According to research conducted by the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the safety of public drinking water in some cities may be at risk. The fundamental problem is that the drinking water systems, including the piping used to distribute the water and the technology used to treat the water, is old and out-dated. When old, rusty pipes are not replaced, contaminants tend to leach into the water and bacteria can grow. Plus, out-dated water treatment plants were not designed to remove contaminants found in today's world. If a city's drinking water system faces either or both of these problems, the health of tap water drinkers may be compromised.

Key Factors to Clean Water

Clean, safe, and healthy drinking water is dependent upon successfully meeting the requirements of three main components. If any of these components are compromised, the quality of our tap water will suffer and residents may get sick.

  * Delivery Systems: Piping and water ways must be in good shape, monitored for damage, and routinely repaired.
  * Treatment Facilities: Modern technology must be used in water treatment facilities so that today's chemicals, pesticides and other pollutants can be treated.
  * Water Sources: Our water sources, such as streams, lakes, reservoirs, and even aquafers, must be kept clean. This means that each water source must be protected from pollutants as much as possible.

If your city's drinking water system is not up to par, the very water you drink each day to maintain your health may be hurting you. Contaminants typically found in unclean drinking water includes toxic chemicals, lead, germs, and by-products of chlorine- and chloramine-treated water. When a city's drinking water contains high levels of these contaminants, one or more of the key factors has broken down and residents at are risk.

How Can We Improve the Safety of Our Water?

Once the source of a city's safe water problems has been identified, improving the quality of its water is a matter of systematically addressing the problems. If a city has old piping that may be contributing to the water safety, the city's delivery system must be replaced.

Likewise, if the water treatment plant used to treat the our water is an old system that was installed with technology not designed to meet the challenges of today's pollutants, the safety of our water supply will be at risk.

Ensuring that sources of water themselves are protected from pollution is vital to clean, safe, and healthy drinking water. The water contaminants that are introduced into our water supply range from man-made sources such as industrial pollution from industry, chemical or petroleum spills, mining waste, and sewage to natural sources like animal waste and contaminants that leach from rock. The first step in protecting our water source is to identify where the pollution is coming from. Once identified, a feasible plan must be developed, implemented and enforced.

The Bottom Line

It would be difficult to argue against the necessity of clean public drinking water. The arguments and disagreements tend to surround the question of how far-reaching should local and federal laws go to protect our water. And what's the most effective way to pay for new water treatment plants and new delivery systems? Given that we need safe water to live, every city, town and community has the duty and responsibility to work through these issues to ensure the safety of the water delivered to its citizens.