Site lets residents check on water quality.
@ClevelandTinker A database that monitors contaminants flowing from public water treatment plants can be helpful and confusing to those who use it to determine the quality of their drinking water.
The database shows the detected contaminants in a water source and compares them to state, national and health guidelines.
The database suggests Gainesville Regional Utilities’ Murphree Water Treatment Plant, which serves more than 181,000 people, has a presence of trihalomethanes above “health guidelines,” and cites the California assessment draft.
“But that’s not the case because though the database says GRU has trihalomethanes above health guidelines, the levels of the contaminant is well below the EPA guidelines, and that is very important.
He said the bottled-water industry is not as regulated as public water treatment plants.
According to the EWG database, the High Springs Water Treatment Plant is the only water system out of 15 in Alachua County that doesn’t meet federal health-based drinking water standards.
Four contaminants — chromium, haloacetic acids, radiological contaminants and trihalomethanes — were detected in High Springs’ drinking water with levels above federal health guidelines.
“They (EPA guidelines) are not purely based on a health value,” Leiba said.
EPA regulations have not kept up with the latest science, Leiba said, and the EWG database shows there are more than 160 chemicals detected in U.S. water supply for which the EPA has not set a regulatory limit.