HomeMy WebLinkAboutWater Quality Report 2006 Water Quality Report for 2006
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) requires
each water purveyor in the state to provide its customers with an
annual water quality report. Georgetown Utility Systems (GUS) is
dedicated to providing high quality drinking water. Last year we
conducted more than 500 water quality tests and never exceeded
the safe drinking water standards established by the EPA.
Our water comes from the Edwards Aquifer and Lake
Georgetown. Generally, customers living to the west of IH-35 are
served by water from Lake Georgetown with a hardness of 200
mg/L (11-12 grains/gal). This hardness level is low in the “hard”
range. All other areas are served by the Edwards Aquifer with a
hardness of 300 mg/L (17-18 grains/gal), and is considered to be
“hard”. If you have any questions about this report or any other
details about your water utility, please contact us at 512-930-3558.
The demand for water continues to increase
The demand for treated water continues to grow at a rate of 7% per
year. Peak demand last summer was over 25 million gallons per
day (MGD), or equal to 90% of the current system capacity. The
Williamson County Raw Water Line operated almost continually
this past year to provide for the transfer of water from Lake
Stillhouse to Lake Georgetown to provide the drinking water
supply for the City of Georgetown and four other area water
utilities. The operation of this pipeline increases our protection
against the influence of drought.
Conservation rates in effect
As part of the City’s Water Conservation Plan, the City enters the
first phase of its Drought Contingency Plan, Voluntary
Conservation, on May 1 of each year. The City also enacts the
Residential Conservation Water Rates on billings from June 1
through October 31. The increase in cost during this period is
meant to provide incentive to conserve during the peak demand
period. Any additional revenue is used to finance the construction
of water capacity projects to serve the peak demand.
The most effective method for conserving water is to control use of
water for landscape irrigation. Use of water for irrigation causes
the peak demand in the summer that puts a strain on the system
and eventually requires the installation of expensive treatment
facilities. For best results, follow a 5-day watering schedule and
irrigate between the hours of 7 p.m. and 10 a.m., preferably during
the time period when customers will not be using water for
cooking and bathing (8 p.m. to 4 a.m.). Using the 5-day schedule
will promote deep root growth and make your lawn more drought
resistant. Watering during the late evening and early morning
hours also minimizes the water lost to evaporation. The 5-day
schedule is provided on our website located at
www.georgetown.org.
Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone Testing Program Continues
GUS is conducting its fifth year of testing for flaws in the
wastewater collection system. The testing, required by the TCEQ,
uses various methods to check piping and manholes for flaws that
allow water to either enter or exit the system. This testing is being
performed in Oak Crest, Georgetown Village, and the eastern area
of downtown Georgetown. The remaining collection system will be
tested over the next three years. Once completed, the system will
undergo continuous testing on a 5-year cycle.
Protect your drinking water
The use of drinking water in many industrial processes requires
the use of a functioning and properly-tested backflow prevention
device. These devices prevent the inadvertent introduction of
hazardous materials into the drinking water system by preventing
flow of the material in the reverse direction. Each device must be
tested at least annually with the test results reported to GUS.
Please call 930-3558 for further information.
Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be
expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants.
The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that
water poses a health risk. Sources 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 activity. Contaminants that may be present in source
water before we treat it include:
• Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, which
may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems,
agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife.
• Turbidity, which has no health effects, can interfere with
disinfection and provide a medium for microbial growth.
Turbidity may indicate the presence of disease-causing
organisms
• Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, can be
naturally occurring or result from urban stormwater
runoff, industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, oil
and gas production, mining or farming.
• Pesticides & herbicides, which may come from a variety of
sources such as agriculture and residential use.
• Radioactive contaminants, which are naturally occurring.
• Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic and
volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of
industrial processes and petroleum production, and also
can come from gas stations, urban stormwater runoff, and
septic systems.
The TCEQ completed an assessment of our source water and
results indicate that some of our sources are susceptible to
certain contaminants. The sampling requirements for our
water system are based on this susceptibility and previous
sample data. Any detection of these potential contaminants
will be found in the Water Quality Report. For more
information on the Source Water Assessment and protection
efforts, please contact us.
Special population advisory
Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in
drinking water such as immuno-compromised 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 providers. EPA/Center for
Disease Control guidelines on how to reduce the risk of
infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants
are available at: Safe Drinking Water Hotline: 1-800-426-4791.
Water quality monitoring
To ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the EPA prescribes
regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in
water provided by public water systems. We treat our water
according to the EPA regulations. Food and Drug
Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants
in bottled water, which must provide the same protection for
public health.
Water quality data
The table in this report lists all the drinking water
contaminants we detected during tests conducted from
January 1 through December 31, 2006, unless otherwise noted.
The state requires us to monitor for certain contaminants less
than once per year because the concentrations of these
contaminants are not expected to vary significantly from year
to year. Therefore, some of the data, though representative of
the water quality, is more than one year old.
Este informe incluye informacion importante sobre el agua
potable. Si tiene preguntas o comentarios sobre este informe
en espanol, favor de llamar at tel. (512) 930-3558 – para hablar
con una persona bilingue en espanol.
Terms & Abbreviations
AL: Action Level - the concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water system must follow.
MCL: Maximum Contaminant Level - the “Maximum Allowed” (MCL) is the highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set
as close to the MCLGs as feasible using the best available treatment technology.
MCLG: Maximum Contaminant Level Goal - the “Goal” (MCLG) is 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.
N/A: not applicable NTU: Nephelometric Turbidity Units – measure of the clarity of water
ND: not-detectable – laboratory analysis indicates that the constituent is not present.
ppm: parts per million or milligrams per liter ppb: parts per billion or micrograms per liter
TT: Treatment Technique – a required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.
Microbiological Contaminants
Constituent MCL MCLG Highest
Measurement
Lowest Monthly % of
samples meeting limits
Violation
(Y or N)
Typical Source of
Contamination
Total Coliform N/A N/A 2 100 N Naturally present in the
environment.
Fecal Coliform N/A N/A ND 100 N Human and animal fecal waste
Total Organic Carbon N/A N/A 8.6 100 N Naturally present in the
environment
Turbidity (NTU) TT 0.3 0.5 99 N Soil runoff
Inorganic Contaminants
Constituent MCL MCLG
Average
Level
Lowest -
Highest
Sample
Date
Violation
(Y or N)
Typical Source of
Contamination
Barium (ppm)
2 2 0.04 0.0290 -
0.0490
2002-06 N Discharge of drilling wastes;
Discharge from metal
refineries; Erosion of natural
deposits
Fluoride (ppm)
4 4 0.58 0.2 – 1.0 2006
N Erosion of natural deposits;
water additive which promotes
strong teeth; Discharge from
fertilizer and aluminum
factories
Nitrate (ppm)
10 10 2.58 0.12 - 3.61 2006
N Runoff from fertilizer use;
Leaching from septic tanks,
sewage; Erosion of natural
deposits
Chromium (ppb)
100 100 3.1 1.2 - 6.1 2002-05
N Discharge from steel and pulp
mills; Erosion of natural
deposits
Lead and Copper
Constituent
Action
Level
90th
Percentile
# of sites
exceeding
Action Level
Violation
(Y or N) Typical Source of Contamination
Copper (ppm) 1.3 0.283 0 N Corrosion of household plumbing systems; Erosion of natural
deposits; Leaching from wood preservatives
Lead (ppb) 15 4.2 0 N Corrosion of household plumbing systems; Erosion of natural
deposits
Disinfection and Disinfection By-Products
Constituent MCL MCLG
Average of All
Sampling Points
Lowest -
Highest
Sample
Date Typical Source of Contamination
Chloramines 4.0 4.0 1.73 0.6 – 3.27 2006 Primary Disinfection for surface water
Chlorine 4.0 4.0 1.58 0.74 – 3.16 2006 Primary Disinfection for ground water
HAA5 Haloacedic Acids (ppb) 60 0 11.1 1.8 - 16.4 2006 By-product of drinking water chlorination
THM Trihalomethanes (ppb) 80 0 29.6 11.6 - 41 2006 By-product of drinking water chlorination
Unregulated Contaminants
Constituent
Average of All
Sampling Points Lowest - Highest Sample Date Typical Source of Contamination
Chloroform (ppb) 3.08 0 – 9.8 2006
Bromoform (ppb) 1.58 0 – 2.9 2006
Bromodichloromethane (ppb) 2.91 1.2 – 7.0 2006
Dibromochloromethane (ppb) 3.54 2.2 – 4.8 2006
Perchlorate (ppb) N/D N/D 2006
Unregulated contaminants monitoring helps EPA to
determine where certain contaminants occur and
whether it needs to regulate those contaminants
This water quality report was prepared by OMI, Inc., and Georgetown Utility Systems., May 1, 2007.