Pure Water Occasional, July 3, 2020 |
Pure Water Products' online business is doing business as usual during the shutdown. We are offering the same services as before for internet customers, including phone and email product support. Since we've spread our staff out and are working more from home, we may be a little slower shipping or responding to calls and emails. Also, we now have no scheduled Saturday phone support hours, though if you email or call and leave a message, we'll respond promptly.
Locally, we've closed down our walk-in store front and are not doing service calls or installations. We do have "curb-side" pickup services, however, and customers in our area can pick up anything we sell at our Denton store if you order online or by phone.
Thank you for your cooperation. We take the current health crises seriously and are doing everything we can to protect the health of our staff and customers.
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Mr. Trash Wheel, or The Baltimore Garbage Gobbler
In May 2020, Baltimore's Mr. Trash Wheel, a solar and hydro powered trash interceptor that removes debris from the city's Jones Falls River, was awarded a Guinness World Record for clearing 63.3 tons of garbage in one month.
The googly-eyed trash wheel, invented by Baltimore local John Kellett for the Healthy Harbor Initiative of the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore, cleared 63.3 tons of trash from the mouth of the river from April 1 to April 30, 2017, Guinness World Records announced. Mr. Trash Wheel will appear in the 2020 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records for earning the record for most floating debris removed by a trash receptor in one month. UPI.
As a result of the Covid-19 lockdown, the holy river Ganges, one of the ten rivers that are said to contribute 95% of the world's ocean pollution, shows a 30 percent decrease in pollution levels. Aquatech.
According to the Water Quality Association, "Any product which is certified to remove bacteria, cyst and viruses under the U.S. EPA Guide Standard and Protocol for Testing Microbiological Water Purifiers, or under NSF P231, should also work with COVID-19."
According to the CDC, COVID 19 and other viruses cannot survive in a properly maintained swimming pool. This means pH between 7.2 and 7.8, chlorine level at least 1 ppm, and, if you use alternatives like saline and bromine, keep them at standard, recommended levels. More.
Nine leading water associations wrote a letter urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to use “sound science and robust analyses” as it evaluates drinking water standards for two per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS). PFAS are a large group of man-made chemicals used in consumer products and industrial processes. In use since the 1940s, they have properties that make them persistent in the environment and they are often referred to as the "forever" chemicals. The letter is in response to recent Trump administration pressure to loosen PFAS standards, especially as regards PFAS content of imported products. Details.
A seldom-mentioned consequence of the corona pandemic are mountains of disinfectant wipes, masks, and rubber gloves that cannot be treated by already-overworked sewage systems. A Canadian source estimates an increased $250 million expense to wastewater systems to process the virus-related items being added to the rivers of sludge. Disposable masks may feel like soft cotton, but they're almost all made from non-biodegradable material such as polypropylene. CBC News.
Covid-19 debris obviously adds to the already-critical problem of fatbergs in wastewater systems.
The New York Times reports the Trump administration, in twin actions to curb environmental regulations, signed an executive order that calls on agencies to waive required reviews of infrastructure projects to be built during the pandemic-driven economic crisis. At the same time, the U.S. EPA has proposed a new rule that changes the way the agency uses cost-benefit analyses to enact Clean Air Act regulations, effectively limiting the strength of future air pollution controls.
Germany’s Rhine River is entering dry summer months with water levels at their lowest in two decades, prompting fears of shipping disruption on Europe’s most important inland waterway. "A mix of glacial run-off and rain feeds the river, but contributions from glaciers have dwindled in recent years as summer melting outpaces ice formation in winter thanks to global warming." Bloomberg.
Research by North Carolina State University scientists found PFAS contamination in every step of the Yadkin-Pee Dee River food chain. See article below.
A Colorado child died of "water intoxication" after being forced to drink 64 oz. of water per day in a misguided attempt to deal with a bed-wetting issue. 69 News.
Scientists believe that a mysterious "floating island" that appeared in Michigan's Muskegan Lake resulted from erosion and very high water levels. The Science Times.
Water consumption in the city of Tehran has recently grown at a rate described as "alarming." The English Language Financial Tribune reports, “Average water consumption in Tehran has experienced an ascending order and increased 200,000 cubic meters per month in the last 80 days.”
The EPA has made it official that it won’t set national drinking water standards for perchlorate, a rocket fuel chemical. The decision is expected to result in litigation against the agency. The agency acknowledged perchlorate can affect human health by interfering with the thyroid gland, but said the chemical doesn’t appear in enough public water systems, or at high enough levels, to cause concern. Bloomberg Law.
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FAQ
This section always includes actual questions received since the previous Occasional and our actual answer.
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The "Air-Gap" Faucet
We've had several questions recently about the mysterious "air-gap faucet."
Although it has been a standard option for undersink RO systems for many years, the air-gap faucet remains one of the most misused, misunderstood, and certainly most disliked and vilified products in home water treatment. Rather than answer individual questions, we often just refer people to Pure Water Annie's article on the subject.
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National Garden Hose Day Put On Hold for 2020
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Although we had our poster ready to go, we announce with regret that National Garden Hose Day festivities have been put on hold for the present and are not likely to be rescheduled for later in the year.
National Garden Hose Day, which is usually celebrated on or near the first day of summer, will not be observed this year due to the compelling need for social distancing. As national director Ron Carson points out, “Garden Hose Day events have always drawn large crowds, and large crowds are not what the nation needs this summer. We urge you to stay home and enjoy your garden hose in the safety of your own back yard.” Carson explained that if conditions change rapidly for the better, limited Garden Hose Day celebrations may be held in some cities later in the summer. “But for now,” he said, “celebrate with your family and stay safe.”
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PFAS present throughout the Yadkin-Pee Dee river food chain
Researchers have found per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in every step of the Yadkin-Pee Dee River food chain, even though the river does not have a known industrial input of these compounds.
Gazette’s Introductory Note: This North Carolina State University research adds a new dimension to PFAS contamination of the environment. You can protect yourself from PFAS in drinking water with a home reverse osmosis unit, but it may be harder to avoid PFAS-contaminated foods. The ubiquitousness of PFAS especially brings into question the wisdom of the recent administration rejection of proposed EPA rules designed to limit PFAS content of imported goods.
Researchers from North Carolina State University have found per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in every step of the Yadkin-Pee Dee River food chain, even though the river does not have a known industrial input of these compounds. The study examined the entire aquatic ecosystem for PFAS compounds and identified strong links between ecosystem groups that lead to biomagnification, the process that leads to greater concentrations of these substances in animals that sit higher on the food chain — including humans.
PFAS compounds were engineered to resist friction and heat, and are in many products that we use daily, from furniture to meat packaging. However, it is this “slippery” characteristic that makes them persist in ecosystems and poses a risk to our health.
“These compounds are engineered to be persistent on purpose; this is how they keep stains off your couch and eggs from sticking to your frying pan,” says Tom Kwak, unit leader of NC Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, professor of applied ecology at NC State, and a co-author of the study. “We pay the price for these compounds when they enter the aquatic ecosystem.”
In a study measuring real-time PFAS contamination levels along the entire food chain of this major Atlantic river — from water and sediment to insects and fish — the researchers identified two PFAS hot spots along the Pee Dee and were able to establish strong links of PFAS transmission up the aquatic food chain.
The research team collected water, sediment, algae, plant, insect, fish, crayfish, and mollusk samples at five study sites along the length of the Yadkin-Pee Dee River, which begins in Blowing Rock, N.C., and runs 230 miles to empty into the Atlantic Ocean at Winyah Bay, South Carolina. They analyzed the samples for 14 different PFAS compounds.
While nearly every sample contained PFAS compounds, the site with the greatest PFAS concentrations was just downstream of the Rocky River input, which drains part of the watershed from Charlotte, NCand the surrounding area. The site with the second greatest PFAS concentrations was downstream in South Carolina, but there is no known or plausible input of PFAS for that region.
In aquatic food chains, biofilm — the soupy mixture of algae and bacteria that sticks to your boat — is the base resource for all life further up the chain. In this study, the largest concentrations of 10 of the 14 PFAS compounds measured were in biofilm samples.
Unsurprisingly, aquatic insects, which primarily eat biofilm, had the greatest accumulation of PFAS compounds of all the living taxa the researchers sampled. This confirms a strong trophic link, or step in the food chain, showing how PFAS transfers from biofilm to insects, which are then eaten by freshwater fish.
When PFAS is in every step of the food chain, the compounds accumulate at each step. For example, a fish caught in an area with PFAS may have eaten hundreds of insects, each of which has consumed contaminated biofilm and other plants.
“We are part of the food chain and when we ingest these foods, we accumulate their PFAS loads, too,” says Greg Cope, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Applied Ecology, coordinator of the NC State Agromedicine Institute, and corresponding author of the study. “This gives new meaning to the phrase, ‘You are what you eat.'”
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Utah Study of Covid-19 in Wastewater
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Utah sewage study detects high concentrations of novel coronavirus in large cities, areas with outbreaks
By Ashley Imlay
Gazette Introductory Note: We should underline that detecting virus in wastewater does not mean that there is viral contamination of drinking water. Note that “the virus in its flushed form is no longer alive,” and “the virus was not found in water leaving sewage treatment plants but in water entering all 10 sewage plants.”
Testing for virus in wastewater plants could be a valuable health management tool.
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah scientists say sewage could provide a tool for ongoing monitoring and early detection of the novel coronavirus in communities after they found high concentrations of the the virus in areas with outbreaks.
The information could be useful for state officials as infection numbers keep climbing.
Researchers hoped to discover whether waste that gets flushed down the toilet could help Utah get a more localized picture of infection rates. In March, as part of a pilot study, they began testing samples of untreated wastewater for the presence of COVID-19 gene copies in 10 treatment plants across the Beehive State representing about 40% of Utah’s population.
“The initial results show that we can not only detect the virus in sewage, but we can see trends that are broadly consistent with known infection rates in Utah’s communities,” Erica Gaddis, director of the Utah Division of Water Quality, said in a statement.
“Monitoring virus in Utah’s sewage systems offers a tool for early detection of rising infections, monitoring community infection trends and confirmation of low infection rates. We hope that monitoring the sewage can help in prioritizing limited state resources such as mobile testing,” Gaddis said.
The virus in its flushed form is no longer alive, but copies of its genetic material get left behind. Officials say that even those with asymptomatic infections shed the virus in their feces.
Plant operators voluntarily collected samples at the inlets of their sewage treatment plants beginning in mid-April through the end of May. Researchers estimated viral concentration per 100,000 people.
The virus was not found in water leaving sewage treatment plants but in water entering all 10 sewage plants, officials said, with 64% of the 171 collected samples containing it.
In late May, when Cache County reported an outbreak at a Hyrum meat packaging facility that led to a sharp increase in cases, the Logan and Hyrum sewage plants also saw large increases of the virus in water samples.
But highest viral concentrations were detected in larger cities, researchers said, especially tourist communities.
Utah is now “committed to expanding and operationalizing this tool in the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic,” officials said.
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The Meaning of Permanent and Temporary Hardness in Water
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Gazette Water Wizard Pure Water Annie Explains Why You Have to Watch Out for Temporary Hardness
What we call hardness in water–the property that causes hard scale to form on appliances and inside pipes and water heaters, spots on dishes, and soap scum–is caused by the presence of calcium and/or magnesium ions in the water. The more calcium and magnesium, the harder the water. The sum of the concentrated calcium and magnesium is often called “total hardness.”
All hardness, however, is not created equal. The hardness that gives you trouble in the home is what is called “temporary” hardness, as opposed to “permanent” hardness. That’s because temporary hardness, also called carbonate or bicarbonate hardness, breaks down when it’s heated and forms hard scale. Permanent hardness, on the other hand, does not break down when heated and does not cause problems.
The test, then, for whether hardness is “permanent” or “temporary” is how it behaves when heated.
Needless to say, in the home, hot water heaters and any appliances that use hot water are very vulnerable to the effects of temporary hardness.
In general terms, temporary hardness is the predominant form. Most water hardness is either all temporary or a mixture of temporary and permanent.
If you look at a water analysis, the way to determine the type of hardness is to compare the total hardness with the total alkalinity of the sample. Most water tests report both hardness and alkalinity “as CaCO3.” Reporting “as if it were Calcium Carbonate” is simply a way of putting the items in a common frame of reference so they can be compared, the way we find a “common denominator” when we add fractions.
If the total alkalinity of the water is greater than the total hardness, then all the hardness in the water is temporary. However, if the total alkalinity is less than the total hardness, both permanent and temporary hardness are present and the the amount of temporary hardness is equal to the alkalinity.
Here are examples:
Hardness — 150 ppm.
Alkalinity — 250 ppm.
Result: Temporary hardness=150 ppm. (Alkalinity exceeds hardness, so all hardness is temporary.)
Hardness — 150 ppm.
Alkalinity — 100 ppm.
Result — Temporary hardness= 100 ppm. Permanent hardess = 50 ppm. (When hardness exceeds alkalinity, temporary hardness is equal to alkalinity and permanent hardess equals total hardness less alkalinity.)
What does all this matter? Not much for residential water users, since most hardness is reported as “total hardness” and both types are treated with a water softener. It might matter, though, if you were manager of a municipal water system, since temporary hardness can be reduced by a process called “lime softening” that isn’t used for residential treatment.
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Radon In Water: How it gets there and how to get rid of it
Radon is one of the more perplexing and misunderstood issues in home water treatment. The material below is excerpted from several sources, especially from an excellent Penn State University Extension services publication.
Radon is a colorless, tasteless, odorless, radioactive gas. It is formed from the decay of radium in soil, rock, and water and can be found worldwide.
The radon in the air in your home generally comes from two sources: the soil or the water supply. It escapes from the earth’s crust through cracks and crevices in bedrock, and either seeps through foundation cracks or through poorly sealed areas into basements and homes, or it dissolves in the groundwater. Radon can be trapped in buildings where it can increase to dangerous levels. Radon entering your home’s air supply through the soil is typically a much larger risk than the amount of radon. In general, radon is of much greater danger when it enters through the soil than when it enters via the water supply.
Radon can be inhaled from the air or ingested from water. Inhalation of radon increases the chances of lung cancer and this risk is much larger than the risk of stomach cancer from swallowing water with a high radon concentration. Generally, ingested waterborne radon is not a major cause for concern. The extent of the effects and the risk estimates involved are difficult to determine. According to the EPA’s 2003 Assessment of Risks from Radon in Homes, radon is estimated to cause about 21,000 lung cancer deaths per year. The National Research Council’s report, Risk Assessment of Radon in Drinking Water, estimates that radon in drinking water causes about 160 cancer deaths per year due to inhalation and 20 stomach cancer deaths per year due to ingestion.
Radon in water usually originates in water wells that are drilled into bedrock containing radon gas. Radon usually does not occur in significant concentrations in surface waters.
Dissolved radon in groundwater will escape into indoor air during showering, laundering, and dish washing. Estimates are that indoor air concentrations increase by approximately 1 pCi/L for every 10,000 pCi/L in water. For example, a water well containing 2,000 pCi/L of radon would be expected to contribute 0.2 pCi/L to the indoor air radon concentration. Based on the potential for cancer, the EPA suggests that indoor air should not exceed 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L).
EPA and various states have recommended drinking water standards for radon in water ranging from 300 to 10,000 pCi/L but no standard currently exists. One study of radon present in over 900 Pennsylvania water wells found that 78% exceeded 300 pCi/L, 52% exceeded 1,000 pCi/L and 10% exceeded 5,000 pCi/L.
Since most exposure to radon is from air, testing of indoor air is the simplest method to determine the overall risk of radon in your home. Test kits for indoor air radon are inexpensive and readily available at most home supply stores.
Testing for radon in water is also inexpensive but requires special sampling and laboratory analysis techniques that measure its presence before it escapes from the sample. Test kits are available from various private testing labs
The presence of waterborne radon indicates that radon is probably also entering the house through the soil into the basement which is generally the predominant source. Therefore, treating the water without reducing other sources of incoming airborne radon probably will not eliminate the radon threat. Therefore, you should also test the air in your home for radon.
Treating Radon in Water
The main objective of water treatment is removing radon from water before the radon can become airborne. Most water treatment, therefore, focuses on “point of entry” rather than “point of use.”
Granular Activated Carbon (GAC)
One method for removing radon from water is with a granular activated carbon (GAC) unit. Although these systems come in a variety of models, types and sizes, they all follow the same principle for removal . The standard radon GAC filter is a tank-style unit that can have either a backwashing control or a simple non-backwashing head. Non-backwashing GAC units must be protected from sediment with a prefilter. Radon filter sizing depends on the amount of radon present, service flow rates, amount of water treated, the size of the treatment bed and other factors, so each application must be considered separately and radon testing for effectiveness of the filter should be carried out regularly.
Typical setup for a GAC filter treating radon.
Various estimates suggest that GAC should only be used on water supplies with a maximum radon concentration of less than 30,000 pCi/L. If you do decide to purchase a unit, select a filter size that matches your water use and conditions. According to EPA, a three-cubic-foot unit can handle as much as 250 gallons of water per day and effectively reduce radon levels. Typical water use in the home ranges from 50 to 100 gallons per person per day.
A major drawback to the use of GAC filters for radon removal is the eventual buildup of radioactivity within the filter. For this reason, the GAC unit should be placed outside the home or in an isolated part of the basement to minimize exposure. The carbon may also need to be replaced annually to reduce the hazard of accumulated radioactivity. Spent GAC filters used for radon removal may need special disposal. Disposal of spent carbon should be in compliance with local waste disposal regulations.
GAC treatment units are frequently also installed to remove chlorine, pesticides, petroleum products, and various odors in water. In these cases, the GAC filter may unknowingly be accumulating radioactivity as it removes radon from the water. Radon should always be tested for and considered as a potential hazard with the use of GAC filters.
Aeration
The EPA has listed aeration as the best available technology for removing radon from water. Home aeration units physically agitate the water to allow the dissolved radon gas to be collected and vented to the outside. With new technological advancements in home aeration, these units can have radon removal efficiencies of up to 99.9%. Standard aeration treatment units typically cost $3,000 to $5,000 including installation. Be aware that aeration specifically for radon reduction is not the same as aeration for iron or hydrogen sulfide reduction. While “closed tank” systems designed for iron and sulfide reduction might help with radon, they are not designed to provide the large ventilation capacity needed to assure release of radon to the atmosphere.
When considering installation of aeration units, other water quality issues must be taken into account, such as levels of iron, manganese and other contaminants. Water with high levels of these types of contaminants may need to be pre-treated in order to prevent clogging the aeration unit. Disinfection equipment may also be recommended since some aeration units can allow bacterial contamination into the water system.
Typical Spray Aeration System Designed for Radon Reduction in a Private Home
There are several styles of aeration treatment units but all work on the same principle of aerating or agitating the water to allow the radon gas to escape so it can be captured and vented. Each type of unit has advantages and disadvantages. One of the more common styles is a spray aeration unit shown above. In this case, water containing radon is sprayed into a tank using a nozzle. The increased surface area of the sprayed water droplets causes the radon to come out of the water as a gas while the air blower carries the radon gas to a vent outside the home. About 50% of the radon will be removed in the initial spraying so the water must be sprayed several times to increase removal efficiencies. To keep a supply of treated water, a 100-gallon or larger holding tank must be used.
Another common aeration unit is the packed column where water moves through a thin film of inert packing material in a column. The air blower forces radon contaminated air back through the column to an outdoor vent. If the column is high enough, removal efficiencies can reach 95%.
Another type of aeration system uses a shallow tray to contact air and water. Water is sprayed into the tray, and then flows over the tray as air is sprayed up through tiny holes in the tray bottom. The system removes more than 99.9% of the radon and vents it outside the home. Go here for illustrations of other aeration systems.
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Places to visit for additional information:
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Thanks for reading and be sure to check out the next Occasional!
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