Your Guide to Protecting and Preserving Water in Nebraska
Protecting and Preserving our Water Supply
Anywhere, in Nebraska, where groundwater is used as a source of drinking water protecting aquifers and wells, becomes a CRITICALLY vital mission. While many homeowners may erroneously believe this is a municipal water concern, protecting and preserving our groundwater actually begins in our own homes and businesses. There are a number of simple steps that can be taken around the home to ensure the reduction of potential contamination and the heightened quality of your drinking water.
Think Before you Pour… Consider What You Put Down the Drain:
Your drains and your toilets are not garbage cans and should never be used as such to get rid of trash – of any kind. One of the best ways to protect and preserve the quality of the water in your area is to give a little forethought to what you put down your sink and flush down your toilet. For example, many folks dispose of unused pharmaceutical products down the toilet or even the drain without giving it much thought. However, water treatment plants do not typically have the ability to screen for, let alone remove pharmaceutical contaminants from wastewater. This usually means that many drugs and hormones (birth control pills as an example) can end up in your nearby lakes, rivers and watersheds. Yes, your drinking water may very well contain trace elements of pharmaceuticals. The only effective way to totally eliminate these is with a home R.O. system.
You should also consider what cleaning products you use around the house. These all ultimately get flushed down the drains. Ideally, you should use an environmentally safe cleaning product such as lemon juice, vinegar or baking soda, which will prevent potentially toxic chemicals from entering the water system. Water treatment plants also often lack the capacity to remove many household chemicals from the water. In actual fact, the EPA only requires municipal water treatment plants to ONLY test for 90 chemicals in drinking water supplies, so potentially tens of thousands of harmful chemicals may even go undetected. Again the only way to 100% eliminate this potential threat is with what is known as FINAL BARRIER protection in your home. A Reverse Osmosis system or a whole home water treatment systemare such devices.
Avoiding the improper disposal of grease, cooking oil and other household waste items down the drain is also a factor. Not only can these items clog up your pipes and cause damage to your home plumbing, but they can also block sewer and waste water lines. This can allow sewage and gray water to flood out of the drains and runoff into other water sources.
Think about the Impact Gardening have on YOUR water:
Lawn and yard fertilizers and other gardening supplements often contain nitrate. Using these types of products can potentially allow nitrate-contaminated runoff to enter your very own water system that ultimately supplies your own well! Consider nitrate free gardening products, which will not contaminate the groundwater. If nitrate is the only option to replenish your soil, you should use these potentially hazardous agents with extreme care to prevent harmful long-term effects. You should also maintain the foliage in your garden, to reduce the risk of soil erosion. Soil in water runoff can allow sediment and contaminants to be washed into waterways and cause bacteriological contamination.
About The Author, Terry Reeh, EcoWater Systems of Nebraska:
With more than 25 years experience in the residential and commercial water treatment space, Terry is a WQA (Water Quality Association) certified water specialist, LEVEL 3, as well as a WQA certified sales representative. EcoWater Systems of Nebraska is one of the biggest water treatment and water delivery businesses in the state and Terry currently sits on EcoWater Systems (a Berkshire Hathaway Company) national Peers committee, as a water treatment expert advising other water professionals with less experience on best trade and technology practices.