Safe Drinking Water Act: Does it Do Enough?
There are many families that trust in their tap water until color starts to turn. If your water starts to have a reddish brown color or is beginning to smell, you might want to consider contacting an expert today. In 1974, the Safe Drinking Water Act was first enacted in this country to create a uniform set of quality standards for local water municipalities. Even though this law can protect you against contaminated water it may not necessarily ensure that your water is completely free from contaminants.
If you have heard of cases like Flint, Michigan and other ongoing cases of contamination across the United States, you might want to consider the idea of looking into the quality of your water over time. Incidents like this are wake up calls for many families. It also details some of the limitations within the law. Even with these federal standards in place, a local municipality needs to cooperate and report contaminant levels in order to make sure that a water supply is properly treated.
How Does The Safe Drinking Water Act Protect Private Citizens
The Safe Drinking Water Act was passed first by Congress in 1974 and it allowed for regulation of the public water supplies of every citizen and ensured that the same water was free of contaminants. When the law was first introduced there were 22 contaminants that were set for monitoring. The law has since been revised twice in 1986 and 1996 and it now includes checking for a total of 91 registered toxins.
How is The Law Limited
91 contaminants may seem like a respectable level of monitoring, but almost every aspect of the water treatment system introduces some type of contaminant into a local water supply. Agriculture, chemical processes in manufacturing can also add in their own unique contaminants.
The reporting of high contamination levels often falls under the onus of the local municipality. The EPA will not be able to adequately monitor the water quality throughout the country and this means that many local authorities will be responsible for monitoring their own water cleanliness. The SWDA will only regulate the quality of the water leaving the local treatment plant as well. Contaminants can often leak into your drinking water as it is in transit through your faucet, whether it’s through the fixtures or your pipes there can be a large number of contaminants added into your water supply.
How Can You Protect Yourself?
There’s no reason for you to wait for the SWDA to protect you from harmful contaminants, exercising caution by outfitting your own home with a home water filtration system is a great way to take the issues into your own hands. Making sure that you get access to the cleanest and safest water for your family can be important. A whole-home water filtration system will be responsible for removing impurities, reducing levels of chlorine, and making sure you can enjoy an improved glass of water. Contact us for more information on these purification systems!