National Ground Water Awareness Week

With all the attention Irish groundwater has been given over the years by the EPA here in Ireland, and it’s protection being cited as the major driver behind the introduction of septic registration and monitoring; it is surprising that we haven’t adopted the scheme run by the USEPA and organized a Ground Water Awareness Week. Forty-four percent of America's population regularly depends on ground water for its drinking water supply with in excess of 90 % of all public drinking water systems relying on ground water resources. So public awareness and participation in its protection is very important. The USEPA have set up a dedicated site for the event with loads of interesting downloads and activities. I particularly liked the Citizen's Guide to Ground Water Protection which describes how everyone can help to protect supplies and how to build your own aquifer in a cup. Check it out!   Link

National Ground Water Awareness Week runs from  March 11 to 17

Perchlorate Standard for US Drinking Water

Perchlorate in drinking water is known to suppress thyroid function by inhibiting uptake of iodide and its subsequent ability to produce hormones that are critical to development. Children and new born are particularly at risk. However, the exact safe dose of this compound is unknown. Link Link  In 2002 the US EPA suggested a limit of 1 ppb should be set, but in 2008 the Government decided not to regulate the compound but recommended drinking water concentrations should not exceed 15 ppb.

The US EPA has  now decided to regulate perchlorate under the Safe Drinking Water Act . Perclolrates are used to produce rocket fuel, fireworks and explosives, not activities associated with Ireland. However, they are also found in bleach, in some fertilizers and in nature making them universal. In the US it is estimated that between 5 to 17 million people may be exposed to perchlorate contaminated water with 153 supplies known to be contaminated. A standard is not expected to be set for at least 18-24 months. Link

US Water Infrastructure to be Upgraded

US EPA has announced a new national policy to deal with its aging water infrastructure.  The policy intends to upgrade systems using a range of sustainable options that will be able to deal with the potential storm water issues caused by climate change as well replacing aging systems. Link New York alone has  12,000 km of sewer most now fairly old and either overloaded or in need of replacement. Recently a plan was unveiled to spent $1.5 billion on upgrading their sewerage system to reduce CSOs dumping in excess of 110 billion litres of contaminated water each year into New York surface waters. This upgrade will include a range of sustainable urban drainage options from  green roofs to porous pavements to reduce the volume of surface water going to sewer.