ANNUAL DRINKING WATER QUALITY REPORT FOR 2007

CLAY UNIFORM WATER DISTRICTS

4401 STATE ROUTE 31

CLAY, NEW YORK 13041

Public Water Supply ID # NY3304344

 

 

Introduction.



To comply with State regulations, CLAY UNIFORM WATER DISTRICTS 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.  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 GREG ROOT, WATER SUPERINTENDENT at 652-3800 Ext. 146.  We want you to be informed about your drinking water.  If you want to learn more, please attend the first Town Board Meeting of November 2008.  We, of course, will be glad to discuss any drinking water issues you may have.

 

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 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.

 

Clay Uniform Water is a special district of the Town of Clay and supplies water to the southwestern portion of the Town of Clay.  Clay is a distribution system and buys all of its water from the ONONDAGA COUNTY WATER AUTHORITY (OCWA) and 90% comes from Lake Ontario and 10% comes from Otisco Lake. Our water source is the ONONDAGA COUNTY WATER AUTHORITY, which is located at Northern Concourse, North Syracuse, New York.  During 2007 our system did not experience any restriction of our water source.

 

The NYS DOH has evaluated OCWA’s susceptibility to contamination under the Source Water Assessment Program (SWAP), and their findings are summarized in the paragraphs below. It is important to stress that these assessments were created using available information and only estimate the potential for source water contamination. Elevated susceptibility ratings do not mean that source water contamination has or will occur for OCWA.  OCWA provides treatment and regular monitoring to ensure the water delivered to consumers meets all applicable standards.


This assessment found a moderate susceptibility to contamination for OCWA’s Otisco Lake source of drinking water. The amount of row crops in the assessment area results in a medium susceptibility to pesticides. No permitted discharges are found in the assessment area. There is also noteworthy contamination susceptibility associated with other discrete contaminant sources, and these facility types include: mines. While lakes are not generally considered to have a high natural sensitivity to phosphorus in SWAP, this lake already shows algae problems. Therefore, additional phosphorus contribution would likely result in further water quality degradation.

 

Lake Ontario Source (water purchased from Metropolitan Water Board):  The Great Lakes’ watershed is exceptionally large and too big for a detailed evaluation in the SWAP. General drinking water concerns for public water supplies which use these sources include: storm generated turbidity, wastewater, toxic sediments, shipping related spills, and problems associated with exotic species (e.g. zebra mussels- intake clogging and taste and odor problems). The summary below is based on the analysis of the contaminant inventory compiled for the drainage area deemed most likely to impact drinking water quality at this PWS intake.

 

Facts and Figures

 

Our water system serves 16,000 people through 5824 service connections. The total water purchased in 2007 was 700,342,000 gallons. The amount of water sold in 2006 to customers was 643,641,000 gallons.  The total amount of water lost in 2007 was 56,701,000 gallons, this water was used to flush water mains, fight fires and leaks in the system.  In 2007, water customers were charged an average of  $2.04 per 1,000 gallons of water. 

 

Are there contaminants in our drinking water?

 

As the State regulations require, OCWA tests your drinking water for numerous contaminants. These contaminants include: total coliform, turbidity, inorganic compounds, nitrate, nitrite, lead and copper volatile organic compounds, total trihalomethanes, and synthetic organic compounds. Additionally, we test our water for Total coliform bacteria, lead and copper. The tables below depict which contaminants were detected in your drinking water. A copy of all non-detected contaminants is on file with the Town of Clay Uniform Water District Office as well as the Town Clerk’s Office for public review.

 

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 Onondaga County Health Department at 435-6600.

 

Table of Detected Contaminants

(Lead and Copper in the Distribution System)

 

 

Violation

Date(s) of

Average

90th

Units

 

Regulatory Limit

 

Contaminant

Yes / No

Sampling

Level found

Percentile

Measured

MCLG

 (MCL, TT, or AL)

Likely Source of Contamination

 

 

 

(Range)

Value

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Corrosion of household plumbing systems;  Erosion of natural

Copper

No

Jun-05

0.09

0.18

mg/L

0

AL = 1.3*

deposits; Leaching from wood preservatives.

 

 

 

(0.002 - 0.65)

 

 

 

 

 

Lead

No

Jun-05



1.8
(nd - 20)

4.3

ug/L

0

AL = 15*

 

 

Corrosion of household plumbing
systems; Erosion of natural deposits.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
















*AL (Action Level) - Only 10% of samples can exceed this level.


About Lead and Copper:

 

In order to deter the leaching of Lead and/or Copper from our customers pipes, OCWA has been mandated to implement corrosion control.  Lead & Copper Sampling is required every 3 years.

 

The method of corrosion control used on waters originating from Otisco and Skaneateles lakes is the addition of orthophosphate.  The adjustment of pH is the method used for Ontario water.  OCWA’s latest sampling period was in June of 2005 when OCWA sampled and tested customers’ tap to make sure the corrosion controls were effective.

 

90th Percentile Values for Lead & Copper:  The values reported for Lead and Copper represent the 90th percentile.  The 90th percentile value is the concentration that 90% of the taps sampled were at or below.  Since the Action Level for Lead is 15 ug/L, 90% of the taps tested had to be at or below this value.  As you can see from the above chart 90% of the taps tested were at or below 4.3 ug/L in June of 2005.  The Action Level for Copper is 1.3 mg/L.  The observed 90th percentile for Copper was 0.18 mg/L.  Of the 117 samples that OCWA tested in June of 2005, only 2 (or 1.7%) exceeded the action level for Lead.  No samples exceeded the action level for Copper.

 

The testing showed that our methods of corrosion control are working.

 

Table of Detected Contaminants

Turbidity at Entry Point

 

Contaminant

 

Water

Source

 

Violation

Yes/No

 

Date(s) of

Sampling

 

Average Level found

(Range)

 

Units Measured

 

MCLG

 

Regulatory Limit

(TT)

Lowest % of Monthly tests

Meeting limit

 

Likely Source of

Contamination

 

 

 
TURBIDITY

 

Otisco

 

No

 

Every 4 hrs

(Mar-07)

 

0.07

(0.03-0.22)

 

NTU

 

N/A

 

TT=0.3 NTU For systems that filter

 

100%

 

 

 

Soil run off

 

 

 

Ontario

 

No

 

Every 4 hrs

(Apr-07)

 

0.05

(0.03-0.09)

 

NTU

 

N/A

 

TT=0.3 NTU

For systems

that filter

 

100%

 

 

 

Clay WDs purchases water from the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA).  Water may originate from Otisco Lake, which is treated by OCWA itself, or Lake Ontario, which is treated by the Metropolitan Water Board (MWB) and sold to OCWA.  Customers may also get a mixture of these waters. 

 

Water purveyors are required to measure turbidity as water leaves their plants.  Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness of the water. Turbidity is monitored, because it is a good indicator of water quality.  High turbidity can hinder the effectiveness of disinfectants.  Treatment plants that filter also measure it, because it is a good indicator of filter efficiency.  Otisco Lake and Lake Ontario waters are filtered. 

 

Health Effects of Turbidity:  Turbidity has no health effects.  However, turbidity can interfere with disinfection and provide a medium for microbial growth.  Turbidity may indicate the presence of disease-causing organisms.  These organisms include bacteria, viruses, and parasites, which can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and associated headaches.  Please pay special attention to the additional statements in this document regarding Cryptosporidium.

 

Our highest single turbidity measurement for the year occurred in March 2007 (0.22 NTU). State regulations require that turbidity must always be below 0.3 NTU. The regulations require that 95% of the turbidity samples collected have measurements below 0.3 NTU.

 

Table Of Detected Contaminants

Inorganic Contaminants Found at Entry Point

 

Contaminant

 

Water

Source

 

Violation

Yes / No

 

Date(s) of

Sampling
 
Average

Level Found

(Range)

 

Units

Measured

 

MCLG

 

Regulatory Limit

MCL, AL

 

Likely Source of Contamination

 


Aluminum

 

Otisco

 

No

 

Feb-07

Aug-07

 

0.16

(0.07-0.24)