Archive for the ‘Water’ Category

In 2006 Americans spent over 10.8 billion dollars on bottled water What was that money really spent on? What is the environmental impact of billions of dollars of bottled water? Does bottled water offer any real benefits other than convenience?

Types of Bottled Water

Bottled water comes in a variety of types. Bottled waters are grouped into types by the their water source.

• Artesian – Artesian water comes from confined aquifers.
• Mineral – Mineral water comes from geologically and physically protected underground water sources. To be considered mineral water the water must contain at least 250 parts per million of total dissolved solids.
• Spring – Spring water comes from underground formations from which water flows naturally.
• Purified – Purified water is filtered municipal water or tap water Purified water can be filtered in a variety of ways such as distillation, de-ionization or reverse osmosis.

While bottled water may seem superior to tap water consider this fact – if you are drinking Aquafini or Dasani water then you are drinking filtered tap water

Is Bottled Water Safer?

According to a 1999 study conducted by the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), bottled water in the United States was “not necessarily safer or cleaner than tap water ” To come to this conclusion the NRDC tested over 1,000 bottles of 103 different brands of bottled water The NRDC continued to state that about a quarter of brands tested had contaminants and “violated strict applicable state [California] limits for bottled water “

While our municipal water is subject to what Food & Water Watch call “rigorous testing,” over 100 or more tests are completed each and every month. In comparison bottling plants, considered low risk (by some), are inspected less than once per year.

Understanding the Environmental Cost of Bottled Water

According to SIGG, “Over 100 million plastic water bottles are dumped into America’s landfills — ever day!” Considering this fact landfill waste is an obvious concern. Sadly it isn’t the only one.

Exploitation of Water Supplies

We live in a world with diminishing resources. Water is precious commodity. As we consume rare artesian and mineral waters from developing countries we are overtaxing their water resources. Is it fair to bottle the natural resources of developing countries at the expense of their indigenous residents?

The Cost of Production and Transportation

According to Ling Li of Food & Water Watch, “the production of bottled water the bottling, and the packaging all require energy, so basically they use gas and oil. And then when you ship bottled water you consume a lot of gas and create carbon dioxide emissions.” Should we pay for bottled water when we already pay for a municipal water infrastructure?

Filling our Landfills

By throwing over 100 million plastic water bottles as a nation into the trash each day, we are filling our landfills. By years end, we will throwaway 2 million tons of plastic bottle waste. While more and more cities introduce recycling plans, plastic recycling is on the decline. Last year we recycled only 23% of our plastic bottles.

Convenience at a Price

However convenient bottled water is, we must all understand the cost of that convenience. This cost isn’t only environmental, it is also financial. The NRDC estimates that bottled water costs between 240-10,000 times as much as tap water

As a nation we need end our love affair with bottled water Once we understand the environmental cost of bottled water we can ask ourselves an important questions – Why do we chose to pay 240-10,000 times more than tap water for bottled water a convenience product, that destroys our environment?

Author: Sam Greyhawk
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Latest trends in mobile phone

A lot of different companies associated with water claim to offer or produce the purest and cleanest water. But how do we find out whether their claims are true, or just marketing and advertising? This article compares the most popular water filter systems and water treatment methods, and provides an overview how effective these water purification systems work.

Activated Carbon Filters

Granular Activated Carbon Filters are efficient and cost-effective water treatment devices, but the consumer has to consider its limitations. Activated carbon filters are able to remove concentrated chemicals (chlorine, trihalomethanes, fluoride), organic material (humus, algae), and microscopic contaminants (herbicides, pesticides, fungicides). Yet when used too long, activated carbon water filters can easily breed bacteria, so one has to ensure to change the filter cartridge regularly.

Reverse Osmosis Systems

Reverse Osmosis is able to remove fluoride from the water, as well as most mineral constituents, such as salts, lead, calcium and iron. This water treatment process is ineffective in taking out a variety of contaminants found in municipal water, such as chlorine and volatile organic chemicals. Water treated with reverse osmosis produces unhealthy drinking water as most healthy trace minerals and salts are also removed during the purification process.

KDF Filters

KDF Filters (i.e. KDF process media) are characterized through a “Redox” reaction (Oxidation-Reduction). During this oxidation reduction reaction, harmful contaminants are changed into harmless components. Zinc and copper are the preferred metals used in the KDF alloy since both are relatively good reducing agents regarding common inorganic contaminants.

KDF process media change, for instance, free chlorine into benign, water-soluble chloride, which is harmless and carried through the water supply. Moreover, there is no need for electricity, no water waste, and the filter is not likely to breed any bacteria. The downside is, however, that KDF filters do not remove fluoride (fluorosis damages bones and teethes) and organic contaminants. A good alternative is to use KDF filter in conjunction with other water filter media.

Water Softeners (Deionizers)

Water Softeners or Deionizers are able to remove the hardness of the water, i.e. calcium and magnesium. Benefits are less pipe scaling, softer feeling clothes, and a longer life of household appliances such as dish washers and washing machines. However, as deionized or softened water contains high amounts of sodium, it isn’t good for people’s health. That is why softened water or deionized water shouldn’t be used for drinking and cooking (the watering of plants and lawns isn’t recommended as well).

Distillation

The process of Distillation is relatively slow and must be repeated several times to ensure significantly pure water. It is a good way to produce pure water removed of salt, nitrate, and pathogens. However, synthetic chemicals common in municipal water such as herbicides, pesticides, and chlorine solutions can’t be removed through distillation, because their boiling point is lower than the one of water. In addition, distillation removes natural trace elements, thus turning it acidic (hydrogen composition becomes greater in proportion). Long-term consumption of water that is demineralized in that way, can be harmful to the body system and may result in mineral deficiencies inside the body.

Point of Entry Systems

A Point-of-Use System only affects the water at exactly that faucet where the unit is installed. A Point-of-Entry System, installed at the main in-line water feed to your home, is the better choice, as it provides pure and safe water throughout the entire home, including every faucet and shower head inside and outside the house.

Activated Carbon Combined With KDF Process Media

A Point-of-Entry Water Purification System that combines activated carbon with kdf filters is a product that purifies all the water coming into your home or business and removes up to 99% of all contamination, including biologicals, chemicals, and metals, but leaves the trace minerals which are important for health. It provides an unlimited supply of clean, pure, and pH neutral water for the whole family at every faucet in the house.

So it is by far the best choice when considering purchasing an effective and reliable Whole House Water Filter to combine the filtration technologies of Activated Carbon and KDF process media. In this way heavy metals, chlorine, volatile organic chemicals, and other toxins are effectively removed at the highest levels of any home water filter system on the market today. All components should be NSF certified.

Author: Tom Neuman
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Duty on LCD/Plasma TV

“You never get used to it,” says Cheryl Evans, a 55 year old, who has lived in the town of 148. “When you’re used to having water, and you aint got it, it’s strange! I can’t tell you, how many times, I’ve turned on the faucet before remembering the water’s been off!”

* * *

A few years ago, I was working as a temporary employee after a job layoff. I was assigned to a manufacturing plant, and about ten in the morning, I went into the break-room to take my break. About the same time, an employee of the company came into the break-room holding a coffee cup, and he dumped some left-over coffee into the sink. Whet he did next, really irritated me, but because I was a temporary employee, I couldn’t say anything. Instead of rinsing the cup, which would only take a few seconds, and place it in the dish-rack, he placed the cup in the sink, and turned on the water, and let it run in the cup, and walked out of the break-room!

For fifteen minutes he let the water run in the cup in the sink, and as I was about to leave after my break, he entered the break-room, and turned off the water and put the coffee cup into the dish-rack. A blatant miss-use of water!

In another incident with the miss-use of water, I do most of my work on my computer, but because I don’t have a printer, I walk about five blocks to a local community college to get some printing done. One day, during my walk, I noticed a home-owner watering his lawn. Most of the houses here, sit on hilly terrain, and many of the years are tiered to level them off. But, not this front year, as it is pretty steep, and the water just runs out into the gutter and down the street. There was a time, when I walked to the community college at seven in the morning, and the sprinklers were on. And, when I returned two hours later at nine in the morning, the sprinklers were still on, and the water was still running down into the gutter and down the street!

We have an ordinance in the city where I live, against wasting water, so I called the 311 number, and gave them the information where this water was being wasted. Water is our most important resource, and I have a list of useful tips everyone can do at home to conserve water.

* Check for hidden leaks. Read the house meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter does not read exactly the same, there is a leak.

* Check your toilet for leaks. Put a little food coloring in your toilet tank. If, without flushing, the color begins to appear in the bowl within 30 minutes, you have a leak that should be repaired immediately. Most replacements parts are inexpensive and easy to install.

* Don’t use the toilet for an ashtray or wastebasket. Every time you flush a cigarette butt, facial tissue or other small bit of trash, five to seven gallons of water is wasted.

* Put plastic bottles in your toilet tank. To cut down on water waste, put an inch or two or pebbles inside each of two plastic bottles to weight them down. Fill the bottles with water, screw the lids on, and put them in your toilet tank, safely away from the operating mechanisms. This may save ten or more gallons of water per day. Be sure at least 3 gallons of water remain in the tank so it will flush properly. For new installations, consider buying “low-flush” toilets, which use 1 to 2 gallons per flush instead of the usual 3 to 5 gallons.

* Insulate your water pipes. It’s easy and inexpensive to insulate your water pipes with pre-slit foam pipe insulation. You’ll get hot water faster plus avoid wasting water while it heats up.

* Install water-saving shower heads and low-flow faucet aerators. Inexpensive water-saving shower heads or restrictors are easy for the homeowner to install. Limit your showers to the time it takes to soap-up and rinse off. All household faucets should be fit with aerators. This single best home water conservation method is also the cheapest.

* Take shorter showers. One way to cut down on water use is to turn off the shower after soaping up, and then turn it back on the rinse. A four-minute shower uses approximately 20 to 40 gallons of water.

* Turn off the water after you wet your toothbrush. There is no need to keep the water running while brushing your teeth. Just wet your brush and fill a glass for mouth rinsing.

* Rinse your razor in the sink. Fill the sink with a few inches of warm water. This will rinse your razor just as well as running water, with far less waste of water.

* Check faucets and pipe leaks. A small drip from a worn faucet washer can waste 20 gallons of water per day. A drip-stop valve can be used to replace rubber faucet washer; these valves are guaranteed to stop leaks for life.

* Use your dishwasher and clothes washer for only full loads. With clothes washers, avoid the permanent press cycle, which uses an added (5 gallons) for the rinse.

* Minimize use of kitchen sink garbage disposal units. In sink ‘garburators’ require lots of water to operate properly.

* When washing the dishes by hand, don’t leave the water running. If you have a double-basin, fill one with soapy water and one with rinse water. If you have a single-basin sink, gather washed dishes in a dish rack and rinse them with a spray device or pan full of water.

* Don’t let the faucet run while you clean vegetables. Just rinse them in a stoppered sink or a pan of clean water.

* Keep a bottle of drinking water in the fridge. Running tap water to cool it off for drinking water is wasteful.

* Water your lawn only when it needs it. Water during the early parts of the day; avoid watering when it’s windy.

* Plant drought-resistant shrubs and plants. Consider applying the principles of xeriscaping for a low-maintenance, drought resistant yard.

* Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants. Mulch will slow evaporation of moisture while discouraging weed growth.

* Don’t water the gutter. Position your sprinklers so water lands on the lawn or garden, and not on paved areas. Also, avoid watering on windy days.

* Don’t run the hose while washing your car. Clean the car using a pail of soapy water. Use the hose only for rinsing.

* Use a broom, not a hose, to clean driveways and sidewalks.

The Mayor in Orme, Tennessee says the crises in his town could serve as a warning to other communities to conserve water before it’s too late! “I feel for the folks in Atlanta,” he says. “They’ve got thousands of people down there! We can survive. We’re only 148 people! What are they going to do? It’s a scary thought!”

Author: Jerry Aragon
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Canada duty rates

Water is a precious commodity that we all need and use in a number of different ways on a daily basis. In fact, according to Waterwise, a non governmental organisation and a leading authority on water efficiency, here in the UK each and every one of us uses approximately 150 litres of tap water every single day, which amounts to an awful lot of water. However, if we include embedded water too, then this figure rises to a staggering 3400 litres.

The problem we all face is that water is an essential part of life and as such, we must all endeavour to safeguard the quality of our water both now and in the future. Pollution is a global problem that affects us at a local level so what are governments doing about it and how can we help?

The Water Framework Directive

The Water Framework Directive came into force in December 2000 and it states that by the year 2015, we must restore our waters to good health. Waterwise, along with nine other non governmental organisations have launched a “Blueprint for water”, that basically outlines a ten point plan to meet the objectives by the year 2015.

The steps involved include wasting less water, addressing damage to our rivers and wetlands, reducing pollution and making sure that water stays clean, is priced fairly and that those who pollute the water, pay penalties.

What can we do at home?

There are other steps we can take at home too. Most of us are now very familiar with the concept of recycling in general. Nearly all local authorities have kerb collections in place for at least two different types of waste material and we are all encouraged to be more environmentally aware by reducing the amount of waste we produce in the first place, re-using what waste we can and recycling the rest. Water is no different but unfortunately many still take it for granted. The truth is, we are already experiencing water shortages in the UK, and if we don’t take action now then the situation could become a lot worse in years to come.

So let’s look at the different ways we use water. In the home we use water for drinking, bathing, washing the dishes and clothes, flushing the toilet, cooking and cleaning and outside of the home we use it to water the garden and wash our cars, hose down our streets and so on. However, water is also used in other ways; for example, it is embedded in foods, drinks, your car, your electricity supply and even in the paper you use. Shockingly, one sheet of A4 paper has around 10 litres of water embedded within it.

If we all take note of how much water we are actually using and make a bit more effort to reduce that amount and minimise wasting water, collectively we could make a significant difference to ourselves and the planet.

How to reduce the amount of water you use

o Make sure that any leaking or dripping taps are fixed straight away. A dripping tap can waste around 5500 litres of water over the period of one year

o Try to take a shower rather than a bath; a shower uses a lot less water

o Don’t keep the tap running constantly when you are washing dishes or carrying out toileting routines, get into the habit of turning the tap off when you don’t need it

o Water your garden in the evening or early morning when less water is likely to evaporate, avoid using sprinklers

o A lot of the water that we use in the home doesn’t need to be as pure as drinking water, for example the water we use for plants, in the garden and for flushing the toilet. Invest in a water butt to catch rain water and use this in the garden and for your plants

o Set your printer to print on both sides of the paper and make sure you recycle any waste paper and avoid the temptation to throw it out along with household rubbish

o Consider investing in new water efficient appliances in the home, a dish washer for example, uses a lot less water than hand washing the dishes, you can also buy low flush toilets and energy efficient taps

o Put a hippo into your toilet cistern to reduce the amount of water being flushed down the toilet and don’t flush the toilet unnecessarily. Collect other water you have used and flush the toilet with that

o Don’t put half loads of washing into your washing machine, wait for a full load

o Keep cold water in the fridge, particularly during hot weather so that if you want to drink some cold water, you don’t have to run the tap waiting for the water to get colder

Conclusion

A little bit of effort goes a long way. If we all spared a moment to think about what would happen if we didn’t have a constant supply of clean running water, we might think twice before turning on the tap.

Author: David McEvoy
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Programmable pressure cooker

Pakistan is projected to become the world’s fifth-largest country by 2030, with a population somewhere between 230 and 260 million people. This projected spurt in population is alarming Islamabad policymakers, if for no other reason than the additional water requirement this will mean. Already the lowest in Southasia, over the next two decades Pakistan’s per capita availability of water is expected to drop by more than 37 percent – from 1100 to 700 cubic metres per person per year.

In particular, this demand would put significant stress on the country’s massive, complex Indus Basin Irrigation System (IBIS). Begun in 1859, the IBIS is currently considered the world’s largest water-diversion scheme, boasting nearly 60,000 kilometres of canals and distributaries, punctuated by two large dams. The looming step-up in demand for water, coupled with poor water governance, could thus lead Pakistan from its current state of water stress to being an outright water-scarce country before long.

Much of this issue hinges on Pakistan’s poor ability to store water. The country’s current water-storage capacity is barely 12 million acre-feet (an acre-foot refers to the amount of water necessary to cover an acre of land to a depth of a foot, a bit more than 1230 cubic metres). This figure represents only 10 percent of the country’s annual river flow; the world’s average for storage capacity, on the other hand, is 40 percent of a country’s annual flow. The two large dams in the Indus Basin Irrigation System, the Mangla and Tarbela, originally offered a cumulative storage capacity of 17.5 million acre-feet. But this figure has been reduced by almost a third due to silting over the past half-century, and will go down further in the near future. Indeed, it is this ‘lost’ water – continuously coursing through Pakistan and on into the Arabian Sea – that has become the primary focus of national and international planners alike. Unlike elsewhere in the region, Pakistan’s dam-building plans are not focused on energy production, but rather on catching some of that water before it disappears.

In recognition of the developing crisis, in 2001 the government, with the support of international donors, developed a plan dubbed Water Vision 2025, a blend of various strategies that add up to a roadmap for the country’s water-sector development. Water Vision 2025 identified three potential large-dam sites on the Indus – the Kalabagh, Bhasha and Akhori dams (see table). But this strategy was formulated without considering the fact that the IBIS has already wreaked havoc on the country’s environment. Water diversions have, for instance, turned large tracts of Sindh into desert. The US-based International Rivers Network has dubbed the IBIS “a prominent example of how corruption pervades economic development and distorts the priorities of infrastructure investment.”

Provincial controversy

Beyond the concerns of local populations, bitter controversy between Pakistan’s four provinces has also beset each of these three plans. The construction of the Kalabagh Dam in particular has been opposed ever since its official finalisation, in 1984: Sindh, Balochistan and NWFP do not trust Punjab, worrying that their water and environment will be sapped for the benefit of the powerful province in the east. By adding the Kalabagh project to the Water Vision 2025 scheme, planners once again provoked serious unrest in these three provinces, forcing the project to be again temporarily shelved.

Not that this will be the end of Kalabagh, which has garnered supporters in the highest of places, particularly Pervez Musharraf. Not only has the general been keen on seeing the project through since he came to power in 1999, but in 2005 he strongly reiterated that he would see the Kalabagh built. On the recent occasion of Pakistan’s 60th Independence Day, General Musharraf publicly excoriated his own power ministry for having made “zero progress” on the country’s dam-construction plans. A week later, the general launched a broad-based new programme dubbed Vision 2030, which again included a priority on constructing large reservoirs.
Indeed, despite the grand ‘visionary’ rhetoric, planning on Bhasha and Akhori has similarly slowed down dramatically. Work on Bhasha was started by General Musharraf in April 2006, already two years behind schedule; now, engineering schematics will not be ready until 2008. The design was delayed by the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, which forced designers to head back to the drawing board, and eventually increased the project cost by around 31 percent, to USD 8.5 billion. (Nearly all of this money is coming from either multilateral lenders – the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and Islamic Development Bank – or the Saudi government.) Meanwhile, the situation surrounding Akhori, too, is mired in a mix of provincial controversy and management failure; it is already four years behind schedule, and will not be completed until 2020, at a cost of USD 4.4 billion.

The worry about these delays is not necessarily economic, or even the fact that Pakistanis will have to wait for a while longer before nipping in the bud their looming water crunch. The worry here is ideological, or, more to the point, what can be referred to as the short-sightedness of engineering dogma: the most powerful decision-makers in Pakistan have for two decades been attempting to get these mega-dams built, and, as General Musharraf pointed out, have continued to fail. The question is, why have they not entertained other options?

The answer is simple, though a bit bitter. Since Independence, it has been the norm for Pakistani officials to make decisions in isolation. Involving stakeholders is a laborious and, in the eyes of Islamabad, unnecessary option. The view that these three large projects could indeed solve some of Pakistan’s most pressing water problems, coupled with the fact that multilateral funders, particularly the World Bank, are dramatically more keen on building large-scale projects, has evidently been successful in turning the tide away from what are deemed more peripheral issues.
In fact, Islamabad has pushed forward one additional option, but its nearly immediate failure only reinforces the danger of relying only on massive, centralised systems. In 2002, in what was seen as an attempt to promote ‘harmony’ among Pakistan’s four provinces as equitable water-distribution became an increasingly fractious issue, General Musharraf’s cabinet approved a plan to establish a state-of-the-art telemetry system for the whole of the Indus Basin Irrigation System. This subsequently set up a vast network of sensors and automated valves, all linked by satellite, in an attempt to assure that the IBIS would be operating at peak, and in a most equitable, fashion. While the point was ostensibly to get the water where it was needed, and away from where it was not, throughout the whole of Pakistan, the motivation was also more basic: water ‘theft’ was purportedly reducing Pakistan’s water availability by up to 15 percent at any given time. Taking the human hand away from IBIS operation, it was assumed, would do much to mollify both of these concerns.

Unfortunately, the provincial suspicion that gave rise to the telemetry system in the first place was also what brought it down. The PKR 320 million project began operating in March 2004. Four months later, the whole system was shelved, ostensibly because of problems with ’standards’, but in reality because of suspicions between the provinces themselves, and between the provinces and the Central government. The tussle that has kept the telemetry system shut off to this day continues to dog construction on the Kalabagh, Bhasha and Akhori dams.

No big solutions

The simple conclusion is that big dams – controversial from a number of perspectives, both warranted and not – cannot be relied upon as the only answer to Pakistan’s water woes. While these large projects may eventually be able to play a significant role in the country, what are needed now are investments to maximise the existing system’s capacity and reduce its inequalities across categories of people and between Pakistan’s provinces. In addition, investments need to be made to improve groundwater recharge, to construct economically viable smaller dams that are less threatening politically and environmentally, and to foster a significant system of rainwater harvesting. None of these are taken into account by Water Vision 2025 in any way.
Though it was anticipated that the Kalabagh, Bhasha and Akhori dams would also be able to generate a significant amount of electricity, there are other ways to mitigate this issue. If power generation were the focus, smaller scale run-of-the-river projects could be completed on much quicker timeframes and for significantly less money, and without raising the hackles of downstream promises, because they would not be ‘taking away’ any of the water. For instance, small-scale hydro projects in Azad Kashmir alone have the potential to produce around 8000 megawatts of power.

But Water Vision 2025 is focused significantly less on power-generation than on storing water, for irrigation mainly, but also for drinking. In the meantime, estimating the country’s yearly ‘loss’ of water flow has become something of a hobby for many in Pakistan. The estimates vary from eight to 92 million acre-feet per year having been lost over the past three decades. But by falling into the trap of focusing almost exclusively on this ‘escaping’ water, the 2025 strategy has failed to take into account the need to recharge the country’s rapidly depleting groundwater, which by itself contributes (unsustainably, at that) 41.6 million acre-feet of water for irrigation every year. This problem has been particularly exacerbated by the large-scale exploitation of the aquifers that lie beneath Pakistan’s urban areas, leading to rapidly falling water tables. For instance, groundwater below Rawalpindi and Islamabad, which provides nearly half of the drinking water for these cities, is currently plummeting by around five feet per year.

There has long been an understanding of how to deal with this issue. Back in 1961, two small dams (meaning structures that offer storage capacities of less than 500,000 acre-feet) were proposed in the vicinity of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, on the Soan and Ling rivers, with an eye towards recharging the aquifers beneath these areas. These were never built. But constructing these particular dams, referred to as Cherah and Dadhocha, could save at least 1.6 million acre-feet of water per year, in addition to providing all the drinking water that the two cities would need, at very low cost. Indeed, one of the greatest advantages of constructing small, upstream dams around towns is the minimal cost of water they would make available.
To date, however, more-modest dam projects have largely failed to catch the attention of policymakers and planners in Pakistan. The problem again becomes the complicated divide between the provincial governments and Islamabad. Perhaps the most devastating lacuna in Pakistan’s water strategy is that the construction of such smaller dams is currently the responsibility of the former. Indeed, this is one of the more detrimental conundrums facing development in Pakistan today: while the provincial governments have been vested with significantly more autonomy than similar units elsewhere in Southasia, the purse strings are still controlled almost entirely by Islamabad. This sets up a debilitating disconnect, particularly in the case of small-scale development, as with these small dams.

While Cherah and Dadhocha were discussed (again) in 2003, the Punjab government decided that it was simply unable to start construction due to shortage of funds. Similarly, construction at 15 other small-dam sites throughout Pakistan has not been able to commence due to lack of money coming from Islamabad. In recent years, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has begun to look seriously at small-dam construction, and to date 12 new small dams have been built with ADB money. This has taken place only in Punjab, however, which has inevitably rankled other provincial governments. Now again the ADB has recently begun to show interest in constructing more small dams – but again, only in Punjab.

For its part, NWFP has experienced unique success in the construction of small dams. Over the past 80 years, 14 small dams have been constructed in the province, which have succeeded in increasing agricultural productivity and raising local incomes. The Aza Khail Dam, near Peshawar, for instance, not only helped to raise falling water tables, but even to remove sources of groundwater contamination, by preventing the build-up of arsenic and brackish water. But again, 25 additional small-dam sites in NWFP are awaiting decisions for the issuance of funds from Islamabad, further highlighting the confused jurisdiction towards small dams in Pakistan today.
Despite the current wasteful, top-down system of providing water through massive, centralised projects, crucial options do remain available to thwart Pakistan’s ominous water crisis: the construction of small dams, coupled with a vast step-up in the usage of rainwater harvesting. The high-risk Water Vision 2025 strategy needs immediate revision if it is to have any chance of meeting the country’s water demands, now and in the foreseeable future. At the moment, this water strategy has only triggered conflict, reinforced the deadlock in the water sector, and wasted valuable time.

Author: Arshad H Abbasi
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Duty on LCD/Plasma TV

We all use more water than we realize. Every day, without thinking about it, we waste gallons of water–and wind up paying for it in our water bills. If saving water in 2007 is one of your New Years resolutions, you’ve come to the right place. Here are six tips for how to save water in the New Year.

Don’t run the water constantly when washing dishes. Instead, scrub the dishes with a sponge or scrub brush, then turn the water on and rinse. Then shut it off. Kitchen sinks waste upwards of 2 to 3 gallons a minute–and you don’t need that much water to get your dishes clean.

Careful how you wash your produce. To wash fruits and vegetables, fill a bowl half-full and use it to rinse them off. Don’t rinse them under the sink. Anytime you run your tap and most of the water goes down the drain, you’re wasting water and probably could do whatever you’re doing more efficiently without running the water constantly.

Don’t run the water while you’re shaving, brushing your teeth, or washing your hands. The same principles apply here–you don’t need that water on constantly. Do your washing up, and then run the water to rinse. You’re not even using that running water when you’re brushing your teeth–so don’t let it flow down the drain.

Don’t run water to make it cold. Ready for a nice, cold glass of water? Don’t turn your faucet on and then wait for the water to run cold. Instead, keep a pitcher of water in your fridge. That way, your water is always cold and ready to drink–and you don’t waste any water getting it that way.

Take more showers. In most cases, you’ll use less water in a shower than in a bath. Don’t believe it? Next time you take a shower, plug the drain and see how much water accumulates. Usually, it’ll be a lot less than you’d use to fill a bathtub. If it’s equal or more, you should take shorter showers. You can also buy water-saving showerheads.

Plug the drain in your bath. If you must take baths, plug the drain before turning the water on. Also, when the water starts to get cooler, don’t drain the tub partway and then turn on the hot water again–get out of the tub. You’ll save 10 to 15 gallons of water a minute if you do.

Don’t wash small loads. If you have a washing machine–or even if you go to the Laundromat–don’t put laundry in unless you can wash a full load. To save even more water, use the shortest cycle. Your clothes will get just as clean, and you’ll save about 1,000 gallons in a month.

Buy water-saving appliances. You can find water-conserving washing machines, dishwashers, and more at hardware stores–ask the salespeople to show you the most water-efficient machines.

Check for a leaky toilet. Toilet leaks cause a lot of water waste–and most people don’t even realize they have a leaky toilet. To check yours, just put a few drops of food coloring in the tank. If the color shows up in the bowl, your flush valve is leaking. Getting this fixed can save you gallons of water per year.

Your toilet isn’t a wastebasket. Many people throw tissues, dental floss, or other bathroom garbage in the toilet and dispose of it with a flush. Don’t make that mistake. It wastes water needlessly, and your garbage is just as gone if you throw it in the bin.

Water at the right times. Water your outdoor plants before 7 in the morning or after 5 at night. This will keep your water from evaporating under the sun before it soaks into the soil.

Put your sprinklers in the right place. Many people place sprinklers in a place where part of the flow hits a sidewalk or paved driveway. This is a huge waste of water over time. Instead, make sure your sprinkler jets are hitting ground all the way ’round.

Use a rain barrel. Put a barrel or other watertight container under your gutters to catch rainwater. You can then use this water on your garden and plants without taxing your water bill.

Saving water is a worthy goal for 2007–and once you get into the habit of conserving water, these tasks are surprisingly easy to do. In most cases, people don’t notice that they’re using less water once they’ve gotten into a few simple water-saving habits–until they see the difference in their water bill, that is.

Author: Ray Dobson
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Our planet’s most precious resource is water. Over 70 per cent of our earth’s surface is covered in water with 97.5 per cent of that being salt water. Less than 3 per cent of the earth’s water is defined as fresh water and only 3/1000 of this is either too deep in the earth to retrieve or locked away in ice caps or glaciers. With global warming and climate changes threatening our current water supplies, the amount of available fresh water may soon dwindle.

Water is life to every living organism. All living organisms are made of water: humans are 60 per cent; fish are about 80 per cent; and plants are between 80 and 90 per cent water. Water is necessary for chemical reactions to occur at the cellular level and water is the medium where the exchange of information between cells happens for life to continue. All living things depend on the hydrological cycle to continue as water is essential for all food production and all living ecosystems.

In North America, fresh clean water is readily available however our consumption patterns and wasteful ways threaten our future supplies. A typical single family home uses about 265 liters of water every day (indoors) and about 35 per cent of that is used to maintain our lawns and gardens. According to the World Health Organization, humans only need 19 liters of water a day to meet basic needs.

Without actively thinking about water conservation, we all waste water: 114 liters goes down the drain if you wash dishes with the tap running; 180 liters of water is wasted per day on a leaky faucet; 280 liters of water is wasted by a steady slow-dripping tap; an average of 19 liters of water is wasted if you leave the tap running while you brush your teeth. By taking a few common-sense steps in our everyday life, we can save thousands of liters of water each year.

The best place to start our water conservation is by reviewing how we use water inside our homes and identifying where we are most wasteful. The kitchen is one of the most obvious rooms in our homes where water is in constant use and where conserving water would make a big impact. Considering all that goes on in a kitchen – cooking, cleaning and washing – taking a few deliberate steps to use less water will save thousands of liters each year. Here are some tips to consider:

(1) When it comes to drinking water from the kitchen tap, most of us let the water run a bit to clear the tap of stale water or we run water first so that we get a good cold drink but, either way, we are wasting water. A good drinking water option is to fill a jug full of water and put it in the refrigerator. If you only drink half a glass of water, do not dump the remainder down the sink – use it to water your house plants;

(2) When washing fruits and vegetables, wash them in a sink-full of water instead of running water over them. You only need enough water to slightly cover the fruits and vegetables to scrub them clean;

(3) If you wash your dishes by hand and have a double sink, fill the second sink with rinse water instead of rinsing dishes under a running tap. If you don’t have a double sink, put the washed dishes onto a drain rack and rinse them with a hand-held spray. By washing dishes this way, you’ll save gallons of water each month;

(4) If have a dishwasher, use it only when you have a full load of dishes. The dishwasher uses the same amount of water whether it is full or not. Some dish-washers have shorter cycles that do the job of cleaning and drying your dishes just as well as the longer cycles. Shorter cycles also use less water;

(5) Make sure there are no dripping taps or leaky pipes as these situations waste gallons of water. Fix all leaks and seal all pipes to insure water is not being wasted and further erosion is not happening.

The bathrooms in your home are also a place where there are lots of water consumption and lots of waste. By taking a few conscious steps you can save gallons of water from going down the drain needlessly;

(1) When brushing your teeth, turn off the water. There is no need for water to run down the drain. In-stead, wet your toothbrush and turn off the tap. When you are finished brushing your teeth, turn the tap back on to rinse your mouth. Another solution might be to take a glass into the bathroom just for brushing your teeth. You can fill the glass with water, wet your toothbrush and clean your teeth. When it is time to rinse, you can rinse with your glass of water saving gallons of water from being wasted;

(2) Toilets use a lot of water for flushing especially, older toilets. If possible you could replace your toilet fixture for a newer water-wise toilet. The newer toilets use less water when you flush which also saves you money on your utility bills. Whether you chose to keep your regular toilet or buy a new one, be careful what you put into the toilet. When flushing a small facial tissue down the toilet for example, gallons of water are needlessly wasted;

(3) Long showers can waste five to ten gallons of water. Limiting showers to soap up, wash down and rinse off is a better solution. An alternative solution would be to install a water-saving shower head to help reduce the amount of water used during a shower;

(4) Taking a bath however, is an even better solution for water conservation than taking a shower-even a relatively full bath uses less water than a regular shower would;

(5) The bathroom is another place where checking leaky pipes and dripping taps on a regular basis is a good idea – leaky pipes and taps are the biggest culprit when it comes to wasting water as when they are left unchecked, drips and leaks can cause hundreds of gallons of water to be lost in a month. In addition to this, if drips and leaks are not investigated, water causes plumbing damages that are very costly to repair.

Cleaning the outside of your home means using your hose to spray-wash the exterior. If you have aluminum siding for example, washing your siding down in the spring and fall uses gallons of water and often does not do the job efficiently. An alternative might be to use a soapy bucket of water to wash the siding and then use your hose to spray-rinse the siding clean. A second alternative might be to rent a power sprayer that effectively washes and sprays the area clean in one operation.

Cleaning windows can also use a lot of water. Again, use a bucket of soapy water and then rinse them clean. Washing down the cement driveways and walk-ways can be done once a year with broom sweeping done in between. This keeps these areas looking clean all year round. When it comes to washing your vehicles at home, lots of water can be lost if you are not mindful of what you are doing. Don’t let the water run while you hand-wash your vehicle – instead, get a bucket of soapy water, wash the vehicle down and then give it a good rinse.

Watering your plants and lawns is sometimes a quandary as gardens and lawns need to be watered to stay green and to continue to grow. Being careful how you water and how often you water is the key. Some cities have in place specific days when you can water your lawns keeping conservation of city water in effect. When watering lawns, don’t waste water where it is not needed. Try the lawn test. Step on a piece of grass – if it springs back right away, then no watering is needed. If it doesn’t then it is time to water. When it comes time to water your lawn, a deep soak is better than a slight sprinkle over the area. Deep soaking the lawn means watering deep enough to get down to the roots.

Watering this way means you won’t have to water so often – every third or even fourth day will do. When you do water your lawn, only water in the cool of the day – early morning or in the evening after the sun is almost set. Another good tip for your lawns and gardens is to plant drought-resistant trees and shrubs. These shrubs thrive well and they thrive on far less water than other varieties. Putting a layer of mulch around your trees and other plants will also help in conserving water. Mulch absorbs moisture from evaporating while at the same time, discourages weed growth.

Being aware, thoughtful and mindful of water conservation is the key when we are thinking about water conservation. If we want to continue to have water supplies available for generations, now is the time to protect and preserve what we do have. By consciously taking a closer look at how we use water and learning how to conserve it properly, fresh water will be available for future generations.

Author: Laura Petros
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Bottled water is everywhere these days and has become a multibillion dollar business. You can’t escape their presence anywhere, whether at a grocery store, convenience store, the beach, work place, home, etc, bottled water is there. The overall success that the bottled water industry has experienced, and the enormous profits from the sale of its water to the general public can probably be attributed to two factors. They provide convenience, and give the perception that drinking bottled water is much healthier. Nevertheless, you really have to look past the enticing pretty little label on the front of the bottle or 5 gallon water jug, and ask the question, is bottled water more beneficial to my health? Are there other sources of water that is better for my health? What is the cost of bottled water to the environment?

Each and every hour Americans discard an alarming 1.5 million plastic water bottles, which if they aren’t recycled properly end up in a landfill somewhere for the next 100 years. This figure applies only as long as they are discarded properly. I often have the pleasure of seeing plastic water bottles on the side of many sidewalks, streets, and highways where they have been casually tossed by the previous owner; I guess that is another convenience for some bottled water drinkers. Then of course located in offices and homes around the country are water dispensers/coolers with the 3 or 5 gallon water jugs on top of them. The people using these have to take delivery of the jugs, store the jugs, lift the jugs, and replace the jugs each time one runs out.

A Few Little Known Facts

The bottled water you drink is considered by the Federal Government to be a food. This means that according to federal guidelines bottled water falls under the authority of the Food and Drug Administration (F.D.A.). However, tap water falls under the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency (E.P.A.) which has much stricter guidelines regarding water purity and contaminant levels than the F.D.A. The E.P.A. requires that water plants provide the public with reports on the water source, testing conducted, and contaminant levels (violations) if any are found. The bottled water industry does not have to adhere to these standards. You may find, depending on the particular brand of bottled water you drink, that your tap water is actually cleaner. Not to mention that many bottled water companies are misleading consumers by selling reconstituted tap water; not the refreshing spring water like the label would suggest.

Your local municipal water source is also required to test several times per day for microbiological impurities in the water. Bottled water companies are only required to test for this once a week. Local tap water also has to be tested much more often for chemicals than is required for bottled water companies. We then throw in the fact that the F.D.A. does not necessarily require (by way of loopholes) the same standards for bottled water from state-to-state. The numerous problems associated with bottled water and regulation of its quality should become self-evident.

Does All This Let Tap Water Off-the-Hook?

Unfortunately, tap water doesn’t get off either. A National assessment of tap water quality conducted by the Environmental Working Group, dated December 20, 2005, concluded the following in their summary. “Tap water in 42 states is contaminated with more than 140 unregulated chemicals that lack safety standards, according to the Environmental Working Group’s (EWG’s) two-and-a-half year investigation of water suppliers’ tests of the treated tap water served to communities across the country.”

Recently, in Montgomery County, Maryland an estimated 440,000 households were without tap water due to a major main break that took eight hours to locate because it was in a wooded area. This left many residents and businesses without water for days. Some businesses were shut down altogether until this problem was resolved. Initially, the resident’s who finally got their water flowing again were strenuously encouraged to boil the water before drinking it because of the tremendous concern by local authorities over impurities and contaminants that may still be present in the water.

In the national news you can see impending threats, or occurrences of problems to municipal tap water sources by way of natural disasters such as hurricanes, flooding, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc, almost every week. In addition, the same radical cowardly groups that caused 9/11, could also turn their eyes to our nations fresh water supply as a way to create terror, and wide spread panic by successfully or unsuccessfully attempting to release biological or chemical agents into our water.

States all over the nation are vying for water resources, and many of them have fresh water resources that are dwindling. Some states that are otherwise friendly neighbors are locked in disputes now over water rights. If you go to the New York Times and look up an article by Andrew C. Revkin entitled “New Climate Report Forsees Big Changes,” the problem only appears to be getting worse for the United States, and the rest of the world.

The cost of municipal tap water appears to be on the rise as well. Just do a comparison of your water bill today vs. your water bill 3 years ago and I am sure you will see a noticeable increase.

Technology and Innovation to the Rescue!

The world is in desperate need of a viable realistic alternative to the increasing demand for safe, clean drinking water. The Earth’s surface is 75% water, but only 2.5% is a fresh water resource, or usable by mankind. Three quarters of the 2.5% available is frozen in glaciers. That leaves about .625% available for use by mankind. From that small amount left over for use by mankind, and other living organisms, 70% is used world wide for agriculture, and another 15% for industrial use.

Science and technology have come to the rescue. There is now available a revolutionary patented technology that will change all of this. It was developed by a company who’s insight, innovation, and desire to help mankind drove them to provide a more sustainable, more environmentally friendly source of water. I have spoken to many people over the past several weeks about the technology, and most of them are completely unfamiliar with it. Innovation now allows us to create pure drinking water from air by way of an atmospheric water generator.

At any given time there is approximately 3.1 quadrillion gallons of water in Earth’s atmosphere. The hydrological cycle (evaporation, condensation, and precipitation) manufactures billions of gallons of water recycling in the atmosphere everyday, making this supply almost limitless and accessible in most parts of the world.

They have created an atmospheric water generating unit on the market today that extracts the water through a sophisticated condensation process and sends it through a series of state-of-science purifiers. The unprecedented technology removes all inorganic materials, undesirable odors and tastes, particulate matter smaller than .01 microns, and all forms of bacteria, metals, minerals, viruses and other elements that might pose any kind of health risk. The unit also serves to both dehumidify the air, and purify the air it uses to create water. This is a remarkable technology that is destined to become the future of water, and will ensure accessibility to clean safe drinking water for millions in the United States and world wide.

Author: John Lemon
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Northern Virginia and Washington D.C. are growing in population rapidly and as more people move into the area, a question that is asked more and more frequently is – what is the quality of my drinking water?

Individuals and families are naturally concerned with their health and drinking water is an important element of maintaining good health.

Unfortunately, the quality of the water in Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. is very poor and is getting worse. Contaminants, bacteria, minerals and chemicals in tap water are masked with heavy doses of chlorine and tap water, in addition to being unhealthy, tastes and smells terrible.

Regulation from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not eliminate contamination but merely sets maximum levels of contaminants that can enter the human body and cause long term damage.

Well water is also contaminated but there is no Federal or state agency that regulates well water.

What is the Story With Tap Water?

Tap water is municipal water that is usually pumped from nearby rivers and then processed to meet EPA guidelines. The processing is usually done through a waste water treatment plant with heavy amounts of chlorine added to kill remaining bacteria that processing does not catch. It is important to note that EPA guidelines are just that – they establish minimum amounts of allowed contamination that may eventually be harmful to both adults and children.

In Northern Virginia and Washington D.C. the drinking water is pumped mainly out of the Potomac River and at least one waste treatment plant.

Contaminants that may be present in this source water include:

Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, which may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife.

Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, which can be naturally-occurring or result from urban storm water runoff, industrial or domestic waste water discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farming.

Contaminants also include pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water runoff, and residential uses.

In addition contaminants may include organic chemical contaminants, including 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 also affect local tap water.

What is the source of water in Northern Virginia and Washington D.C.?

The water in the Potomac River, Anacostia River, and Rock Creek flows into the District from outside jurisdictions. For example, the Potomac River begins in West Virginia, while the Anacostia River begins in Maryland. The quality of water in Northern Virginia and the District is thus affected by activities throughout the watershed.

Storm water runoff from commercial, industrial, residential and agricultural sites, point source pollutants from wastewater treatment plants and industrial discharges, and combined sewer overflows from as far away as West Virginia and Pennsylvania all contribute to the quality of water in the District and Northern Virginia.

What About Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO’s)

CSO’s frequently occur when natural events like flooding overcome the capacity

of waste treatment plants and raw sewage is pumped back into the water source like the Potomac River.

During periods of significant rainfall, the capacity of a combined sewer may be exceeded. When this occurs, regulators are designed to let the excess flow, which is a mixture of storm water and sanitary wastes, to be discharged directly to the Anacostia River, Rock Creek, the Potomac River, or tributary waters. This excess flow is called Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO).

Release of this excess flow is necessary to prevent flooding in homes, basements, businesses, and streets but it adds bacteria and contaminants as potential threats to tap water.

Since a portion of the tap water comes from sewerage treatment plants CSO’s can adversely affect the quality of our receiving waters in a number of ways:

CSO’s contain material which contributes to high bacteria levels in the receiving waters. Organic material in CSO’s can contribute to low dissolved oxygen levels, which can contribute to a potential for fish stress or fish kills, especially in summer months; and, debris in CSO’s such as plastic bottles, Styrofoam cups (otherwise known as “floatables”) contribute to poor aesthetics.

How Safe For Drinking is Well Water?

Well water, a popular alternative to tap water particularly in Northern Virginia is subject to the same ground water contaminants, chemical discharge waste and organic waste as tap water but is not regulated by any Federal or state agency in any way.

In addition to emitting foul sulphur odors and sediment from the water Northern Virginia well water contains significant amounts of iron in the rock in some areas, particularly the Piedmont and Blue Ridge, resulting in iron “staining.” Sulfide in ground water is also found in parts of the Valley and Ridge where coal or natural gas is present produces an obnoxious odor.

Ground water that is a source of well water also can be contaminated by human activities. Bacteria from septic systems, and nitrate from both septic systems and fertilizer applications, are among the most common contaminants. Since well water is not subject to regulation, the potability and suitability for drinking, of a private well is the responsibility of the homeowner and many private wells are contaminated.

Treating Drinking Water From Wells

The Sate of Virginia strongly recommends treatment of well water with chlorine to kill bacteria in well water and, in an effort to overcome the obnoxious smell and taste of chlorine, de chlorination. Again, this process is not controlled by any state or Federal agency.

Two general kinds of water treatment are disinfecting and conditioning. To ensure that the supply is free of harmful bacteria, water is disinfected.

Objectionable tastes, odors, and matter are then removed by conditioning.

Well Water Disinfection Methods

Drinking water is most commonly tested for coliform bacteria, which live in the intestines of warm-blooded animals. Coliform bacteria in a well are usually the result of a faulty septic system or contaminated surface water entering the well or water delivery system.

Materials and tools used in well construction are frequently contaminated with bacteria that live in the soil and these can be introduced into the water system while constructing the well, installing components of the piping system, or servicing any part of the water supply system. The State of Virginia strongly recommends that the water system be disinfected following construction and after all well repairs.

Chlorination is used to disinfect private supplies because it destroys bacteria within a reasonable contact time and provides residual protection. However, ordinary levels of chlorination are not always effective in destroying Giardia cysts, which cause a severe gastrointestinal illness. Super-high levels of chlorination, boiling and filtering are the only effective methods to destroy or remove these cysts.

High chlorine concentrations can have objectionable tastes and odors, and even low chlorine concentrations react with some organic compounds to produce strong, unpleasant tastes and odors.

To eliminate these offensive tastes and to remove excessive amounts of chlorine, the water is then dechlorinated. Activated carbon filters are the most common devices used to dechlorinate water, remove objectionable chlorine tastes, and reduce corrosion of plumbing systems.

How Safe is Tap and Well Water for Drinking?

Municipalities, well owners and even the EPA claim that tap and well water in Northern Virginia and Washington D.C. is perfectly safe for drinking but one must wonder. Consider the source of tap water in light of sewage treatment, heavy chlorine additive and waste discharge in the Potomac River and one starts to wonder. Also consider that well water is subject to most of the contaminants of tap water but is unregulated as well.

Is Drinking Bottled Water an Alternative to Tap or Well?

Yes and no depending on the type and quality of the bottled water. Purified water is considered by many experts to be the best.

The popularity of bottled water has grown tremendously as Americans seek healthy lifestyles and better tasting water. But not all bottled water is healthier than the tap or well alternative.

Up to 25% of all bottled water on the market is merely tap water repacked in plastic bottles and bottled water that is not purified often contains minerals and other contaminants that may be harmful to your health. These contaminants are not only unhealthy and affect the taste of the water but limit storage life for emergency supplies of drinking water.

Purified water however, using a distillation and oxygenation process, provides the water drinker the safest and best tasting alternative to contaminated tap and well water in Northern Virginia and Washington D.C.

Distillation removes the pure water from the contaminants and oxygenation creates a fresh, light water taste.

Pure water is fundamental to creating a healthy lifestyle and good health for you and your family.

Author: Jon M. Stout
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Most adults have learned that water can be soft or hard. They have learned, too, that there is a connection between total hardness and water quality. Hard water reduces the power of your soap. In fact, hard water is often detected by noting the amount of soap required to form lather. Hard water may build up in hot water pipes and appliances, producing scale.

Hard Water Defined

Hard water is water that contains high levels of dissolved calcium, magnesium, and other mineral salts such as iron. The greater the amount of dissolved minerals in the water, the harder it is.

Total hardness is measured in grains per gallon (gpg) or parts per million (ppm). If water contains less than 3.5 gpg, it is considered soft water. If it contains more than 7 gpg, it is considered hard water. The American Society of Engineers’ water hardness classification table breaks it down this way.

* Soft: 0 to 3.5 gpg 0 to 60 ppm

* Moderate: 3.6 to 7 gpg 61 to 120 ppm

* Hard: 7.1 to 10.5 gpg 121 to 180 ppm

* Very Hard: More than 10.5 gpg more than 180 ppm

Making the Connection

Total hardness and water quality are connected. Hard water is safe for drinking, cooking, and other household uses, but it can cause problems.

One way in which total hardness and water quality are connected is the effect of such water on household plumbing. Total hardness means a build-up of scales inside pipes, especially those carrying hot water.

Total hardness and water quality are also connected in their effect on appliances that use water. Dishwashers and washing machines can decrease in cleaning and laundering ability. Water heaters can become less efficient. Refrigerators that dispense water can become clogged.

Aesthetically, total hardness and water quality are connected in those white, chalky deposits that accumulate on tubs, sinks, and cookware.

U.S. Water Quality

According to the 1997 National Water Quality Survey, 1 of 5 people surveyed in the U.S. is dissatisfied with the water quality in his or her home. This is related to the fact given by the U.S. Geological Survey: that 85 percent of the U.S. has hard water. Many people install water softeners in their homes to improve water quality.

Determining Water Quality

You can have your water quality tested if you are moving into a new area or a new home. If you have been living in the same home for a while, you will know if your water is hard by looking for these 7 signs:

1. You have difficulty working up lather from a bar of soap.

2. Your soaps and detergents don’t seem to clean well you have dingy laundry in spite of your efforts to get it clean.

3. In the shower or bath, your soap leaves a film on your body and hair you have dry skin and dull, limp hair.

4. You have to battle soap scum on bathtubs, shower tiles and doors, basins, and fixtures.

5. You see an increasing buildup of scale on your cookware such as tea kettle, coffee maker, and pasta pot. Your plumbing also contains scale.

6. Clogged pipes or appliances mean that water flow is reduced.

7. Your water heating costs are increasing due to scale buildup and mineral deposits, and you have to replace hot water heating elements more often.

Improving Water Quality

Treatment can improve water quality. You may use electromagnetic water conditioners, water filters, or water softeners.

Electromagnetic water conditioners improve water quality by sending water through a magnetic field. As the water passes between the magnets, its calcium and magnesium ions lose their scale-causing properties. Studies show that this relatively new invention does not technically soften water, but water quality is improved in that it no longer causes buildup of scales. Clothing also lasts longer, which is a definite increase in water quality.

Water filters are a second option for improving water quality, especially drinking water. Water filters can provide healthy drinking water by removing chlorine and other contaminants contained in water. Water filters can soften water, but they will not prevent scale buildup in pipes and water heaters.

Water softeners are a common way of improving water quality, and come in two types: chemical and mechanical. The water produced by chemical water softeners is not acceptable drinking water. Packaged chemicals are added directly to improve water quality in laundering and bathing, and are effective both in protecting clothing and guarding against dry skin and hair. Mechanical water softeners installed in your home will replace dissolved calcium and magnesium salts with sodium. This water is also not acceptable for drinking, especially by those who have hypertension. The water quality is greatly improved, however, for other uses. Lime scale is prevented; water heaters function efficiently; and laundered clothing is both cleaner and longer-lasting.

Soft Water

On the other end of the spectrum, total hardness and water quality are a benefit when that hardness level is below 3.5 gpg or 60 ppm. Soft water allows you to use less shampoo and soap, yet have shinier hair and softer skin. Soft water requires less soap or detergent in shower, laundry, kitchen, and household cleaning chores. It helps close look cleaner and last longer. It keeps water-using appliances and plumbing from wearing out as fast. Soft water keeps dishes and eating utensils spot-free, and extends the life of tea kettles and other cookware. Soft water reduces cleaning time by eliminating soap scum and buildup of scales.

Total hardness and water quality are closely connected, and you may find it worthwhile to use a water treatment system to improve your water quality especially your drinking water.

Author: Anna Hart
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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