Annual Drinking Water Quality Report for 2008

Village of Webster Water Department

28 West Main Street, Webster, NY 14580

(Public Water Supply ID# 2701061)

Introduction

To comply with State regulations, The Village of Webster Water Department will be annually issuing a report describing the quality of your drinking water.  The purpose of this report is to raise your understanding of drinking water and awareness of the need to protect our drinking water sources.  Last year, your tap water met all State drinking water health standards.  We are proud to report that our system did not violate a maximum contaminant level or any other water quality standard. This report provides an overview of last year’s water quality.  Included are details about where your water comes from, what it contains, and how it compares to State standards. 

If you have any questions about this report or concerning your drinking water, please contact the Webster Water Department at (585) 265-3770 ext 5. We want you to be informed about your drinking water.  If you want to learn more, please log onto our website at www.villageofwebster.com for helpful information, or feel free to attend any of our regularly scheduled village board meetings with your questions or suggestions. The meetings are held the second and fourth Thursdays of each month at 7:30 pm in the Village of Webster Community Meeting Hall located at 29 South Avenue

WHERE DOES OUR WATER COME FROM?

In general, the sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells.  As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activities.  Contaminants that may be present in source water include: microbial contaminants; inorganic contaminants; pesticides and herbicides; organic chemical contaminants; and radioactive contaminants.  In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the State and the EPA prescribe regulations which limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems.  The State Health Department’s and the FDA’s regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same protection for public health.

Our water source is groundwater and is pumped from the pre-glacial Irondo-Genesee Aquifer located approximately 300 to 400 feet below the ground.  Approximately 400,000 to 760,000 gallons of Webster’s ground water is pumped per day from the Village’s wellfields.   During 2008, our system did not experience any restriction of our water source.  The water is disinfected with chlorine, fluoridated to prevent tooth decay and a sequestering agent is added to keep the iron in solution prior to distribution.

FACTS AND FIGURES

Our water system serves approximately 3,000 households.  While in 2008, 201,158,480 gallons of water were pumped from the wells, 196,512,590 gallons were recorded consumed.  This 2.3% loss ratio is attributed to water loss from leaks and maintenance, meter discrepancy, fire flow testing and fire fighting use and practice.  In 2008, the average water usage was 7,000 gallons per month, for a monthly charge of $20.10. 

Are there contaminants in our drinking water?

As the State regulations require, we routinely test your drinking water for numerous contaminants. These contaminants include: total coliform, turbitity, inorganic compounds, haloacetic acids, nitrate, nitrite, lead and copper, volatile organic compounds, total trihalomethanes, and synthetic organic compounds.  Routine Test results show Webster water has no contaminants in excess of maximum contaminant levels.  The adjacent table depicts which compounds were detected in your drinking water.  The State allows us to test for some contaminants less than once per year because the concentrations of these contaminants do not change frequently.  Some of our data, though representative, are more than one year old. 

It should be noted that all drinking water, including bottled drinking water, may be reasonably expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants.  The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk.  More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791) or the Monroe County Department of Public Health at (585) 753-5057.

1 – Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness of the water.  We test it because it is a good indicator of the effectiveness of our filtration system.  Our highest single turbidity measurement (0.9 NTU) for the year occurred on (give date).  State regulations require that turbidity must always be below 1 NTU.  The regulations require that 95% of the turbidity samples collected have measurements below 0.3 NTU.  Although (give date) was the month when we had the fewest measurements meeting the treatment technique for turbidity, the levels recorded were within the acceptable range allowed and did not constitute a treatment technique violation.

2 – The level presented represents the 90th percentile of the 10 sites tested. A percentile is a value on a scale of 100 that indicates the percent of a distribution that is equal to or below it.  The 90th percentile is equal to or greater than 90% of the copper values detected at your water system.  In this case, (include number of samples, e.g. ten samples) samples were collected at your water system and the 90th percentile value was the (include what sample had the highest value, e.g. second highest value) value (include level detected e.g. 1.1 mg/l). The action level for copper was not exceeded at any of the sites tested.

3 – The level presented represents the 90th percentile of the (include number of samples, e.g. ten samples) samples collected.  The action level for lead was exceeded at two of the 10 sites tested.

4 – This level represents the annual quarterly average calculated from data collected.

Definitions:

Maximum Contaminant Level  (MCL): The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water.  MCLs are set as close to the MCLGs as feasible.

Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (MCLG): The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health.  MCLGs allow for a margin of safety.

Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level (MRDL): The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water.  There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of microbial contaminants.

Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level Goal (MRDLG): The level of a drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk to health.  MRDLGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectants to control microbial contamination.

Action Level  (AL): The concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water system must follow.

Treatment Technique (TT): A required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.

Non-Detects (ND): Laboratory analysis indicates that the constituent is not present.

Nephelometric Turbidity Unit (NTU): A measure of the clarity of water. Turbidity in excess of 5 NTU is just noticeable to the average person.

Milligrams per liter (mg/l): Corresponds to one part of liquid in one million parts of liquid (parts per million - ppm).

Micrograms per liter (ug/l): Corresponds to one part of liquid in one billion parts of liquid (parts per billion - ppb).

Nanograms per liter (ng/l): Corresponds to one part of liquid to one trillion parts of liquid (parts per trillion - ppt).

Picograms per liter (pg/l): Corresponds to one part per of liquid to one quadrillion parts of liquid (parts per quadrillion – ppq).

Picocuries per liter (pCi/L): A measure of the radioactivity in water.

Millirems per year (mrem/yr): A measure of radiation absorbed by the body.

Million Fibers per Liter (MFL): A measure of the presence of asbestos fibers that are longer than 10 micrometers.

What does this information mean?

As you can see by the table, our system had no violations.  We have learned through our testing that some contaminants have been detected; however, these contaminants were detected below the level allowed by the State.

Is our water system meeting other rules that govern operations?

During 2008, our system was in compliance with applicable State drinking water operating, monitoring and reporting requirements.

Do I Need to Take Special Precautions?

Although our drinking water met or exceeded state and federal regulations, some people may be more vulnerable to disease causing microorganisms or pathogens in drinking water than the general population.  Immuno-compromised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk from infections.  These people should seek advice from their health care provider about their drinking water.  EPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium, Giardia and other microbial pathogens are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791). 

INFORMATION ON FLUORIDE ADDITION

Our system is one of the many drinking water systems in New York State that provides drinking water with a controlled, low level of fluoride for consumer dental health protection.  According to the United States Centers for Disease Control, fluoride is very effective in preventing cavities when present in drinking water at an optimal range from 0.8 to 1.2 mg/l (parts per million).   To ensure that the fluoride supplement in your water provides optimal dental protection, the State Department of Health requires that the Village of Webster monitor fluoride levels on a daily basis.  During 2008 monitoring showed fluoride levels in your water were in the optimal range 100% of the time.  None of the monitoring results showed fluoride at levels that approach the 2.2 mg/l MCL for fluoride.

SODIUM

Water containing more than 20 mg/l of sodium should not be used for drinking by people on severely restricted sodium diets.  Water containing more than 270 mg/l of sodium should not be used for drinking by people on moderately restricted sodium diets.

Why Save Water and How to Avoid Wasting It?

Although our system has an adequate amount of water to meet present and future demands, there are a number of reasons why it is important to conserve water:

• Saving water saves energy and some of the costs associated with both of these necessities of life;
• Saving water reduces the cost of energy required to pump water and the need to construct costly new wells, pumping systems and water towers; and
• Saving water lessens the strain on the water system during a dry spell or drought, helping to avoid severe water use restrictions so that essential fire fighting needs are met.

You can play a role in conserving water by becoming conscious of the amount of water your household is using, and by looking for ways to use less whenever you can.  It is not hard to conserve water.  Conservation tips include:

• Automatic dishwashers use 15 gallons for every cycle, regardless of how many dishes are loaded.  So get a run for your money and load it to capacity.
• Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth.
• Check every faucet in your home for leaks.  Just a slow drip can waste 15 to 20 gallons a day.  Fix it up and you can save almost 6,000 gallons per year.
• Check your toilets for leaks by putting a few drops of food coloring in the tank, watch for a few minutes to see if the color shows up in the bowl.  It is not uncommon to lose up to 100 gallons a day from one of these otherwise invisible toilet leaks.  Fix it and you save more than 30,000 gallons a year.
• Use your water meter to detect hidden leaks.  Simply turn off all taps and water using appliances, then check the meter after 15 minutes,  If it moved, you have a leak.

System Improvements

In the summer of 2008 the water department, initiated a Water Line Rehabilitation Project in the Wilmorite Track (aka Indian Village).   This program involved scraping the inside of 5,560 feet of main to remove accumulated materials, followed by lining the entire pipe to protect the water main from further corrosion.  This work not only resulted in improved water flows in the water line and a more efficient operation of our system, it also has reduced the frequency of discolored water in that area.  We are looking forward to continuing with this project throughout our water system in the future.

In addition to the Water Line Rehabilitation Project, the water department continued its progress on the North Avenue watermain by replacing 680 feet of 12 inch main that was installed in 1926.  We will continue to work on these and similar projects into 2009.

CLOSING

Thank you for allowing us to continue to provide your family with quality drinking water this year. We ask that all our customers help us protect our water sources, which are the heart of our community.  We enjoy delivering quality water to our residents, and strive to provide excellent customer service.  Your questions and suggestions are always welcome so please feel free to contact our office at (585) 265-3770 whenever you feel the need.