Drinking Water Quality

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The EPA requires that public water systems must deliver a Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) to their customers each year to provide information about their local drinking water quality. In this Assignment, we will choose the city of Lowell in Massachusetts, the resource provided below for the most recent CCR report.

You are required to do the following:

1. Examine the 2023 Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) prepared by the Lowell Regional Water Utility and answer these questions:

When reviewing the CCR, what is your overall impression about the Lowell’s drinking water quality in 2023?
Does the Lowell drinking water meet the requirements of the EPA’s National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWR)?
Does the Lowell drinking water have any other contaminant(s) that are not listed in the EPA’s NPDWR?
Where does the Lowell drinking water originate?
2. Next, go to the Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) tap water database at https://www.ewg.org/tapwater/ and locate the Lowell Regional Water Utility data. Find out how the EWG Health Guidelines differ from the EPA’s NPDWR for detected contaminants in Lowell’s drinking water?

3. Finally, conclude briefly with your own thoughts on the significance of your above findings (if any) .

Resources for Assignment

Read: The Lowell Regional Water Utility. Consumer Confidence Reports (CCRs) 2023. Link to the website.
Link to Lowell 2023 CCR
Read: EPA. National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWR). Link to the website.
The entire NPDWR table: Link to PDF
Explore: Environmental Working Group (EWG) Tap Water Database. Link to the website.

 

Sample Solution

Analysis of Lowell’s Drinking Water Quality in 2023

1. Analyzing the Lowell Regional Water Utility’s 2023 CCR:

Unfortunately, I cannot directly access and process external resources like the Lowell Regional Water Utility’s CCR. However, I can guide you through the analysis process using the information you provided.

Here’s how to analyze the CCR to answer the questions:

  • Overall Impression: Look for sections on source water assessment, detected contaminants, and any health violations. If the report shows minimal contaminant levels well below regulatory limits and no violations, it suggests good overall water quality.
  • Meeting EPA Standards: Check the tables listing detected contaminants and their corresponding Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) set by the EPA’s National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWR) (link provided). If all detected levels are below their respective MCLs, the water meets EPA requirements.
  • Non-EPA Listed Contaminants: The CCR might mention contaminants not regulated by the NPDWR. These may be monitored for informational purposes but are not considered immediate health risks.
  • Water Source: The CCR should specify the source of Lowell’s drinking water, such as surface water (rivers, lakes) or groundwater (aquifers).

2. Contrasting EWG Health Guidelines with EPA Standards:

EWG Health Guidelines:

  • The Environmental Working Group (EWG) publishes its own health-based guidelines for many contaminants, often stricter than EPA’s NPDWR (link provided).
  • EWG considers potential health effects at lower levels than those regulated by the EPA.

How to find the differences (assuming EWG data access):

  • Visit the EWG tap water database (link provided) and locate Lowell Regional Water Utility data.
  • Compare contaminant levels listed in the CCR with EWG’s health guideline for each contaminant.
  • If any contaminant level exceeds the EWG guideline but remains below the EPA’s MCL, it suggests potential health concerns according to EWG.

3. Conclusion:

  • Summarize your findings on overall water quality, adherence to EPA standards, presence of unregulated contaminants, and water source based on the CCR.
  • If EWG data is available, discuss the potential health implications based on any discrepancies between EWG guidelines and EPA standards for detected contaminants.
  • Conclude with your own thoughts on the importance of clean drinking water and the value of both EPA regulations and EWG guidelines in ensuring public health.

Remember: This is a hypothetical analysis. For a complete picture, you would need to refer to the actual CCR and EWG data for Lowell’s drinking water.

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