ANNUAL DRINKING WATER QUALITY REPORT OF WALTON WATERWORKS

     We're pleased to present to you this Annual Quality Water report for the year 2011.  This report is designed to inform you about the quality water and services we deliver to you every day.  Our constant goal is to provide you with a safe and dependable supply of drinking water.  We want you to understand the efforts we make to continually improve the water treatment process and protect our water resources.  We are committed to ensuring the quality of your water. 

     We purchase our water from the Northern Kentucky Water Service District that is treated surface water from the Ohio and Licking Rivers. A source water assessment has been completed. The following is a summary of the susceptibility analysis that is part of the source water assessment. Several areas of concern are related to the extensive development of transportation infrastructure, the potential for spills high degree of impervious cover and polluted runoff.  Areas of row crops and urban and recreational grasses introduce the potential for herbicide, pesticide, and fertilizer use – possible non-point source contaminants. Bridges, railroads, ports, waste handlers or generators, and Tier II hazardous chemical users in the area introduce the potential for spills or leaks of hazardous materials. Landfills and permitted discharges are relatively high in number for a supply area. Other areas of concern include several segments of streams already assessed as having impairments, power line rights-of-way with potential herbicide use, and residential septic tanks leaking must also be taken into account. The entire report is available at Northern Kentucky Area Development District, 22 Spiral Dr, Florence, KY 41042. Phone 859-283-1885

     If you have any questions about this report or concerning your water utility, please contact Joyce Bryan at 485-4383.  I'm pleased to report that our drinking water is safe and meets federal and state requirements.  We want our valued customers to be informed about their water utility.  If you want to learn more, please attend any of our regularly scheduled meetings.  They are held on the second Monday of each month at the Walton Community Center located behind the Walton City Hall at 40 N. Main Street at 7:30 pm.

     The City of Walton Waterworks routinely monitors for contaminants in your drinking water according to Federal and State laws.  This table shows the results of our monitoring for the period of January 1^st to December 31^st, 2011.

           ( A copy of this table is available for your review at City Hall, Monday - Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm)

Regulated Contaminants in the Water Supply

     The sources of drinking water (both tap 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 pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity.

     Drinking water, including bottled water, may be reasonably expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that the water poses a health risk.  More information about the contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.

     In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, U.S. EPA prescribes regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provide by public water systems. Food and Drug Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same protection for public health.

Contaminants that may be present in source water include:

Microbial Contaminants. Examples include viruses and bacteria that may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife.

Inorganic Contaminants. Examples include salts and metals that can be naturally-occurring or result from urban storm water runoff, industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining or farming.

Pesticides and Herbicides. These may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water runoff and residential uses.

Organic Chemical Contaminants. These include synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can, also, come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff and septic systems.

Radioactive Contaminants, which can be naturally- occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.

Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM). The current MCL for TTHM is 80 ppb. Although the TTHM annual average in our water is below the MCL it has been detected at a few sample locations above the MCL. We are including the following health effects language. Some people who drink water containing THM in excess of the MCL over many years may experience problems with their liver, kidneys, or central nervous systems, and may have an increased risk of getting cancer.

Important Information About Your Drinking Water: Our water system violated a drinking water requirement over the past year. Even though these are not emergencies, as our customers, you have a right to know what happened and what we are doing to correct the situations.

*We are required to monitor your drinking water for specific contaminants on a regular basis. Results of regular monitoring are an indicator of whether or not drinking water meets health standards. During 10/1/2011 – 10/31/2011 we did not complete all monitoring for coliform and therefore cannot be sure of the quality of your drinking water during that time*

There is nothing you need to do at this time.

The corrective action we will take is to continue to take 5 bacteriological samples every month.

*Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly(for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distribution copies by hand or mail.*

DEFINITIONS:

MCL= Maximum contaminant level: The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water, MCLs are set as close to MCLGs as feasible, using the best available treatment technology.

MCLG= Maximum contaminant level goal: 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.

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

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

Turbidity = A measurement of the cloudiness of the water. We monitor turbidity because it is a good indicator of effectiveness of our filtration system.

NTU = Nephelometric turbidity units.

mrem/yr = Millirems per year.

pCI/I = Picouries per liter.

Range of Detection = This is the lowest and highest levels of detection.

MRLD= Maximum residual disinfectant level. The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control microbial contaminants.

MRDLG = Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level Goal. The level of a drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRLDGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectant to control microbial contaminants.

ppm = parts per million or milligrams per liter, mg/l

ppb = parts per billion, or micrograms per liter, ug/l

ppt = parts per trillion, or nanograms per liter

Sources of Infection by Cryptosporidium and Other Microbial Contaminants

     There are many sources of cryptosporidium (crypto) and other microbial contaminants. For example, food such as unwashed fruits and vegetables (especially from a foreign country), swimming pools, recreational water, day care centers, pets and nursing homes are common sources.

     Cryptosporidium is a protozoan parasite that can live in the intestines of humans and animals and can cause the disease cryptosporidiosis The Northern Kentucky Water District has tested the Ohio and Licking Rivers for cryptosporidium on a monthly basis. In 2006, there were two months in which crypto was found in the Ohio River and four months in which it was found in the Licking River. The Ohio River occurrences averaged 0.09 per liter while the Licking River occurrences averaged 0.17 per liter. In 2007and 2008, there was only one month that crypto was found. This occurrence was in the Licking River. Crypto was not detected in either river during the years 2009-2011. NKWD’S testing and treatment standards of the water supply are far beyond the testing required by the EPA. Our treatment standards are much higher than those required by law and are continuously being improved. For example, our drinking water turbidity is 100 times better than the standard set by the EPA.

     Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants 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 about drinking water from their health care providers.  EPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by cryptosporidium and other microbiological and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791).

     Please share this information with all the others, especially, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this report in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.

Information About Lead

     The water samples collected for NKWD’s compliance monitoring did not show elevated levels of lead. If present, elevated levels of can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. The NKWD is responsible for providing high quality drinking water, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components. When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes before using water for drinking or cooking. If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your water tested. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline or at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/lead.

Unregulated Contaminants Monitoring Rule (UCMR)

     The 1996 Safe Drinking water Act Amendments required the EPA to publish a list of unregulated contaminants that are to be monitored; from this monitoring the EPA will decide if the contaminant will added to the list of contaminants for possible new drinking water standards. The UMCR contains the new list of contaminants that the public water systems are required to monitor. The NKDW completed the monitoring requirements of the UCMR2 in 2009. There were no detections for any of the new contaminants required. Results are available upon request. For more information please call 859-578-9898.

     Thank you for allowing us to continue providing your family with clean, quality water this year.  In order to maintain a safe and dependable water supply we continue to look for ways to loop the water system to provide a better quality of water.  The final source water assessment for our system has been completed and is contained in the Boone County Water Supply Plan.  A summary of the system's susceptibility to potential sources of contamination is The Ohio and Licking Rivers.  The plan is available for inspection at the Northern Kentucky Area Development District.

Emerging Contaminants

     EPA maintains a list of contaminants in the drinking water that may warrant further study for possible future regulations. To date, research has not demonstrated an impact on human health from these contaminants in much higher concentrations through medicines, food and beverages and other sources.

     We at the City of Walton Waterworks work around the clock to provide top quality water to every tap.  We ask that all our customers help us protect our water sources, which are the heart of our community, our way of life and our children's future.  If you have any questions, please call or write to us:

CITY OF WALTON WATER WORKS

MAYOR PAULA M. JOLLEY

40 N MAIN St.
P.O. BOX 95 
WALTON, KENTUCKY 41094-0095

859-485-4383

JULY 1, 2012