COMPANION TO A Drop of Knowledge: A Drop of Knowledge The Non-operator’s Guide to Waste Water Systems The Non-operator’s Guide to Drinking Water Systems RURAL COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE PARTNERSHIP RCAP an equal opportunity provider and employer This guide was written by the National Environmental Services Center (www.nesc.wvu.edu) at West Virginia University on behalf of Rural Community Assistance Partnership, Inc. Copyright © 2011 The entire contents of this guide are available on the RCAP website at www.rcap.org This material is based upon work supported under a grant by the Utilities Programs, United States Department of Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Utilities Programs. A Drop of Knowledge The Non-operator’s Guide to Drinking Water Systems Rural Community Assistance Partnership, Inc. 1701 K St. NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20006 202/408-1273 800/321-7227 (toll-free) [email protected] www.rcap.org Table of Contents ABOUT THIS GUIDE 1 INTRODUCTION TO DRINKING WATER SYSTEMS What are water systems? 3 Source water 4 HOW DOES SOURCE WATER BECOME DRINKING WATER? Multiple-barrier approach 8 Groundwater systems from source to tap 9 Surface water systems from source to tap 13 HOW DOES DRINKING WATER GET TO MY HOME? THE WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM 30 OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS 41 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES 43 GLOSSARY 45 i ABOUT THIS GUIDE About this guide Water is central to our everyday lives. There isn’t a single human being on Earth who can do without it. Many people live without some things that most of us consider “essential,” such as electricity or a telephone. If you didn’t have these things for several days or weeks, there are acceptable substitutes—using candles or writing a letter. But there are very few things, if any, that you could substitute for water if you had to go without it for a while. Consider what just one day would be like without any clean, safe water. You wake up, stumble into the bathroom and twist the shower handle, but nothing comes out. You’re dirty and groggy, and you crave the massage of hot water or maybe the jolt of a cool shower. You’re unable to brush your teeth or flush the toilet. In the kitchen, you can’t brew your morning cup of coffee. You can’t make oatmeal, water your plants or wash your clothes. You can’t even iron your work outfit without water. During the course of the day, you can’t wash your hands or clean your car. You won’t be able to re-hydrate after a tough workout. Without water, there are no ice cubes for a cool lemonade on a hot afternoon. Your ‘hidden’ consumption of water How do you find out what your water footprint is? Freshwater is a scare resource. The Water Footprint Network (www.waterfootprint. Besides the many ways we directly use water every org) has created an online calculator to help you day—drinking, washing, cooking, to flush waste away, determine your water footprint. You can plug in swimming—we use large amounts of water indirectly your personal daily habits at www.waterfootprint. as consumers of other goods. org/?page=cal/WaterFootprintCalculator A way to consider your total water usage is to look This tool also allows you to compare your at your “water footprint.” This is the total volume of water footprint to others around the world. freshwater used to produce the goods and services (Note: The calculators on that site use the metric system you consume each day. By becoming aware of and for its measurements because of the international working to reduce your water footprint, you can help nature of its information. You may find it helpful to reduce strain on supplies and improve freshwater search for a metric conversion tools online.) conservation. A DROP OF KNOWLEDGE The Non-operator’s Guide to Drinking Water Systems • 1 TIP: As you read this guide, keep a highlighter in hand or mark pages with sticky bookmarks for parts that are relevant to your system. What this guide is for ABOUT THIS GUIDE Most of us take our drinking water for granted. Informed leaders make better decisions We turn on the tap, and, with very few This guide provides an overview of all of exceptions, we have clean, safe water. While the technical aspects of your drinking water clean water is available nearly everywhere and system so you can make sound decisions as is simple to get through a faucet in a home, you manage the system. This guide does not what goes on behind the scenes to provide provide all of the detail and expertise to make it is very complex and requires the input of decisions about operations and processes. many parts and people. Water is such an You are encouraged to work with your system’s ordinary and everyday part of our lives, yet it certified operator(s) for this purpose and requires so much to get it to us—strict health consult with him or her for advanced issues. regulations, a knowledge of chemical, biological and technical processes, budgeting to run a Water systems are moving toward business, and miles of infrastructure to make it “sustainability” these days. This includes doing convenient to get, to name just a few things. more planning, thinking about the long-term, and finding ways to be more self-reliant. In As a leader in your community, making the coming years, our nation’s drinking water decisions about your community’s drinking systems will face unprecedented challenges: water system is probably part of your role. And water shortages, aging infrastructure, it is an important role. You may be on a board an aging workforce, and lack of funding, or council that is the highest decision-making to name the most obvious issues. body for your community’s water system. This means you, along with the other leaders, need As a local leader, your own actions can to oversee all of the activities that go on in the set the tone for the rest of the community. system—not with an extensive knowledge of Therefore, it is your responsibility to be as each activity, but at least with an awareness informed as possible about the systems and of what happens and what is required. processes that convey safe drinking water to your community’s residences, businesses Whatever your role or capacity is, you are and institutions. This guide will supply you to be congratulated for taking an interest in with some meaningful information about the your community’s drinking water supply. state of your drinking water supplies. When You may want more information about what you have more information, you can make it takes to provide the vital resource of better decisions about current and future drinking water. This guide to the operations operations of your community’s system. of drinking water systems for non-technical By reading this guide, you are becoming audiences is designed to explain a typical engaged in the process of learning more small-community water system—from about your responsibilities and providing the source of the drinking water, through an essential resource in your community. the treatment process, to the customer’s Remember, safe drinking water is up to tap—in an easy-to-understand manner. you and your community. Be informed. Be engaged. And be a leader. 2 • About This Guide Introduction to Drinking Water Systems What are water systems? • Non-transient non-community water system: A public water system that In the United States, there are regularly supplies water to at least INTRODUCTION approximately 155,000 public water 25 of the same people at least six systems. The U.S. Environmental Protection months per year, but not year-round. Agency (EPA) classifies these systems Some examples are schools, factories, according to the number of people they office buildings, and hospitals that serve, the source of their water, and have their own water systems. whether they serve the same customers year-round or on an occasional basis. • Transient non-community water system: Most public water systems are owned A public water system that serves at by the municipality they serve, but they least 25 different people for 60 days can also be owned by private companies, or more each year. Some examples nonprofit corporations, or individuals. are gas stations, campgrounds, and restaurants or bars with their own According to EPA’s definition, a public water supply, where people do not water system transports water that remain for long periods of time. has been treated or otherwise made safe for human consumption through a EPA mandates that each state and tribal system of pipes and other constructed drinking water primacy agency (regulatory conveyances to at least 15 service office) inspect its drinking water systems connections or to a destination where on a regular basis. These inspections at least an average of 25 individuals are are called sanitary surveys, and they are served at least 60 days out of the year. scheduled according to system type. Here is the schedule: The term public water system includes the following: System type Frequency • Any collection, treatment, storage, and Every 5 years distribution facilities under control of Non-community water system (transient and the operator of such system and used non-transient) primarily in connection with such system Every 3 years • Any collection or pretreatment Community water system storage facilities not under such Every 5 years control, which are used primarily Community water systems with outstanding in connection with such system.