This week's NEWS

PPCPs continue to make news with activities to address them taking place on many fronts. Looking for the 100-percent-perfect, no-holes method to notify the public? A fertilizer chemical shortage impacts water treatment... and no, it has nothing to do with fluoride. Erin B is alive and well... in Ft. Lauderdale? Got acid reflux? Arthritis? Try some crazy water.

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Federal Updates

• AWWA asks senator to include funding for Drinking Water SRF (PDF file, 23 K)

State Updates

• Vermont's summer Waterline newsletter (PDF file, 475 K)
• Washington's Tech Tip on pump house piping shows locations of sample taps and chemical injection points (PDF file, 180 K)

Water Treatment

• Phosphate shortage could impact utilities' ability to control corrosion (Environmental Science and Technology, August 6)
• Double membrane processes (MF and NF) featured in California district's new $44 million plant to treat "imported" surface water (Riverside Press Enterprise, August 7)
• Colorado town fails turbidity standard; auto monitoring installed pending new water treatment plant (Telluride News, August 12)

Treatment/PPCPs

• WRF 18-month study will look at efficacy of bio-filters at Texas city's water treatment plant (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, August 9)
• Research finds conventional treatment removes drugs from water sources (Environmental Science and Technology, August 6); abstract of the research at Spanish water treatment plant

PPCPs

• USEPA seeks information on one prong of four-pronged program on PPCPs; understanding methods/activities to properly dispose of unwanted medications
• Illinois EPA reports finding only trace levels of pharmaceuticals in state raw and treated water (Illinois EPA news release, August 6); the report (PDF file, 54 K); detailed sampling results (PDF file, 13 K)
• New York DEC has excellent, clear information on proper disposal of household prescriptions and over-the-counter drugs
• Like many water utilities, Arlington, TX, provides information on proper disposal of unwanted drugs

Microbiological

• Massachusetts town finds E. coli in three samples; BWA issued and bottled water provided  (Brockton Enterprise, August 12); a few residents complain that they didn't get the notice despite use of reverse 911 system (Pembroke Mariner & Reporter, August 12); town provides excellent information on its website
  Commentary: The reverse 911 systems provide much faster and much more complete notification than the best of the "old fashioned" methods, but the lesson learned is that no single method will ever be perfect. Combining the telephone notices with electronic media (if either method is available in an emergency???) would seem to give the best coverage. Even door-to-door delivery of notices in smaller systems (or parts of larger systems) end up with "holes" (such as a notice put on front door where the resident uses only back door; strong wind; the dog ate the notice?).
• Montana town issues a precautionary BWA as low pressure results from human error (Associated Press, August 8)
• Sodium hypochlorite dosages for disinfecting during emergencies (JAWWA, August)

Disinfection Byproducts

• pH is important in formation of "other" disinfection byproducts during chlorination and chloramination (JAWWA, August)
• Small Florida privately owned system finally complies with disinfection byproducts standards, but residents are not at all confident (South Florida Sun Sentinel, August 10); look who showed up in the Readers' Comments on this story: Erin Brockovich!

Arsenic

• Research shows promise in combined GAC-iron treatment (JAWWA, August)
• Arizona water company has slightly elevated arsenic in some wells (Arizona Republic, August 10)
• Oregon study shows only "a few" private wells in one county have arsenic, but a few of the few are over 200 ppb (Oregon DHS news release, August 4)

Sodium

• Canadian subdivision gets precautionary advisory on elevated sodium – 100 ppm (Milton Canadian Champion, August 11)

Radium

• New York community tries another approach to get radium-free water source for private well owners (Lower Hudson Journal News, August 11)

Fluoridation

• Canadian health officials defend use of fluoride in water (Canadian Press, August 8)
• Opponents in Nebraska city want ballot to use the words "fluorocistic acid," not just fluoride (KHAS-TV, August 8)

Legal Matters

• In West Virginia lawsuit seeking class-action status, judge raises questions about "statistical significance" of studies on PFOA (Charleston Gazette, August 7)

Mineral Water

• "Famous" water from Mineral Wells, TX, is happy to be called crazy! (Azle News, August 7)
  Commentary: Where else would a scheme like this work? The worse the water quality is, the more it costs. At five cents a cup, it may inspire some utilities to add chemicals (including some lithium?) to their relatively pure, but bland, tap water instead of trying to compete with bottled waters. Crazy? Yeah, like a fox!

Desalination

• Long-delayed Southern California desalination plant finally receives go-ahead from California Coastal Commission (San Diego Union Tribune, August 6)
• Reverse osmosis plant to desalt brackish river water in Massachusetts is ahead of schedule (Fall River Herald News, August 11)

Water Reuse

• Recharging ground water with recycled water (and storm water) will likely be included in Oklahoma comprehensive water plan (Muskogee Phoenix, August 9)
• WateReuse, AWWA, and WEF host BIG recycling and desalination conference in BIG D – for Dallas, TX – September 7-10
• A tall, cool drink of... sewage? (New York Times, August 8)

Small Water Systems

• WHO's Small Community Water Supply Network has posted the minutes from the International Small Community Water Supply Network's fourth meeting

Conferences/Training/Webcasts

• AWWA August 20 webcast: Chlorine Gas: Balancing Public Health and Security
• AWWA Distribution Systems Symposium is set for September 21-28 in Austin, TX
• AWWA Water Quality Technology Conference and Exposition (WQTC) will be in Cincinnati, OH, November 16-20

International

• WHO's draft Guide to Hygiene and Sanitation in Aviation available for public comment; the draft is based on the third Meeting of Experts on the WHO Guide (PDF file, 117 K)
• World Water Week (August 17-23) in Stockholm - Where the Water World Meets

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