How Often Do You Think About The Water You Drink?
Safe, clean water is important to all Coloradans, whether it’s drinking water for humans and animals, cooking, irrigation, recreation, or for fish and wildlife. Water quality plays a critical role in Colorado given our agricultural heritage and economy, our robust recreation and tourism industry, and limited and valued natural resources.
What Contaminants Are In Your Tap?
The most common groundwater contaminants in Colorado are nitrate, fluoride, selenium, iron, manganese, radium, and uranium. Examples include septic systems, direct disposal of hazardous waste into ground, landfills, spills or leakage from chemical material storage tanks or ponds, leakage from sewage pipelines, agricultural pesticides and fertilizers, waste from active or abandoned mining facilities and waste migration from ground surface to the groundwater through poorly constructed wells. The Safe Drinking Water Act is undeniably outdated, as not a single contaminant has been added to its list of regulated chemicals since the year 2000. Standards for judging whether or not a chemical is harmful at certain levels have not been updated since 1974. Filtering your tap water is the first step to protecting your family from toxins on a daily basis, whether it’s for drinking, showering or cooking. Government regulations focus on protecting us from the big health risks like waterborne bacterial diseases. The long-term health effects of chronic exposures to trace elements of contaminants in our drinking water are something we all need to take personal responsibility for.
Effects of Harmful Contaminants
Lead is a toxic metal that can cause damage to health even at low doses. Corrosion of household plumbing systems and erosion of natural deposits are major sources of lead pollution in public drinking water. The amount of lead found in the water varies depending on how long the water is exposed to the pipes, the amount of corrosion on the pipes, the water’s acidity and the temperature of the water. Lead in drinking water can cause a variety of adverse health effects.
Chlorine is a powerful oxidant added to the water by several municipal water systems to control microbes. Chlorine can be absorbed through physical consumption as well as through your skin while bathing. Chlorine can severely dry skin and hair and cause irritating effects to your eyes and nose.
Herbicides enter the drinking water system by accumulation in public soil and water sources. Most commonly, they enter the water system from rainfall and irrigation which wash herbicides off farmlands and into lakes and rivers. Atrazine, a herbicide commonly used on golf courses, can interfere with the body’s hormonal activity and reproductive organs.
These are only a few contaminants of many more. Water filtration is essential in your home. Take a look at our purchasing options for a Halo 5 water filter and softener to be installed in your home and give us a call today!
