lebalelo Water Users Association. These include African Rainbow Minerals, Anglo American Platinum, Assore, Corridor Resources, Cheetah Chrome, Glencore-Merafe, Implats, Ivanplats, Northam, Tameng and other industrial users.

Furthermore, this programme will address pressing water needs to approximately 380 000 people in the defined areas in the Limpopo province will be able to create 42 000 jobs.

The operative word during the project launch by DWS and Lebalelo was partnership, and both parties concur that this will amongst others unlock the strategic mineral and industrial potential in the region and more importantly it will provide a range of benefits such as much-needed water security, job creation and socio-economic development.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of South African Government.
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