Blog

WHAT IS THIS?

For no apparent reason you

• Notice a small spot of discoloration on a wall or ceiling
• See a mold mark that reappears even after initially being wiped away with bleach
• Feel a warm spot on a floor in a slab home
• Hear almost imperceptible water movement in pipes while knowing for certain that there are no leaky faucets or toilet fill valves

The above plus other indicators are telltale signs that invisibly behind walls and ceilings water is leaking from pipes and damaging the home.  Left without repair, damages can become extensive with often unseen, unhealthy mold taking over significant portions of a home.

HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?

To answer this question, it’s important to look at the material used in your pipe system.

Perhaps the most common in the past 50 years is copper pipe with copper fittings assembled together on-site with no-lead solder.  Shortly after it is used, a protective oxide layer (patina) develops on the inside and out.  Additionally, copper has biocidal properties that prevent the formation of biofilms and it is extremely strong withstanding pressures north of 300 PSI or about 4X normal home pressures.  Over time, leaks can occur at pipe/fitting junctions because of excess flux (acid) used to clean the parts during sweating (soldering) and incomplete cleaning.  Unusually high flows or 24/7 recirculation flows cause wear (erosion) at junctions thinning material to below its pressure holding ability.  Pipe quality too can be an issue, because minute iron particles can be left on the pipe surface inside and out during manufacturing.  These particles establish galvanic reactions with the copper, chemically creating the all-too-common pinhole leak.  This reaction is speeded up by high TDS (conductive) water and heat.  It also appears more quickly in less expensive and often foreign sourced, thinner type M vs. type L copper pipe.  M type copper is identified by red markings on the outside and L type blue.  Pin hole issues with type M copper tend to appear after 15 years or so in hot water lines and with water supplies that have a TDS of 300 PPM and higher according to experienced plumbers.  We have concentrated our comments on situations involving multiple leak points.  Single point leaks can be attributed to rubbing against the structure, a pipe hanger, stone etc.

The second most common pipe and fitting material is plastic represented by white PVC, dark gray PVC, light gray CPVC and yellow (copper pipe size) CPVC all of which have an excellent reputation for leak-free longevity.  PVC is for cold water only and CPVC is rated up to 140⁰F so it is applicable for both hot and cold.  All are rigid materials and pipe-to-fitting connection is done with solvent cements.  Joints are normally cleaned with a solvent prior to the application of a cement resulting in a water tight bond ready for use after a few hours of cure time.  Unless penetrated by a drywall screw during construction or similar errors, random leaks after years of service are not expected.

Coming on strong in the last few years is PEX.  This is a Polyethylene material that is post-extrusion chemically cross linked either as a semi-rigid straight milky white (hot and cold), blue (cold only), red (hot) colored tube or as a tube typically coiled in 10-500 ft. coils.  Proper installation is critical to long term leak free service.  Leaks that do manifest themselves are normally at fittings where a cast brass fitting corrodes or a crimped collar over the tube wasn’t tight.  Another leak point in that area would be from a nick in the tube that grew over time.  If coiled-form material was used, forced straightening can cause stresses that result in radial cracks that begin to open and leak especially if the PEX has been weakened by chlorine in the water.  A combination of chlorine and pressures at or above 80 PSI is known to create axial cracks that leak. 

HOW IS IT REPAIRED?

There are very few options.  You can begin by having a single leak repaired which normally involves cutting out a section of a wall or ceiling to access a section of pipe containing the leak.  This pipe is then cut out a few inches on both side of the leak and replaced with the same size and material pipe.  Upon completion and pressure testing, the cut-out wall or ceiling section is replaced, the seam closed with patching plaster, then sanded and painted.  This entire process is messy, disruptive and expensive.   If you are fortunate, this is a one-time occurrence. If, however, there are repeat leaks, you can address them one at a time or resign yourself to having a chronic material or workmanship issue that requires replumbing of the home.  At this point, seek a company that specializes in replumbing homes that has an experienced crew.  Chances are, they will do the work with PEX to minimize the amount of wall and ceiling cutting and reduce the project time.  If you are on a chlorinated municipal water supply, be certain to install a Dime Water Aquafer or carbon filter to prevent damage to the tubing material.  If in a high-water pressure area such as southern California install a pressure regulator valve to be sure home water pressure is maintained below 80 PSI.

Unlike Costco which offers limited models with high installation costs and limited post-purchase support, Dime Water provides customized water treatment systems designed around your specific needs, with transparent pricing, direct manufacturer support, and expert guidance from start to finish. While Costco acts as a middleman and leaves customer care the manufacturer, Dime Water offers a personalized, reliable experience backed by decades of industry expertise and a commitment to long-term customer satisfaction.

This article from House Digest explains more.

Distillation is a process where water is heated until vapor is formed as steam which is then exposed to a cool surface which causes the steam to condense as liquid water.  As the vapor rises, almost all of the elements dissolved in the water are left behind so the total dissolved solids (TDS) of the condensed steam is a small fraction (<5%) of the original water. The heat is often high enough and of sufficient duration to kill bacteria and other pathogens in the water thus the net result is a water quality that was often prescribed for medical application and in larger sizes used for desalinization of sea water.

The described process dates back to antiquity.  More effective distillation equipment was developed during WWll.  Then, the advent of better ion exchange resins and reverse osmosis membranes along with ever increasing energy cost gradually reduced the need for water distillation almost to the point of extinction.  Because of chemical use, waste water streams and continued high energy costs and threatened fresh water sources, there is a good case to be made for a renewed look at distillation especially for turning seawater into drinking water.

Enter the brilliant research minds at MIT.  On October 31, 2023 in a campus paper their researchers discovered (serendipitously?) that under certain conditions light will cause water to evaporate without the presence of heat in a process they called the photomolecular effect.  Apparently, the water molecule-to-molecule hydrogen bond is broken and the singular molecules of water having a molecular weight less than that of air float away from the surface.  A follow-up April 23, 2024 article by the same MIT publication indicates that green light is most effective and that the evaporation rate is up to four times that produced by heat.  The angle of incidence light-to-water-surface is best at 45⁰.   We briefly described this process in an early 2024 blog hoping to see the information diffuse to a company or two in the water treatment industry or industry at large

I have actively looked on line, in newspapers and in technical publications since late 2023 to find any indication that this new technology has achieve any traction.  Nothing as of January 2025.  In the US and other developed nations where power and competent personnel are available, this photomolecular technology would probably create lower CAPEX and OPEX and allow for more rapid permitting because there is no discharge of extremely high TDS water back into the sea or ground.  However, in much of the world where the population often is thirsty and unable to feed itself because of non-existent or extremely scarce usable water this technology may indeed be life-saving.  As we envision a desal or highly brackish water distillation unit in its simplest form with this technology:

• Power requirements.  Aside from low-head pumps to transfer water to and from the system there will need to be LED lights aimed at the water surface at a 45⁰ angle, a fan to transfer vapor to the condensing chamber and a low delta T cooling surface to create the condensate.  Undoubtedly a candidate for solar. All things considered; power needs will be 5% of that for reverse osmosis.
• Complexity.  Aside from the fan and by incorporating mechanical fill/empty floats the only techy component would be a chiller and there a Peletier effect unit with only a fan could be employed.  Compressors, refrigerants and controls eliminated. Compared to reverse osmosis it is probably 1/10 or less.
• Materials of construction.  In the absence of high pressures, elevated temperatures and hardness scaling, many durable plastics, fiberglass and reasonably priced stainless steel alloys can be employed.

Hopefully, this technology will soon be picked up by a major player in the water treatment sphere and developed into a commercial product. In the meantime, let’s not lose sight of all of the new water beneath our feet as demonstrated by the incredible Stephan Riess 60+ years ago and brilliantly documented by Michael Salzman in his book New water for a thirsty world.

Spread the word!

This phrase became common and popular during the 2024 presidential election campaign.  To the delight of many, it references a precursor to US energy independence and dominance by increasing oil well and fracking permits.  Historically, reasonably priced and abundant energy has led the way to massive changes to society dating back to the late 1700’s and the industrial revolution which forever altered the course of the western world.

The loudly expressed concerns of fossil fuel damages to the climate and environment need to be seriously considered so that some of the increase in fossil based energy is targeted to produce more neutral electrical energy sources such as solar, wind, tidal flows, sea waves, Hydrogen via efficient water splitting, nuclear, etc.

There’s another drilling activity needed as badly as that for gas and oil. WATER.  Specifically, water of sufficient quality for human and animal consumption as well as irrigation. In previous blogs we have detailed the amount of water required for various crops, the critical condition of many aquifers and how dependent manufacturing is on water.  Further, we wrote about the energy and capital costs associated with the inefficiencies of seawater desalinization as a possible cure for the supply problem.

The November 10, 2024 issues of the San Diego Union Tribune published government supplied numbers indicating that 87% of the US is currently in a drought condition with only Alaska and Kentucky escaping the condition.  As always, higher temperatures (climate change) are proclaimed to be the primary cause due to evaporation although a recent science discovery we recently wrote about strongly indicates that the vast majority of evaporation is not the result of air temperature.  This is becoming scary.  We need more water in the correct places or face dramatic changes to our way of life.

What can be done?  NASA and some universities advise us that indeed there are deposits of fresh water within the planet but at depths that are beyond our drilling capabilities.  As we have written in prior blogs, water is available at reachable depths and there is an excellent chance that new water is being formed constantly.  Obtaining this water was done numerous times in the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s under the supervision of Stephen Riess a Bavarian born scientist with an extensive background in geology and hydrology.  His approach to locating the spots for drilling along with numerous success stories are detailed in New Water for a Thirsty World, a 210 page science based book written in 1960 by Michael H. Salzman. Now out of print, but is available online as a certified copy or you can contact me at mike@dimewater.com and I will send a copy.

We can only speculate why mainstream science has not pursued this path to give the world at the very least some drought relief after over 70 years of knowledge of proven successes.  Yes, there is a gamble involved, but monetarily, larger gambles are taken often in mineral and oil exploration as well as various stock market moves.  There should be no concern about the usability of the water based on prior experience and the capabilities that companies such as ours—Dime Water, Inc.— have to correct any issues that arise.

Must we wait until water scarcity is proclaimed an emergency before looking literally beneath our feet for relief?  Spread the word!

About 2-1/2 years ago we posted a blog about using water rather than petroleum as a fuel for cars by employing electrolysis to split the water molecule into oxygen and hydrogen, transferring the hydrogen to a hydrogen fuel cell to generate electricity and then use the electricity to power drive motors similar to an all-electric vehicle. We acknowledged the need to lower the parasitic energy demand of the electrolysis process and expressed hope that a person of entrepreneurial brilliance would emerge and solve all of the technical issues (think Elon Musk or a clone).

Well, on September 9, 2024, the CEO of TOYOTA announced that they have produced an automobile that runs on water. Based on some You Tube releases by the company, they have succeeded in lowering the electrolysis power needs and supply it with electricity from a small hydrogen fuel cell that appears to straddle the engine. That’s right, the bulk of the hydrogen is delivered to a fuel injected, in- line four cylinder, four cycle rather conventional looking engine. No heavy batteries or electric motors. The engineering for such an engine is incredible because of the extremely high temperatures created by the combustion of hydrogen (4500 0 F) and combustion chamber sealing due to the minuscular size of Hydrogen molecules. Toyota must have been silently working on this project for a decade or more to make so many leaps in technology.

Environmentally this is a win for everyone. Upstream, mining and transporting of exotic and rare minerals are eliminated. Downstream, vehicle weights remain about the same, emissions consist of condensed clean steam and uncaptured waste heat and there is no almost insurmountable increased load on the electrical grid. Greenhouse gasses no longer exist. There is a chance for trace NO X (Oxides of Nitrogen) in the exhaust. This is not from Nitrogen in the air, but from trace lubricating oil getting into the combustion chamber.

The changes in paradigms this technology will cause are immense from the petrochemical industry to fuel taxes to relationships with and between oil producing countries. Toyota has indicated that they may offer conversion kits to update existing vehicles. Hopefully, there will be no unforeseen obstacles to delay the progress of this all-important technology. Published reports indicate that Toyota has 5000 patents on this project. Most will be honored or released by licensing agreements to competitors. The unknown reaction will be from China.

Our water treatment industry may have an important role as production begins unless Toyota includes a built-in device to prep the water for electrolysis.

According to a February 2022 report by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), of the 4.12 trillion kWh of electrical power generated in the U.S. in 2021, 899 billion kWh or 21.8% was generated by coal-fired generators. All fossil fuels, led by natural gas at 38.3%, produced 60.8%. Renewables (wind, solar, hydroelectric, and thermal wells) accounted for 20.1% and nuclear 18.9%.

All Electric Vehicles (EVs) with minimal exceptions get their battery charges from the electrical grid, so by extrapolation slightly over one in five of all EV cars are coal-powered and will remain so until either vehicle or power source technologies change.

On January 3, 2022, Tesla announce that worldwide they shipped one million new electric cars in 2021. This represents an 84% increase over 2020 and well ahead of the 50% increase predicted by the company early in 2021. Certainly, this news was greeted by investors and environmentalists as being fantastic and by all automotive manufacturers as the industry’s future.

There is a persistent concern, however, that the switch to all-electric, battery-powered automobiles has downsides that are seldom expressed. One that is easy to understand is the ability of the existing electrical grids to reliably deliver the surge in required energy. While there are companies like Aardvark Electric (a firm that provides EV home charger installation in Atlanta, GA), or similar ones providing the option of charging stations at home itself, not every household or region may have the required fund or access to such amenities. Parallel to that concern is electrical energy generation, especially in locations where energy sources declared as green are not available. This leaves new, what are called polluting sources as viable alternative generation sources thus consolidating polluting gasses in many areas. Other issues include sustainability because of the dependency on scarce battery materials from insecure sources and social concerns involving mining labor in some parts of the world. Finally, there are unsubstantiated numbers on the internet indicating that total CO₂ emissions in the EV battery supply chain are as high as the same vehicle being powered by a traditional gas engine.

The concerns may be effectively addressed by continuing with electric drive motors (whether a 72V BLDC or others), but replacing batteries with in-vehicle electrical generating using hydrogen fuel cells. Rather than employing tanks of high-pressure hydrogen as is being done by Hyundai, Toyota, and Nissan and the associated change in fueling infrastructure, consider using properly treated water and electrolytic technology to generate the hydrogen from the water right in the vehicle. The by-products of hydrogen production and fuel cells combined are water and heat. Not the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. Currently, commercially available bulk hydrogen is mostly produced by splitting the hydrogen/carbon bond in natural gas. This is a heat with catalyst process that consumes considerable energy with carbon as a by-product that must be sequestered to prevent the atmospheric release of carbon dioxide.

Using the following conversion factors, it appears that water can indeed replace gasoline.

a. 1 gal. Water weighs 8.34 lbs.

b. Molecular Weight of water = (2 x 1)H +16(O) = 18

c. % wt. of Hydrogen in water = 2/18 = 11.1%

d. Wt. Hydrogen = .111 x 8.34 = 0.92 #/gal

e. Embedded Energy in 1 gal. gasoline = 132,000 BTU

f. Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) Auto Efficiency is 20% per USDOE.

g. Applied energy in ICE vehicle = 20% or 0.2 x 132,000 BTU = 26,400 BTU/gallon

h. At .92# hydrogen per gallon, water contains 60,000 x .92 = 55,200 BTU hydrogen energy per gallon water

I. Hydrogen production energy requirement – 2.27 kWh per pound of hydrogen.

j. Hydrogen energy production parasitic loss in BTU 2.27 x 3,214 BTU/kWh= 7,296 BTU per # hydrogen

k. Net available hydrogen energy for a hydrogen fuel cell in a gallon of water is 55,200 – 7,296 = 47,904 BTU.

l. Hydrogen Fuel Cell Auto Efficiency is 60% per USDOE or 3X the efficiency of gasoline ICE vehicles

m. Comparing the gasoline consumption of an ICE engine with 20% use of 132,000 BTU or 26,400 BTU with 60% use of 47,904 BTU or 28,742 BTU for a hydrogen-fuel cell-electric motor propulsion system, the volumes of gasoline and water are close to equal.

Unavailable is a vehicle gross weight comparison when considering EV battery pack vs. filled high-pressure hydrogen tanks vs. in-car hydrogen production equipment. Presumably, the USDOE has included much of this data in its efficiency statements.

Numerous hurdles exist to turn this water as a fuel concept into a reality. The primary challenge is the energy required to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. Italicized items j. and k. above are goals to be achieved and not currently available. Technologies such as refinements on PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) or newly emerging photon energy supplied by LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) could be what is needed. Existing microprocessors, algorithms, and AI technologies exist to integrate all systems. By- products of processes are heat, oxygen, and water, so a heat recovery/storage system to prevent water freezing should be doable. The water used needs to be treated with relatively inexpensive equipment currently available from multiple sources for home or service station use.

As with all status disruptions, vitally needed is someone with visionary qualities to champion and promote the concept, not unlike the late Bill Lear of Lear Jet fame or the late Steve Jobs who changed communications and music forever. As early as 1967, Bill Lear envisioned hydrogen-powered cars and patented Lear Dyne as the process, but he was far ahead of technologies now available. History tells us that Elon Musk actually applied his promotional and technological skills to an electric car conceived by someone else that went on to become Tesla. His example permeated the automotive industry worldwide causing a major shift by virtually all manufacturers to transition to EVs. There exists, however, the probability of energy shortages, specialty materials unavailability, and for certain, labor layoffs because electric vehicles are less labor intensive than their internal combustion engine equivalent.

Most electric vehicles are being produced in a sled or skateboard fashion consisting of drive wheels, directional wheels, and a low-profile battery and electronics assembly located between the two sets of wheels. The body is then dropped down from above and secured in place. Conceivably, a hydrogen-fueled electricity generating cell and hydrogen producing cell could be constructed with a similar geometry thus not requiring a complete structural change.

Literally. NASA announced early the week of August 11, 2024 that an unimaginably huge volume of water has been found on Mars. That’s the good news. The not so good news is that the water is not actually ON mars, but rather WITHIN the planet, specifically at an estimated depth of 7-12 miles. The water appears to be located around that planet’s equator and NASA stated that it probably got there from lakes and oceans that existed at one time and that this water leaked through cracks and fissures into underground voids. Equatorial surface temperature on Mars is minus 100 Deg. F at night to plus 70 Deg. F at mid-day during their summer. Unless unusual isotopes of Hydrogen and/or Oxygen existed to produce water with unusual freezing characteristics, there is a potential plausibility issue about the source.

There is currently a buzz by Space X founder Elon Musk and NASA about Mars being colonized perhaps as a place to preserve human life should Earth become uninhabitable for a variety of reasons. Having water for human hydration, plant growth and electrolysis splitting for Hydrogen energy and Oxygen breathing will shorten the lead time to making Mars livable. The major obstacle for getting the water will be accessing it at such depths. Placement of deep drilling rigs for reaching the water seems like an insurmountable obstacle because of size, weight and distance from Earth. However, there was recently an engineering article explaining a new tunneling method that uses heat (plasma arc?) to melt sand and rock and use the resulting glass-like material to line the tunnel for support. Hopefully, such a process could be adapted to smaller, vertical bore holes.

If Mars, like Earth, is possibly producing water deep underground, as believed and demonstrated by Stephan Riess in the first half of the 20 th century and documented in the book New Water for a Thirsty World by Michael Salzman. The Mars water could also be under high pressure and rise significantly in the bore hole even to the point of becoming artesian. It would be ironic to have Mr. Riess’ beliefs and technologies prevail on Mars after being unjustly dismissed on earth. The same week the Mars water availability was announced, one of the many US alphabet bureaucracies announced in the San Diego Union Tribune that there would be a cutback in Colorado River water availability in 2025. This water is vitally important to 7 western states in addition to 2 in Mexico and the availability loss could be in the range of 25%. Typically, because of the number of voting farmers being less than the urban population count, agriculture will take the hit which could conceivably result in smaller crop yields and higher food prices. Solving the water issue on Mars could be extremely important in the future, but right now, shouldn’t we be solving the water scarcity issue on Earth by, at a minimum, exploring the validity of the aforementioned technologies on Earth?

Spread the word!

New, primary, earth-generated Water.
Researchers at Northwestern University located in Evanston, IL announced the discovery of a reservoir of water within the earth at considerable depth that contains as much or more water than all oceans. They mention ringwoodite which was first mentioned by other researchers in 2014 and which we wrote about 2 years ago. Hopefully the Northwestern researchers will end up exploring a more contemporary and accurate source. However, any and all research is welcome and will eventually lead us to the salvation of good, plentiful water for the entire world.

We continue to encourage either public or private investment for pursuing the search for an unlimited supply of fresh water being constantly produced deep within the earth. The theory of this occurring was validated in the first half of the 20 th century by Stephen Riess and demonstrated by his locating and drilling of dozens of wells in improbable locations.

We just received what is now a 40 year old transcript of a speech titled Earth-Generated Water: A Potential Solution. The speech was given to Mideastern scientists and politicians in Iran by Morad Eghbal and takes a pragmatic view of the geopolitical impact of water resources in the entire Mideastern region. The history of water sources as well as technologies is explored. Mr. Morad was a follower of Stephan Riess and of interest traced the theory of water being produced back as far as Leonardo da Vinci in the 1500’s through numerous German and Swedish scientists and geologists.

Desalination.
Until the implementation of obtaining earth-generated water is achieved, survival could very well become dependent on using seawater with much of the 3% of minerals dissolved in it removed. Historically, this was done by a process called distillation where the seawater was boiled and the resulting steam containing little or no minerals was condensed on a cool surface as usable water. The process was energy inefficient thus costly even after decades of fine tuning. In the late 1960’s the process of reverse osmosis (RO) was invented and within a decade it was refined sufficiently to dewater seawater i.e. remove most water and discard a brine too rich in minerals to be used for anything. The process discards 40% or more of all water as a mineral-rich brine which is becoming an environmental issue, uses considerable energy (though 50% or more less than distillation) and the equipment is complicated as well as expensive to operate.

We all know that water needs to be heated to vaporize, right? Wrong! Physics instructors have been teaching this forever, but a group of students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) apparently never got the memo so they have reinvented distillation w/o heat. Apparently, when the surface of water is bombarded with green light at a 45° angle the water vaporizes. I envision the photon energy breaking the hydrogen bonds holding water clusters together and freeing up individual water molecules which are significantly lighter than air to float up to a condensing surface. The energy from a green LED is all that’s required. I never thought to ask a physics professor why puddles evaporated on a cool day or how sublimation of ice works.

THERE IS POSSIBLY PROBABLY ENOUGH FRESH WATER ON EARTH FOR EVERYONE

Since 2014 scientists have been pursuing the concept that water exists hundreds of miles below us in a material called RINGWOODITE. 2014 is when a diamond from a Brazilian diamond mine was shown to have a tiny but visible speck of the material as an occlusion. Prior to that finding, ringwoodite materials had been found in meteorite debris and synthesized in the laboratory. Ringwoodite is a blue, gemlike material made of magnesium silicate (Mg₂SiO₄) that in theory has an attraction for hydrogen. It starts out as a green-colored mineral called Peridot that is exposed to seawater and indescribably high pressures to form ringwoodite with drops of water in it. Drawings of the water cycle now show ocean water leaking through fissures in the bottom of the oceans and then returning through other fissures by convection currents along with ringwoodite being expelled through volcanic eruptions.

The capture of fresh water from this natural process or by drilling so deeply may not be needed however, because THIS WATER HAS ALREADY BEEN FOUND.

A brilliant scientist/engineer/geologist/hydrologist named Stephen Riess found this newly formed, infantile, or primary water in copious amounts almost 100 years ago. He was born in Bavaria in the late 1800’s and educated in their finest technical schools. After emigrating to the U.S. in his 20s, he became an active mining engineer and geologist traveling worldwide for large firms. Because of a youthful encounter with wells in Germany and then his later mine experiences, he theorized that water was being constantly formed deep within the earth, that it was under tremendous pressure, and that this pressure was driving the newly formed water up toward the earth’s crust through fissures where, within reason, it could be accessed.

Because of his geology background, Mr. Riess further theorized that the fissures would be near mountains and mesas that had erupted through the surface and that the chemistry of the rocks adjacent to eruptions would further signify their presence. In the 1940’s he began advising people where to drill. One well required drilling 500 feet through solid granite and 450 feet beyond, but success was achieved. Upon partially retiring in the 70’s he could point to 800 success stories worldwide including Israel and Saudi Arabia. Much of his work was in southern California where he lived for decades and where he ran afoul of politicians over the development of waterways to transport water long distances vs. the drilling of local wells. This in turn caused various scientific, academic, and business entities dependent on public funding to discredit him. The ever-present go-along-to-get-along philosophy prevailed against the man and his theories backed by actual successes.

In 1960, a multi-disciplined engineer/author Michael H. Salzman wrote a book titled New Water for A Thirsty World about the work of Mr. Riess. He apparently had met the scientist and reviewed his notes because he uses the principles of water chemistry, advanced physics, geochemistry, petrology, physical chemistry, mineralogy, crystallography, and structural geology to validate the theories expressed by Mr. Riess. The book has been out of print for decades, but online certified scans are available at modest prices. It is in a textbook format with numerous references. Shortly before his death in 1985, Mr. Riess was interviewed twice on film where he detailed his theory and offered that he had copious notes on his theories and activities. These rather lengthy interviews are online in YouTube format by simply googling Stephan Riess. In them, he gives information on how his theories developed, how they need to be applied, and their successful application. They also display the sincerity of the man.

Modern drilling equipment and processes learned and developed for the oil and natural gas industries should make access to these water sources much easier than when Mr. Riess was assisting in developing productive primary water wells. The water obtained to date was of varying quality relative to its mineral content (TDS). This happens because the region where water is formed is below the level where oxidation can take place and the water is pure but as it accumulates in crevices and pockets it reacts with minerals and as a universal solvent, dissolves many. Minimal treatment may be needed for agricultural use because of brackishness but none of the wells produced anything approaching sea water quality.

A web search shows no signs of any enterprise or country exploring for this primary water. With the world requirement for fresh water for agricultural and human consumption ever increasing while simultaneously existing sources are diminishing, renewal of following the lead of Stephan Riess could be a lifesaver. Somehow his story must be spread worldwide with renewed optimism until it captures the imagination of an entrepreneur.  We cannot rely on the 2014 science project.

SPREAD THE WORD!

The World needs Fluoride and that’s why it is here as one of the most prevalent 15 minerals. In nature it exists primarily as hard, slowly dissolving calcium fluoride (CaF₂). As low pH rain water passes through the ground causing it to dissolve the water hardness and fluoride concentration both increase in ground water (well water). Likewise, rain runoff across exposed calcium fluoride adds hardness and fluoride to surface water (rivers, lakes, streams). In most of the world the net amount in water of naturally occurring fluoride is in the 0.3 mg/l range. The notable exceptions are parts of Russia and India where because of the high concentrations of calcium fluoride, water contains beyond 10 mg/l.

In the lower concentrations, fluoride in soil and water is classified as a micro-nutrient that contributes to plant growth and, in humans, healthier, cavity-free teeth and stronger bones. As WWII ramped up, it is rumored that dentists could accurately predict draftees from certain cities because of excellent teeth— one being Green Bay, WI. Fluoride from plants and water gravitates toward calcium in humans thus its ultimate effect on teeth and bones.

If fluoride concentrations are too high, plants and humans accumulate it. Humans absorb 80% of fluoride ingested and 50% of that migrates to teeth and bones with the balance eliminated through urine. Plants simply store it and tea leaves probably store more than any other edible plants.

Most fluoride is used in industrial processes and waste from the processes is converted to Hexaflurosilicic acid (F6H2Si) that dissociates in water to 6F^– + SiO2 + 4H⁺. This acid is the primary additive used by municipalities along with sodium fluorosilicate or sodium fluoride to increase drinking water natural fluoride to approximately 1 mg/l based on the dental profession’s recommendations for healthy teeth. This added fluoride is welcomed by many and passionately opposed by others. The opposing group spends huge amounts to have the fluoride removed from their water. The current options for reduction are:

BONE CHAR.

This method is currently the most popular. Forget “removal” that is not going to happen “reduction” to some extent will. In addition to the issue of the level of reduction are capacity (how many gallons will it treat) and effective flow rate. As its name implies, bone char is nothing more than ground cattle bones heated to 900^o F in a low/no oxygen atmosphere within a rotating kiln. The resulting product is a fine, black particle consisting of approximately 70% hydroxyapatite [Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2] and the balance somewhat activated carbon (C). The reduction of fluoride is a combination of adsorption of fluoride by the hydroxyapatite, adsorption by the activated carbon and partial ion exchange with available OH ions.

Each cubic foot weighs 40 pounds and has the following characteristics –

• Literature is scant on this. We began using material from an east coast suppler in 2006. Their stated capacity was 0.005 pounds of fluoride removal per pound of bone char. This converts to 23,950 gallons per cubic foot based on 1 mg/l challenge. 100 days for a family of 4. We participated in a WQA test of the same material in 2009 and results were 11,900 gallons. 50 days for a family of 4. A recent in-house test on a sample from a national sample had a yield of 1517 gallons or about 2 weeks for a family of 4.
• Percent Removal. On average, fluoride removal was 67% thus leaving 33% or 1/3 of the fluoride in the water.
• Flow rate. The reactions taking place between the media and the fluoride take a long take a long time. To obtain even the modest results requires a flow rate of approximately 1.5 GPM per cubic foot of media. Higher flow rates cause the percentage of fluoride left in the treated water to increase significantly.
• Water Chemistry. Chlorine in the water to a bone char system will occupy some of the available sites which reduces capacity as will chloride. Effectiveness favors a pH in the 6-7 range and unfortunately cities are elevating their water pH to the 8+ level to prevent corrosion in their distribution system.

Recommendation for Bone Char Systems: AVOID.

ACTIVATED ALUMINA

The use of this material predates bone char for fluoride. It is a factory processed form of Aluminum Oxide (Al₂O₃) and normally appears as small white/light tan spheres 16-30 US mesh in size. For unexplained reasons, the USEPA classifies Activated Alumina as Best Available Technology (BAT) for fluoride and arsenic from water.

The material as originally processed contains sodium oxide (Na₂O) which converts to sodium hydroxide (NaOH) when first wetted. The resulting high pH reduces the capacity for Fluoride to nearly zero. Treatment of the material with hydrochloric (HCl) or sulfuric (H₂SO₄) acid before use is imperative. Some, but not all, providers of activated alumina offer material that has been acid washed for immediate use—beware.

Effective system flow is 2 GPM/cu. ft. of media in tanks(s) and removal of fluoride is approximately 65% at this flow rate. Capacity for fluoride is estimated at 1.5% or 6 lbs. fluoride per 40 pounds (1 cu.ft. ) of activated alumina. This is roughly 25x the capacity of bone char. However, properly prepared activated alumina can cost 20x that of bone char.

Water chemistry. Here is where the efficacy of activated alumina falls apart. The capacity for fluoride drops precipitously by 50% or more when feed water pH is 8.2 and bicarbonate alkalinity (essentially hardness) exceeds 50 PPM (3 grains). This eliminates effectiveness on 85% of municipal water supplies.

Recommendation for Activated Alumina Systems: AVOID.

ION EXCHANGE

As a weakly charged anion (negatively charged ion), fluoride can be reduced by approximately 50% by employing a system similar to a water softener where the softening resin has been replaced with typically a Type 2 strong base anion resin. Such systems are regenerated with sodium chloride (NaCl) and usually have a capacity of 12,000 grains for ALL anions in the water exclusive of silica and carbon dioxide when 5 pounds of salt per cubic ft. of resin. The removal of all anions is concerning. First, this could lead to a corrosive water as carbonate, bicarbonate and hydroxyl ions are removed. Second, there is always a chance of taste and odor issues when anion resins are used and in addition a very briny water could be created. Third and of primary importance, these resins are not fluoride selective and thus if not regenerated accurately and timely, they can dump extremely high, toxic levels of fluoride into the facility water stream.

A search for a fluoride selective resin yielded one manufacturer located in India. Overall capacity information contained numerous chemistry and flow rate caveats. The main problem is Aluminum Chloride is required for regeneration and its cost and availability is unknown.

Recommendation for Ion Exchange Systems: USE EXTREME CAUTION

REVERSE OSMOSIS

Drinking Water

A properly designed under counter system will produce approximately 1 gallon of treated water every half hour at a water use efficiency of 50% when operated at 65 PSI. Reduction of fluoride is 90-97% which means the remaining fluoride will be below detection levels or essentially zero on water tests. A basic battery operated total dissolved solids (TDS) meter should be included to monitor the effectiveness of the membrane. The system should also have a PERMEATE PUMP to eliminate TDS Creep which is an operational phenomenon of small RO systems that lowers water quality (increases fluoride in treated water).

Whole House

Although there is no reliable (Government agency, university study, etc.) study indicating fluoride uptake by humans other than by oral ingestion, there are those who wish to have it removed from their entire home. A reverse osmosis system designed and constructed to treat all water within a home will reduce fluoride as well as or better than an under counter system.

Recommendation for Whole House R.O. systems: Expensive but highly effective

Phoenix, AZ Drought

To combat the ongoing drought conditions and help with the necessary demand for water conservation in Phoenix, Dime Water offers product lines that revolutionize water treatment by eliminating water waste and the need for salt-based treatments. Building on our expertise since 1995, Dime Water has been established as a leading provider of environmentally friendly water purifiers, a large part is in thanks to our patented catalytic-magnetic process. This technology has been instrumental in conserving precious potable water and reducing environmental harm. We have estimated that our technology has already saved 130 million gallons of water from being lost to drainage and prevented the discharge of 30 million pounds of salt into the ecosystem.

A Great Solution For Phoenix Arizona

Our latest offerings, Aquafer and ESF 2.0, are enhanced versions of our renowned technology. They boast an extended effective treatment life for hardness scale prevention, providing customers with a 20% longer lifespan. Notably, the new units are designed to address a wider range of scaling issues. In addition to combating the common calcium carbonate scale, these units also tackle scaling caused by calcium sulfate, strontium sulfate, barium sulfate, calcium fluoride, and calcium phosphate. This expanded capability is particularly significant for residential and commercial reverse osmosis applications.

The technology operates by creating microscopic seeds of one or more scale-forming minerals. This unique approach triggers the formation of seeds for the remaining minerals, due to fascinating phenomena. Once these seeds are formed, the product’s powerful heterogeneous magnetic field interacts with the microscopic mineral particles, causing them to cluster together and remain suspended instead of dissolving back into the water. In this clustered state, the mineral particles lose their charge and cannot adhere to surfaces, effectively eliminating the formation of scale.

Dime Water Aims to Make a Substantial Impact

Treated water for less than $1 a day. By introducing Aquafer, Dime Water aims to make a substantial impact on water conservation in Phoenix, Arizona. With its ability to prevent scale formation and minimize wastage, Aquafer reduces the need for excessive water usage in homes, commercial establishments, and reverse osmosis systems. By conserving water resources and minimizing the discharge of harmful salts into the environment, Aquafer offers an eco-friendly solution that aligns with Phoenix’s efforts to combat water scarcity and preserve the region’s delicate ecosystem.

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Since 1899, various government agencies and academic centers around the world have recognized and measured the east-west off-set of the earth’s north-south axis of rotation. In a 6-14 year cycle this change can be from 20-60 inches and is referred to as earth’s wobble. Until 2000 this condition was primarily a scientific oddity except for those plotting space ventures, celestial observatories, astronomers and explorers. As societies became more dependent on GPS for a myriad of tasks, accuracy needs to be increased. That 20 to 60 inches doesn’t sound like much, but basic trigonometry tells us it’s enough to put a plane at the wrong airport, an ambulance on the wrong side of town or you at the wrong restaurant. It became apparent that there was a need to program the wobble dimension and direction into satellite software for all civilian, military and scientific satellites in real time for accuracy. Numerous math models were developed to predict the when of the next movement along with its magnitude and direction. None succeeded. Missing, of course, was why it was happening.

In 2016, NASA, in collaboration with the German Aerospace Center, released a peer-reviewed study that, though heavy on correlation, placed the causation of the wobble along with its magnitude and direction (vector) on the planet’s surface water not including lakes and rivers. In essence, a wet season on a substantial land mass will tilt the axis toward it thus defining the direction. The magnitude will be determined by the longitudinal distance from the equator and is maximized in a +/- 45o band. This last comment is based on a physics mathematical representation of a spinning object beyond the understanding of this author. This entire study apparently is as close as we have come to being able to take a predictive lead on the wobble. As no surprise, some in the scientific community continue to express beliefs about glacial ice melting being a wobble-causing component due to – you guessed it– global warming. Any chance that the tilt is part of the warming as opposed to or in addition to CO2?

The San Diego Union Tribune ran an article on June 29, 2023, that adds a new component to the cause of the tilt. According to Ki-Weon Seo, professor of geophysics at Seoul National University (Korea), and his research associates, a contributor and perhaps a major contributor to the tilt action is the worldwide water withdrawal of 75 trillion gallons annually from wells. This is data from 1960-2000 and it is presumed that it continues to this day. They also point to the earth’s crust still unevenly rebounding after millions of years of ice age coating. 70% of usable water is destined for agriculture or food production to supplement rainfall. The world population went from 3 to 8 billion between 1960 and 2022 but appears to be stabilizing at nearly 8 billion for the foreseeable future. Replenishment (recharging) of groundwater sources is probably running <2% annually, so as wells run dry they will stay that way for decades. To continue feeding 8 billion people, drastic changes need to be made:

1. Stop or severely reduce non-food crops, Corn for ethanol, hay, decorative plants & shrubs, etc.
2. Stop or severely reduce crops for animal feed. Necessitates severe reduction of animal protein diets.
3. Eliminate high water use crops such as rice and almonds.
4. Encourage plant gene splicing so they thrive on less water.
5. Eliminate organic crops.
6. Learn and practice irrigation methods from the Israelis.
7. Stop water treatment processes that wastewater.

You may or may not approve of the elimination of the world’s dependency on fossil fuels (oil, coal & natural gas) and the pace of the change to renewables (solar and wind) is taking, but they are definitely upon us. It appears that virtue-signaling government personnel and bureaucracies have gotten ahead of available technologies with the exception of Japan and perhaps a few other countries.

The current worldwide preferred technology for cars and trucks to avoid fossil fuels is electric motors and the source of electricity is batteries that require frequent recharging. Recharging requires electricity from the grid and this power is derived from generators powered primarily by fossil fuels. The stated desire is to augment and eventually replace these generators with renewable power from photovoltaic cells (solar) and wind-driven generators. As a side note, current new solar panels transform 20% of the applied sun energy into electricity, stabilizing to 18% shortly after installation.

The obvious problem in the transition to sun and wind use is their intermittent availability. To overcome this deficiency, a huge industry of battery-based energy storage that releases electricity on demand 24/7 is emerging. This storage capacity will require millions if not billions of batteries over and above those needed for vehicles.  It’s questionable that even multiple Tesla million-square-foot giga-factories can meet the challenge.

In addition to the production capabilities needed to produce the number of batteries required, is raw materials availability. Sources of items such as Lithium, cobalt, and nickel are questionable as is their very existence. One geologist has stated that there aren’t enough of the necessary elements on the planet to meet the needs. The answer may be to switch to sodium from lithium. Sodium is a close cousin to lithium on the periodic table and is universally available as salt to be mined and in seawater. Metallic sodium does not exist in nature as pure sodium but must be extracted from molten salt (Sodium Chloride) by the Downs Cell method. Sodium-based batteries have a lower power-to-weight ratio than lithium-based, so they are best suited for stationary storage applications thus leaving lithium for vehicles. One interesting source of salt could be the wastewater from seawater reverse osmosis systems. By reclaiming the salt and not returning it to the ocean, permits for large seaside systems to produce drinking water may avoid the negativity by environmentalists.

Interestingly, Japan, in spite of its history, is ramping up its nuclear energy electricity production capabilities to replace shipped-in oil and natural gas. They have a shortage of both wind and solar options because of location, geography, and population density. They have developed smaller, close-to-use reactors and turbine-driven generators. The reactors are totally unique employing closed-loop helium cooling systems to replace water and employ ceramic encapsulation of radioactive core sources that are impervious to heat.  Both features address the problems displayed at the Fukushima power plant.

Of additional interest, Japan is betting through Toyota and Honda on electric cars powered by Hydrogen using hydrogen fuel cells as the source of electricity. They have also developed two new methods of producing hydrogen from water. Both processes are electrolysis with one receiving its energy in a loop directly from the small nuclear reactor called high-temperature steam electrolysis (HTSE) and the other called the thermochemical water-splitting iodine-sulfur (IS) process.

Yes, of course. Bacteria have a genetic profile, so if bacteria is present there will be genes. One gene, the MCR-9 gene, can be a very large problem, however. This particular gene causes the bacteria it resides in to be anti-microbial resistant. Simply put, the bacteria cannot be killed by antibiotics; not even colistin. Colistin (polymyxin E) trade name Colomycin is thought of as the “drug of last resort” when treating people with bacterial infections (particularly pneumonia) that are not responding to more common antibiotics. Death may result if the damages of bacteria cannot be halted.

The presence of the MR-9 gene is being tracked around the world by various groups because of the devastating effects it can have on a population if it enters water supplies or food chains. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the potential damages from this gene’s antimicrobial resistance as “one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity”.  The tracking in the US is being headed by Issmat Kassem an assistant professor of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at the University of Georgia. For the first time, it has been identified in the US as present in sewerage in Georgia. As with Covid-19 testing, the presence of a particular virus or bacteria in sewerage lets investigators know that the population serviced by a particular sewerage treatment system has been exposed to the contaminant.

Now that the MCR-9 gene is in the US, what can be done? We certainly cannot live in a sterile bubble, so common sense should prevail. The human immune system is capable of preventing bacterial infections by bolstering it through proper diet, mineral and vitamin supplementation as needed, proper rest, and stress relief. This is often referred to as the Terrain Philosophy of health. Add to it good hygiene practices and bacteria with the MCR-9 gene will not invade. For those who are immune-compromised for any reason, Ultra Violet (UV) treatment of water entering the home will stop that pathway, rinsing fresh food with ozonated water will stop another and finally, a circulating air filter with a UV inside will round out water, food, and air protection.

WATER AND ELEPHANTS

WHAT DO THEY HAVE IN COMMON?

Although it may seem strange or bizarre, the answer is MEMORY.

A common comment about people exhibiting above-average recall is to equate this ability to that of an elephant. This is a documented truism based on professional observations, testing, and elephant brain biopsies. In fact, the biopsies document a pyramidal neuron level (associated with memory) on a par with humans.

Conversely, when water memory is mentioned, reactions range from disbelief to accusations of pseudo-science or worse from the scientific community. The disconnect between people with traditional science education and what can be laboratory demonstrated and effectively used in water is the textbook information on water that simply is not challenged as it should be. Too often, water is overlooked as being a major contributing factor in products and processes.

No, water doesn’t remember names or dates, but more importantly, it remembers and can repeat frequencies (vibrations) that it is exposed to. This is important because everything that exists (animal, vegetable, and mineral) has a frequency unique to it as evidenced by the effectiveness of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) which measures frequency responses at the cellular level.  Very early in the 20^th Century, Nikola Tesla referred to the earth as a huge ball of vibrations. In 1952 this was confirmed and named the Schumann resonance belt existing between the surface of the earth and the ionosphere. This 60-mile-wide electromagnetic field band vibrates consistently at 7.83 hertz (cycles per second) and was probably the infinitely available energy described by Tesla that he wished to harness. This energy is the result of positively charged solar winds reacting with the negatively charged earth and interestingly 7.83 hertz is the alpha frequency of the human brain.

There are two controversial medical applications involving vibrations or frequencies. One dates to the late 1700s in Germany and a physician named Samuel Hahnemann. He is the founder of what is currently known as homeopathic medicine. Using highly diluted solutions of pathogens in water is referred to as homeopathic compounds that contain unmeasurable amounts of pathogens in water that trigger the immune system to release antigens. By diluting the solutions multiple times until all molecules of the pathogen are below detection levels, presumably only their vibration remains in the water. The other dates to the 1920s and is the strengthening of various organ cells in the body responding curatively to a like vibration through water in the cell applied by an electrical frequency generator device. Perhaps the most famous (infamous?) was developed by Dr. Royal Rife. The rife machine has been offered by a number of companies and is declared illegal by the FDA although proponents swear to their efficacy and to this day risk stiff fines and jail terms for promoting or selling such devices.

The thousands of photos taken of water drops in the 1980s and 90’s by Japanese physician Dr. Masaru Emoto provide us with visual insight to the effects of various vibrations on water.  Pictures were taken at -5 to 0^o C. and displayed the hexagonal shape of water molecule structures as well as distortions caused by pollution and unpleasant sounds. An impressive selection of Dr. Emoto’s photos is available in his book Messages from Water. Because water has unusual properties such as expansion at freezing and asymmetrical hydrogen/oxygen bond angles, often expressed is a thought that water is not from this planet. This thought may be reinforced by a satellite photo on page 139 of the book showing ice balls entering earth from space.

Recently, medical investigators in France have reported experimental proof of the presence and longevity of vibrations in the water. The first scientist was Dr. Jacques Benveniste who in 1988 began using the term water memory. After his untimely death in 2004, the lead scientist studying water memory became Dr. Luc Antoine Montagnier. He is not only a practicing French physician but a Nobel prize winner in physiology for the discovery of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus or HIV. His experiment successfully imprinted the vibration profile of a DNA strand into the water, digitized it, and transmitted it via the internet to another country where the vibrations were applied to a vile of water containing DNA building blocks of nucleotides (phosphate, sugar, and nitrate groups) and the DNA strand was replicated with 98% accuracy. The entire experiment can be viewed at https://www.nature.com/news/2004/041004/full/news041004-19.html

A serious university-level report on how the memory phenomenon works were published on www.scirp.org. This is a site that grants open access to hundreds of technical papers and by typing in water memory, a 2018 paper from the Journal of Modern Physics produced by Auguste Meeson of a Belgian University appears. His conclusion is that in spite of multiple dilutions (10 to 100 times) nanoparticles of ferromagnetic material referred to as pearls remain that hold memory not unlike a CD or tape. Rather strange, but plausible. Until a more definitive explanation is offered, it is probably best to refer to the water memory ability as a phenomenon.

What’s next for applying memorized vibrations in water? The first and most important step is for mainstream scientists to accept Dr. Montagnier’s experiments and build on them. This can be a difficult hurdle because of a history of scientific careers being derailed by water-related studies that failed. Next will be the need for entrepreneurs to champion the concept and develop products.

Once water memory is established as a truism, however, we may expect to see

• A resurgence of homeopathic compounds within or in competition with big pharma
• Transport of dangerous chemicals via the internet
• Beverages infused with curative vibrational messages
• Crops irrigated with water containing vibrations of insecticides, pesticides, nutrients, etc.
• Ways to erase old memories so that new ones can be added. Currently, it appears that the phase changes and heat associated with distillation are adequate but slow.

The study of water and its properties constantly seems to open new paths to explore.

In 2020 an organization called EARTH ISLAND out of Berkley, California filed suit in the California court system against all beverage companies selling beverages in California that use plastic bottles. This, of course, includes drinking water as well as sodas and others.

The desired outcome is to eliminate plastic bottle waste from the environment by replacing them with biodegradable and environment-friendly bottles. Not surprisingly, the industry leaders have fought back primarily with two tactics one being it should be a federal suite where it would be prohibitively expensive to file and pursue, and the other a change of venue to each company’s corporate headquarters which would increase costs dramatically. This week a state judge struck down both tactics and the California suit will proceed.

A casual look at store shelves indicates that based on shelf space, bottled water is by far the largest target and with California having almost 1/8 of the US population, the potential impact on bottled water sales will be significant. A switch to cans is an alternative that would probably increase cost and additionally may not be received well by consumers because of carrying and closure issues. In some parts of the world plastic packets called sachets are used, but they too lack consumer convenience and plastic waste remains.

We have all seen photos and/or videos of hideous areas of plastic waste dominated by discarded bottles. PFAs are regarded as forever plastics because they simply will not break down in water or sunlight but instead wear mechanically to become microparticles now found in our food chain and within virtually all living creatures. The plastics used in drinking water bottles are almost-forever materials that blight the environment and impact living creatures. Certainly, the plastics industry and others are aware of what may change in California and are working with their customers for viable alternatives. But until then?

Few of us want restrictions imposed via courts or legislative actions, but before such activity takes place, it may be wise and environmentally responsible to consider a viable alternative such as treating the water in the home or office and utilizing permanent, often insulated personal bottles. Excellent treatment for taste, odor, and safety can be achieved with Dime Water, Inc.’s lineup of under-counter REVERSE OSMOSIS SYSTEMS. One system the Model DRO-100-ZW does this with ZERO WASTED WATER.

A recent and extremely short comment by a patent office (USPTO) employee on a PBS radio station stimulated some thoughts and concerns. Her exposure to the patent process reveals that the vast majority are miniscule changes to existing products to protect an inventor or company in their marketing efforts. The sheer number of such applications is so high that the entire system has beenslowed down.

Since shortly after the US Civil War and continuing through the 1940’s, patents were often major, lifealtering ideas such as horse to cars, x-rays, electrical generation/transmission, human flight, radio, television, moving pictures, anti-biotics, anesthetics, steel production, splitting of atoms and the transistor to name a few. Thinking of each of these, virtually everything since has been an incremental development on one or more in relatively small steps.

History tells us that the vast majority of the life-altering ideas were conceived and developed by an individual with a passion and who prevailed after multiple failures until achieving success. Some such as Einstein were revered for their efforts and some such as Tesla were lost to posterity until recently. Each of them had in common with the others an imagination that fueled an idea that in-turn created their
passion.

If, as a society, we are to grow and prosper, we need to have a nucleus of people with imaginations to conceive the next life altering ideas and products. However, their activities are often stymied by such things as:

Educational System
In STEM institutions there is a need to follow a ridged progression of classes to maintain program certification. Further, professors and their assistants have minimal “real world” experiences and their career paths depend on outside grants and publishing that require adherence to set policies.
Einstein is said to have been dismissed from a university for not performing assigned chemistry experiments because results were already known and he wished to try new experiments.

Fear of failure
This not only is self applied, but can be peer applied if working within a team or for a corporation or an investor. Dr. Dyson of vacuum cleaner fame who himself was a prolific, multi-faceted inventor is alleged to fire engineers if they didn’t make a mistake after a year. He believed that
failures proved thinking outside of the box.

Thinking time
Looking off into space and clearing one’s mind of everything except a new concept should be encouraged by employers and professors alike. Unfortunately, it is too often mistaken for goofing off.

Corporate Culture
At the top management level, pay, bonuses and job security are determined in 3 month increments of pleasing stock holders so corporations are poor incubators for imaginative ideas.

This culture then permeates the entire staff and ideas suffer. Lip service is paid to R&D but acquisitions are the primary source of “new”.

Distractions
Sports, TV and 24/7 device connectivity certainly consume time that could be used for free thinking and, of course, can interrupt mid imaginative idea.

Private Funding
This can be an effective way for someone to obtain living expenses and concept development costs in the embryonic stages. If this is from friends and relatives it can progress smoothly. If from professional investors, however, their time demands and vision of the future seldom parallel that of the creative contributor and results in project collapse.

Not to totally despair. NASA puts out a monthly publication TECH BRIEFS that summarizes developments in medical devices, material sciences, propulsion, electronics, and spacecraft. Though the contributors’ design to a NASA needs, it’s refreshing to see one area where novel thinking is fostered and the imaginative minds are available.

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In response to the ongoing drought conditions as well as the overall worldwide shortage of potable water, Dime water has prepared for the imminent release of a vastly improved offering of zero water waste, no salt treatment products.

Since 1995, Dime Water has been an international leader in producing environmentally friendly water purifier products around their patented catalytic-magnetic process. From its inception through 2021, it is estimated that this technology has prevented the loss to drain of 130 MILLION GALLONS of potable water and the discharge of 30 MILLION POUNDS of salt into the environment.

The revised technology will be referred to as Aquafer and ESF 2 POINT O and offers the customer a 20 % longer effective water treatment hardness scale prevention life. Also, in addition to addressing the most common calcium carbonate scale, the revised units will also significantly reduce scaling caused by calcium sulfate, strontium sulfate, barium sulfate, calcium fluoride and calcium phosphate which are particularly important for home and commercial reverse osmosis applications. The Aquafer offers treated water for less than $1 a day.

The entire process relies on creating microscopic seeds of at least one of the scale forming minerals. For reasons often referred to as phenomena, this encourages formation of seeds of the remaining minerals mentioned. Once accomplished, a strong heterogeneous magnetic field in our products reacts on the microscopic mineral particles which causes them to cluster and not go back into solution. In the clustered form, there is no charge that permits them to cling to surfaces which then eliminates scale.

The ever-present message from news outlets, government officials from the top down, and peer pressure is that Worldwide we all must wear a mask to prevent the spread of Covid 19. There is compelling evidence that the most common materials used in their fabrication have pore sizes much larger than viruses thus not particularly effective. The analogy referred to is to think of throwing sand at a chain-link fence. Apparently, this has become common knowledge, thus a recent push to wear 2 masks simultaneously. Personal hygiene and immune improvement through diet and supplementation have all but disappeared from the dispensed advice.

The push for masks has been so effective that billions have been distributed and the numbers continue to grow. The vast majority are disposable and carelessly discarded as evidenced in parking lots, parks, and along roadways. This issue goes way beyond litter and affects our health and the food chain.

The most popular materials used to manufacture masks are cotton, polypropylene, and polyester with the last two being manmade plastic materials. The manmade materials are processed into microfibers for maximum filtration efficacy. This processing is responsible for microfibers getting into our water and food as the masks degrade. The primary effect in humans is the disruption of intestinal chemistry plus the unknown long-term exposure to slowly dissolving polymers in our gut. Environmentalists have now concluded that these particular microfibers are further degrading to Nanoparticles which plausibly causes uptake into the bloodstream.

What to do? The damage is done, so changes in mask material or disposal regulations will not change things because of lead times and delays. The only thing that can be done is to filter the drinking water in your home and the only filtration process that can remove harmful water particulates down to Nanosize is reverse osmosis. Add this situation to the ever-growing list of actual or potential health-compromising items in our drinking water that a functioning reverse osmosis unit can remove. Bottled water is NOT the answer.

Zeolite has a long history in the water treatment industry dating back to 1925 when Bill Lindsay started a company to build water softeners for homes and businesses. His efforts attracted the attention of Emmitt Culligan about a decade later and a second manufacturer was founded. Both companies exist and thrive to this day, although the zeolite then used has been replaced with a synthetic material called ion exchange resin.

Zeolite is a name applied to a huge number of extremely porous natural minerals mined in a number of worldwide locations. All have in common aluminum and silicates and because of their porosity they all absorb water along with the minerals contained within the water. Unique to the chemistry of each the species of Zeolite, they attract and cling to the positively charged (cationic) minerals in the water with varying degrees of hold (affinity). So a particular species can hold calcium (hardness) and release it when flooded with sodium (salt) thus permitting its use as a water softening agent.

The water softening ability of zeolite has been surpassed by the synthetic ion exchange resins first popularized in Germany in about 1936. The synthetic version is made of roughly 90% styrene and 10% divinylbenzene with about 10 national and international manufacturers maintaining uniform performance and competitive prices. The popularity of zeolite for other than water treatment is so high in the chemical and other industries that they too are being produced synthetically to absorb particular molecular sizes for distillation and waste remediation processes. They are extremely robust and chemically inert compared to the ion exchange resins. Within the water treatment industry one particular species, clinoptilolite, is extremely popular for filtration applications because its irregular shape creates a tortuous path for particulates and its cationic charge attracts extremely fine particulates.

It is an acknowledged fact that all humans are the product of what they eat, drink, and breathe. Because food sources, whether plant or animal, are dependent upon water for their existence, water is critical to 2 of the three. Expanding water’s role even more into the breathing realm by considering things such as the aerosol release of viruses and bacteria causing disease spread as in legionnaires disease, water truly impacts our survival at all levels. There is a fixed amount of water on earth as determined by the first law of thermodynamics and it will exist as liquid, solid, or vapor and constantly change between the three. Though much of the water is unusable for sustaining life because of its present chemistry, this can be permanently or temporarily changed by technology.

Where is the investment in intellect and money to more readily and economically provide a more reliable source of usable water through technology? A close examination of business and investment news indicates that much if not most of the investment oxygen in the room is being sucked up by medical, communication, and social media enterprises. One is noble and the others are hardly earth moving in their worth.

Development of Usable Water

Out of necessity, advanced nations in arid areas fine-tune membrane technology (incremental development) of almost 60-year-old technology. The best-known name in the US water industry has little or no R&D and derives most income from a basic technology dating to 1936. Another major international company seemingly exists to provide components to support the 1936 technology. Most recently a huge investment was made by a company staffed by brilliant scientists. Their product is yet another source of materials for the 1936 technology.

Until the world hits a total scarcity of usable water and crisis prevails, apparently private and public investment will continue to be siphoned off elsewhere. A clone of Elon Musk or Steve Jobs is desperately needed as visionaries more so than hardcore investors. Many companies, including ours, have products in stages from idea to embryonic, to proof of concept to field sampled that lie fallow for want of investment and professional guidance.

Perhaps prospects will change when the critical needs of water are severely challenged.

One of the most important elements dissolved in water used to irrigate cannabis plants (and others as seen in the chart below) is Boron.

Too little or too much will cause severe withering and discoloration of a plant which severely reduces monetary value. The typically expressed range is from 0.05 to 0.5 mg/l in the irrigation water.

Boron in excessive amounts in well water sources is found in the US particularly in California, Russia, and Turkey. It is also found in membrane desalinated seawater throughout the world.

lf too low or absent, a simple, cost-effective “fix” is to mix a small amount of very soluble boric acid crystals (H3BO3) in water and feed it into the irrigation stream with an inexpensive chemical feed pump. Because of common consumer uses of boric acid such as a laundry aid or a foot bath, boric acid is available in drug stores, supermarkets, and, of course, online.

If too high (above 0.5 mg/l) it must be reduced. One would think that reverse osmosis would be the ideal solution. It is not. Reverse osmosis doesn’t reduce dissolved solids by forcing water through microscopic holes in the membrane, but instead by repelling charges between the membrane and the element (ion) in solution. Boron has no discernible charge so it passes through membranes. Even high-pressure seawater membranes allow too much through. Seawater can contain 5 PPM or more boron.

The removal is best accomplished using an extremely rare and expensive resin that is uniquely capable of being selective to boron and not blinded by other elements in the water. This feature permits minimal and relatively inexpensive pretreatment. The resin must be stripped of the boron with hydrochloric acid (HCl) and then returned to a boron removal state with sodium hydroxide(NaOH). The use of these chemicals in a sequential pattern necessitates special materials of construction and very unique controls for safety and efficacy.

Boron upper levels to minimize toxic sensitivity in mg/l*

<0.5 blackberry, cannabis

0.5-1 peach, cherry, plumb, grape, onion, garlic, sweet potato, wheat, barley, sunflower, strawberry

1-2 red pepper, pea, carrot, radish, potato, cucumber

2-4 lettuce, cabbage, celery, turnip, oat, corn, artichoke, tobacco, mustard squash

4-6 Tomato, alfalfa, parsley, sugar-beet

6-14 asparagus

* Information provided by the Australian Department of Agriculture

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More and more frequently we see engineering input taking place in the medical field from robotic surgical machines to placing magnetically guided medicine filled vessels placed in the bloodstream to continually sending patient health status to a computer armed with Artificial Intelligence. Recently our company received a patent status for a system to treat water for Hemodialysis units.

In the last few years, we have applied our engineering skills to obtaining more healthful food. The sayings are “you are what you eat” and “food is medicine”. With an ever-growing percentage of people realizing this and putting family health into their own hands by growing their own nutritious vegetables in home gardens. We are aware of this and offer two products to make these foods even better. They are our GUARD’N GROW and ESF.

The GUARD’N GROW unit truly guards and improves plants. All edible plants deliver vitamins and minerals through consumption. These nutrients get into the plant via water. An important step in the process involves the minerals converting from their inorganic to organic forms making them more bioavailable to the plant and ultimately to the consumer. This is accomplished by the reaction of the nutrients in the soil with a host of living organisms also in the soil. Kill these organisms and both the plant and the consumer are robbed of nutrition. If watered with water containing chlorine which is found in 99% of municipal supplies, a percentage of the organisms dies with each watering. The GUARD’N GROW removes this damaging chlorine PLUS it removes trace heavy metals that could find their way into the food PLUS it acts as a biocide to kill unwanted bacteria in the source water. NOTHING is added to the water. This is a hose-end product that will treat up to 25,000 gallons. Refills and commercial systems are available.

As mentioned, water is the vehicle to get nutrients into the plant. The easier we make it for a plant to absorb the water, the more robust and nutritious the plant becomes. This can be accomplished by passing the water through our ESF unit. The ESF reduces the surface tension of water allowing it to travel more deeply and effectively into a plant. This is done via a catalytic/magnetic process that has no moving parts, no replacement cartridges and has a demonstrated service free life of over 20 years.

Never ones to stop improving and inventing, we are developing yet another product to enhance garden plants for greater size and nutrition. It will provide STRUCTURED WATER.

ccording to the CDC website, as of April 3, 2020, there has been no report of COVID-19 being in a drinking water source. This particular virus went from being known and understood by a segment of the scientific community to general awareness in about 60 days. There is no direct statement by the CDC that the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted via drinking water, but they do state that filtration and disinfection chemical processes used by most municipal water systems should remove or inactivate the virus. Words like most and should are not particularly reassuring. Intuitively, if any of these particular viruses exist in the water, danger would exist via inhalation or facial and oral exposures.

The entrance of the virus into the water seems to be via incompletely treated sewerage being discharged into bodies of water that are ultimately used as drinking water sources. The sewerage has the virus present because it has recently been found in human stool samples. I would assume leachate from septic systems and land fill disposal sites containing diapers could also be sources. These sources will quite possibly remain active after the face-to-face transmission has subsided.

For protection at the entrance to a facility (POE) there are options such as adding extra chlorine with a properly sized retention tank or as a convenient alternative a properly sized Ultra Violet (UV) system matched with a 5 micron or finer cartridge filter. For protection where water for drinking and cooking is obtained (POU) a reverse osmosis unit paired with a small UV light is the approach to take.

Ozone systems can also be adapted for POE and POU applications.

Before committing to any company or individual for treatment of water for this virus or any related water issues, be certain that you are working with knowledgeable people that have a long history and an interest in your wellbeing.

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Extra Clean Laundry Without Soaps or Detergents?

First, the history of ozone laundry treatment. Commercial launderers, like phs BeSafe (https://www.phsbesafe.co.uk/), have always had their services required by multiple industries – from hotels to construction companies – so they are always looking for ways to improve their efficiency and ways to keep their costs down. This is why years ago commercial launderers began cleaning huge loads of laundry from homes, hotels, hospitals, motels and other sources without soaps and detergents and also without hot water. Not only did they save huge amounts of money on cleaning products but energy costs plummeted when water heaters were turned off. This inexpensive, reliable technology is now available to homeowners.

Their “secret” is to add nature’s OZONE laundry treatment to COLD WATER.

Ozone is activated oxygen which is naturally produced during thunderstorms and gives the air that clean, fresh smell after the storm passes. Not a chemical, but nature’s own cleaning agent. Ozone is 3,000 times more powerful than household chlorine bleach in killing microorganisms, does not bleach out colors and actually disappears minutes after it does its work by reverting to oxygen.

Not only are odor-causing and dangerous bacteria killed by the ozone, but the ozone laundry treatment breaks down soiling and staining materials into hydrogen and carbon compounds that flush away without a trace, leaving even the most soiled fabrics clean and bright. Harsh chemicals and perfumes from detergents are eliminated which is healthier and improves fabric life. Fabrics smell clean because they are clean and not just masked with detergent perfume additives.

For home use, a small wall-mounted box is provided. The cold water line goes to it and then from it to the washing machine. Inside the box, air is passed through a manmade lightning bolt called a corona discharge which changes the oxygen in the air to ozone. Coldwater is used because it accepts and holds more ozone than hot water. These units are historically reliable requiring no maintenance or servicing. However, your washing machine might need regular maintenance and repair to prevent failure. In case of any breakdown, you can call a Washing Machine Repair company that can help in the quick fixation of your appliance.

Protect your family from unhealthy chemicals found in most detergents, have brighter, bacteria-free fabrics, save heater operating costs and forever forget buying more detergent with ozone laundry treatment.

Water Powered Cars – Water Fuels or Electric?

Few people dispute the need to severely limit or eliminate the pollution and greenhouse gasses caused by automobiles and trucks burning gasoline as a fuel. The popular alternative is plug-in electric vehicles using the electric grid to recharge batteries. Before going completely down that path, let’s view some government published numbers:
The US consumes 142 billion gallons of gasoline yearly for transportation use
The energy content of gasoline is 114,000 BTU per gallon
1 KILOWATT (kW) = 3,412 BTU
The total energy currently available to the US electrical grid is 1.1 million MEGAWATTS (1,100 GIGAWATTS)
The percentage of energy in gasoline that is actually used to power an automobile is 12-30%. Consider 21% as a generous average with the balance escaping as heat.
Plug-in electric cars convert 59-61% of grid power (60% average) of consumed power to propulsion use

Are Hydrogen Fuel Cells The Answer?

By crunching these numbers we see that conversion of all gasoline vehicles to plug-in electric would require 1,660,550,996,483 kW or 1,660 million MEGAWATTS. A ridiculous increase in required electrical consumption to the point that full transition can’t even be considered.
The conversion to electrical vehicles is environmentally excellent but it will ultimately require an onboard electrical source rather than impractical drawing from the grid. A logical source is membrane-based HYDROGEN FUEL CELLS that produces electricity by combining hydrogen and oxygen. The major auto manufacturers have been building and testing such vehicles for years but they rely on high-pressure hydrogen canisters for fuel and hydrogen tank refill stations.
We feel a better approach is to produce the hydrogen in the vehicle by electrolysis of water. The prolific inventor Bill Lear of Learjet fame promoted this idea in 1965 and referred to the water as Leardyne. Improvements in technologies should address freezing and onboard water treatment issues and make the entire process “CARS POWERED BY WATER” viable. The use of power from the grid doesn’t eliminate the spewing of contaminants into the atmosphere it simply increases it around electrical generation facilities.

Scientific Analysis

What is Structured Water? After many years of reading books and articles about the structure of water which were based on assumptions and wishful thinking, a peer-reviewed scientific explanation has been published. Years of testing at a university laboratory under the direction of a multi-disciplined professor has yielded the information sought for centuries.

Non-Structured Water pH Health Effects

Structured water has a stacked hexagonal lattice with slightly offset layers in a zig-zag pattern. Physically it is denser and more viscous than non-structured water and has a naturally occurring elevated pH. The physiological effects on the human body have not been documented but intuitively the benefits of the increased density and the pH rise should be helpful.
Of importance, Dime Water, Inc. has the ability to produce and dispense water high in the structured component. If you are a homeowner looking to achieve the ultimate water for your family, a water store owner wishing to offer the very best or an entrepreneur looking to enter the water sale business please contact us.

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Spoiler alert! With clean water, everyone wins.

A new video is benefiting farmers and regulators alike by taking the mystery out of farm inspections.

The U.S. Poultry & Egg Association collaborated with EPA employees to produce a video that demonstrates what poultry and egg farms can expect when EPA or state inspectors come a-knocking.

The 14-minute video, featuring Mark Zolandz (inspector) and Kelly Shenk (ag advisor) from EPA’s Mid-Atlantic Region, helps further the goal of clean rivers and streams, well-managed farms and reverse osmosisbust agricultural industry.

Entitled “Why EPA and States Inspect Farms,” the video promotes a better understanding of the connection between agriculture and clean water.  It includes insights into the inspection process and provides information on assistance available to poultry and egg producers to address water quality issues.

The educational video, filmed on location at a turkey farm in reverse osmosisckingham County, Virginia, outlines possible reasons why a farm may be inspected, how the farmers should prepare for the inspection, and how the inspection will likely be structured.

Runoff from farms is a significant source of pollution in rivers and streams. EPA and the states perform inspections to monitor compliance with regulations to protect water quality.  They also provide funding and technical assistance to help farmers adopt the best clean water management practices to control pollution.

You can check out more on the making of the video at this link.

About the Author: Tom Damm has been with EPA since 2002 and now serves as communications coordinator for the region’s Water Protection Division

Ralph Spagnolo and Ellen Bryson know their way around the state capitals in EPA’s Mid-Atlantic Region. The regional Water Protection Division employees have been on the reverse osmosisad helping states launch an innovative online mapping tool that prioritizes sites for watershed preservation or restoration.

They will be in Dover, Delaware this week to debut the Watershed Resources Registry for state employees and others. In past months, they’ve led registry launches in other states in the region, and when Virginia unveils its version of the tool, it will be a clean sweep in the Mid-Atlantic.

What’s all the fuss about?

Volumes of data and information are entered by federal, state and local agencies and non-profit groups into a user-friendly Geographic Information System (GIS). Using the GIS tool, decision-makers can pinpoint the most appropriate areas for protecting and restoring watershed lands and improving stormwater management. For stormwater management, most companies also use a dedicated inspection tool in addition to GIS technology.

The data fed into the system ranges from soil type, land cover and flood plains to impaired and high-quality streams, protected lands and wetlands inventories. The tool allows users to identify locations, assess and compare potential projects and their environmental impacts, print site maps for field visits, and share information. It also helps to streamline the permitting process and provide transparency in site selection.

The registry is especially useful for developers, natural resource and transportation planners and others who are required to avoid impacting natural areas or to provide mitigation for any unavoidable impacts.

In February, an updated registry was made available to the public. Check it out and see how teams of partners are working to protect watershed lands.

About the Author: Tom Damm has been with EPA since 2002 and now serves as communications coordinator for the region’s Water Protection Division.

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Jeremy Hinton is an eighth-generation Kentucky farmer and concerned with the EPA’s, “Waters of the US” legislation. He and his wife Joanna own Hinton’s Orchard and Farm Market in Hodgenville, Kentucky – the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. “Our family came to LaRue County the same year that the Lincolns did, but we just stayed a lot longer,” he joked.

Today, Hinton and his wife grow a wide variety of fruits and vegetables which they sell at their two retail markets – one on the farm and one in nearby Elizabethtown. They are able to grow this wide variety thanks to all their up-to-date equipment, which they procure from places like Costex so that they can efficiently grow and provide crops for their shops. They are also actively involved in agritourism, hosting school tours and festivals as well as building their own corn maze. And, as if he doesn’t already have enough to do, Hinton sells crop insurance to farmers in the area. Such farming processes generally require advanced machinery like tractors, mowers, and harvesters. Furthermore, these vehicles often require servicing and maintenance in order to work to their full potential. For example, new farm tractor tires might be required due to the wear and tear caused by overutilization of tractor.

Along with the use of reliable and advanced farm machinery, farmers could also be updated on the various kinds of technology and agriculture software solutions that could help streamline their business further and implement the policies made by the State more effectively. As Hinton also knows firsthand how policies emanating from Washington impact farmers and other small businesses in Kentucky, he might be able to help the locals in this regard. He believes that some of the policies of the previous administration, if gone to fruition, “could have been very detrimental to our business and lots of others.” “There was a good bit of concern about the waters in the US,” he said. Other policies, like the previous administration’s changes to worker protection standards, “could have been very difficult to implement on a farm like ours.”

But the EPA’s regulatory reform efforts under Administrator Scott Pruitt have “increased optimism about the future,” stated Hinton. He also believes that there is a new, more friendly and cooperative attitude at EPA toward farmers – one that appreciates the environmental stewardship they practice day in and day out. As Administrator Pruitt likes to say, farmers are among our nation’s first environmentalists and conservationists and protectors of the waters of the US.

“Our operation, like any farm, wants to do the best that we can to protect our natural resources,” Hinton said. “That’s our livelihood.” He and his wife raise their three children on the farm and hope that someday they will become the next generation of Kentucky farmers.

This week, EPA is recognizing and celebrating National Small Business Week. Small businesses, like the Hinton’s Orchard and Farm Market, are the heart of our nation’s economy. EPA is committed to advancing policies that protect the environment and provide small businesses with the regulatory clarity and certainty they need to thrive and support local communities around the nation.

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Stormwater Runoff Management.

It’s a four-peat.

For the fourth consecutive year, the University of Maryland, College Park has won high honors in EPA’s Campus RainWorks Challenge, a national collegiate competition to design the best ideas for capturing stormwater on campus before it can harm waterways.

A UMD team took second place nationally in the Master Plan category for “The Champion Gateway” project.  The project blends green infrastructure features into a campus entryway and pedestrian corridor adjacent to a proposed light rail system.

Along with providing more aesthetic appeal, the 7.9-acre site design – with its 367 new trees, permeable pavement, bioswales, rain garden, and soil improvements – generates some heady environmental benefits, like:

• A 40 percent increase in the tree canopy and a reduction in stormwater runoff of 44 percent.
• An increase in the permeable surface from 5 to 74 percent.
• The removal of 273 pounds of air pollutants and the sequestering of 20,000 pounds of carbon dioxide – each year.

Green infrastructure allows stormwater to soak in rather than run off hard surfaces with contaminants in tow, flooding local streets and polluting local waters.

Chalking up impressive design numbers and wowing the judges is nothing new for UMD teams in the Campus RainWorks Challenge.

The university won first place awards in 2015 and 2016 for designs to retrofit a five-acre parking lot and to capture and treat stormwater on a seven-acre site next to the campus chapel, and won a second-place award last year for its “(Un)loading Nutrients” design to transform a campus loading dock and adjacent parking lot into a safer pedestrian walkway with 6,660 square feet of plantings and 18 percent less impervious surface.

Dr. Victoria Chanse, a faculty advisor to all four UMD winning teams, said the competition “serves as an ongoing catalyst to encourage universities to develop innovative, sustainable learning landscapes that draw upon collaborations among students and faculty from a diverse set of disciplines.”

Check out more information on how stormwater runoff impacts your community.

by Tom Damm

About the Author: Tom Damm has been with EPA since 2002 and now serves as communications coordinator for the region’s Water Protection Division

Editor’s Note: The views expressed here are intended to explain EPA policy. They do not change anyone’s rights or obligations. You may share this post. However, please do not change the title or the content, or remove EPA’s identity as the author. If you do make substantive changes, please do not attribute the edited title or content to EPA or the author.

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Across the U.S., there is a growing epidemic of harmful algal blooms – also known as blue-green algae – polluting lakes, rivers and swimming holes, EWG reported this month.

It is unlikely you would let your kids or pets swim in smelly, slime-covered water. But even playing along the shoreline is ill-advised when there is a bloom. This is particularly important advice if you live somewhere like Rock Lake, Ontario where your children are likely to be spending a lot of time near water. Furthermore, if an emergency does happen it’s crucial that you or someone in your group knows first aid. Being prepared to respond to a situation is so important as you can never determine how long an emergency medical response will take to come. If you’d be interested in first aid training, then you could consider a course in Hamilton CPR Training with a dedicated training organization like C2C First Aid & Aquatics Inc. Accordingly, here are the facts you need to know before your family’s lake or beach vacation.

How can I identify a harmful algal bloom?

It can be hard to tell by looking if a pond is full of toxic algae or innocuous plant material. Scientists and public health officials use specialized tests to identify harmful algal blooms and to determine when the risk of algal toxins has passed.

But when pond or lake water looks like green soup, it is likely full of tiny blue-green algae. These organisms are an ancient type of bacteria, called cyanobacteria. They grow wherever there is water.

Unlike other types of bacteria, which can make children and adults sick by infection, cyanobacteria can make people sick through the toxic substances they produce. These cyanotoxins can cause rashes, itching, vomiting, diarrhea, and headaches. In rare cases, water laced with cyanobacteria and their toxins can cause seizures, paralysis, and liver failure, which can kill a human or a pet.

For families with children and pets, it is best to avoid all bodies of water that look green and overgrown. They may contain toxin-producing cyanobacteria.

Tip: Read and follow any posted warnings. If the lake or pond looks green or another strong color such as blue, yellow, or brown, it’s best to avoid it. The water may or may not contain harmful cyanotoxins, but it’s better to err on the side of caution.

Can my children play near a lake or pond with an algal bloom?

When a lake has a harmful algal bloom, cyanotoxins can be found in the water and in algal scum on the shore. Activities like boating and waterskiing, or waves crashing on the beach, can release cyanotoxins into the air above and around contaminated lakes.

Swimming is the most worrisome activity because children and youth might swallow a few gulps of contaminated water. In 2002, a teenage boy died in Wisconsin after swimming in a golf course pond covered with blue-green algae. Such severe poisonings are rare, but children across the United States are at risk from accidental exposures.

Even when they don’t swim in contaminated water, children are especially vulnerable to cyanotoxins. Children might inhale cyanotoxins when playing along the shoreline, boating, or splashing in the water. Small children often put their hands in their mouths – this can be dangerous if they’ve touched algal scum on the shoreline or in the water.

Tip: Just touching the water or playing in the sand next to an algae-filled lake could cause coughing, rashes, and itching in children.

Tip: Warn teens about algal blooms if they are visiting a lake or pond without adult supervision.

What happens if you have accidental contact with toxic algae?

Watch out for symptoms that may seem like the flu or a GI infection. This includes vomiting, diarrhea, coughing, weakness, cramping, and headaches. Symptoms can develop within a few hours of exposure. Seek immediate medical attention if you suspect you or your child has been exposed to a harmful algal bloom. Physicians can report algal poisoning events to state agencies that test water and post warning signs.

Tip: If you think your child has come in contact with an algal bloom, rinse their body with water and make sure they drink plenty of water as soon as possible.

Tip: Pay close attention if your child has unusual symptoms after playing in or on the water. Contact your physician or local Poison Control Center for advice.

Can my family go fishing?

If you are going fishing, it’s best to head to a flowing body of water like a river. Otherwise, choose a lake or pond that isn’t covered in scum, and read local fish advisories.

When cyanotoxin levels are high, you may see dead fish floating in the water. Fish can absorb these poisonous substances, so eating a fish caught in algae-laden water could be like swallowing a spoonful of lake water itself. Cooking fish does not destroy cyanotoxins.

Can my family go camping?

Water purification during camping is key! Boiling water kills cyanobacteria, but does not destroy their harmful toxins. Avoid using such water for cooking or drinking, even if it’s been boiled. Public health agencies recommend avoiding all lake and pond water when it looks cloudy. This includes using it to rinse dishes or bathe. It’s a wise idea to always carry Hand Sanitizer if you do go camping in an area with this toxic water so that if you do happen to come across it and touch it, you can kill as many germs as possible.

How widespread is the problem?

Cyanotoxin poisonings are likely underreported for two reasons: They’re difficult to diagnose and there is no national reporting system. EWG’s analysis found that, since 2010, nearly 300 blooms have been recorded in lakes, rivers, and bays in 48 states, which are displayed in our interactive map.

Some states have their own monitoring programs. In 2015, a New York state pilot program reported 32 cases of algal bloom-associated illnesses for individuals of all ages. The youngest person affected was 2 years old. People affected by cyanotoxins in the New York study experienced rashes, coughing, abdominal pains, nausea and vomiting. No people required hospitalization, but two dogs died.

In recent years, harmful algal blooms have erupted in every state. In 2017 alone, California authorities posted 141 advisory signs near different bodies of water to warn people to avoid them. In 2016, Florida declared a state of emergency in four counties affected by a huge algal bloom.

And harmful algal blooms aren’t just a problem in freshwater – they can also be found in saltwater and brackish water. So, people heading to lakeside cottages with their families or pets should be especially careful. Visiting a cottage with a dog and your kids is meant to be a fun and carefree experience, but algal blooms seem to be getting in the way of that.

Why do toxic algal blooms form?

Toxic algal blooms occur when chemical pollution from farms and other sources runs off into neighboring bodies of water. While algal blooms can happen naturally, the recent spike is indisputably linked to farm pollution. When fertilizer and animal manure runoff into lakes, streams, and bays, fertilizer chemicals like nitrogen and phosphorus can spur the unchecked growth of cyanobacteria.

Algal bloom and children’s health expert Todd Miller, an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, called algal blooms “a symptom of a larger problem we have with inadequate protections for water resources and improper land management,” in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Billions of pounds of fertilizers and manure are applied to farm fields every year. The fields must be carefully managed and protected to keep these chemicals from washing off fields into ponds, lakes, and rivers. Right now, we rely on farmers to voluntarily take steps to stem pollution, but far too many aren’t doing what’s needed. The long-term solution to the toxic algal bloom problem is ensuring that all farming operations meet basic standards of care for water, and stop fertilizer from running off fields.

For more information, visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s resources.

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Bottled Water Cost

Americans will spend $16 billion on bottled water this year. Think about it – millions of us every day will go out and pay to get something that is more or less the same as what comes out of our kitchen faucet.

Of course, it’s that ‘more or less’ detail that makes all the difference.

Bottled water, whether it is labeled as artesian, mineral or spring water, is regulated by the FDA and must meet that organization’s water quality standards. That gives us a sense of confidence that this water is healthier and safer, and it usually tastes better too.

But what if you could achieve those same levels of quality and taste in your tap water? How much money would that add back into your family’s budget?

Is It Just Tap Water?

Believe it or not, even if you buy water from the store you may be drinking someone’s tap water anyway. Pictures of mountains and glaciers on bottle labels help consumers to visualize the purity of a clear stream in the reverse osmosisckies, but that doesn’t mean that is where the contents originated.

Those brands that do put more effort into their product will filter water using reverse osmosis, which removes impurities and particles larger than .001 microns. But that is something you can do as well.

Dimewater Inc. offers several reverse osmosis systems that remove bacteria, pyrogens, viruses, pesticides, dissolved solids, sulfates, radioactive contaminants, pharmaceuticals, and other harmful particles from your water.  Choose from our standard product line of reverse osmosis systems or choose to utilize our in-house engineering team to design a custom engineered system based upon your needs.

Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today.

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Filtered water health benefits you may not have considered. Water is such an essential part of our lives that we use it several times a day without even thinking about it.

But it is important to think about because the quality of the water you use has a direct impact on the quality of your life, and the lives of your family. If you would like to order some quality water then you may want to order some from customwater.com.

Why consider a residential water filter? Here are four reasons:

1. It Removes Unhealthy Substances

This is one of the most obvious filtered water health benefits of water filtration, and the most significant. Obviously, you would prefer that the water you drink out of the tap, the water you bathe and shower in, and the water you put in your pet’s water dish be as clean and healthy and free from contaminants as possible. Water filtration achieves this goal and allows you to use your tap water with confidence. However, you need to ensure that you get one that suits your home requirements. One way to do so is by getting an expert opinion from plumbing services such as Tom Moffett Plumbing ( to know more, check www.moffettplumbing.com/areas-we-serve/plumber-seal-beach-ca/).

2. The Water Tastes Better

One of the most pleasing by-products of healthier water is that it tastes better as well. Think of what you’re spending now on bottled water – what if you could get that same taste out of the tap? With water filtration systems, this is very possible!

3. Doing Your Part for the Environment

When you stop using bottled water, you stop having to dispose of all those empty plastic water bottles, which is good for the environment – and probably good for your refrigerator, as you’ll have an extra shelf to fill with food now that all those bottles are gone.

4. Food and Other Beverages Tastes Better Too

Water is often used in food and drink preparation, whether it is soup, tea, lemonade, or chicken stock. It’s used to clean vegetables, to boil potatoes or pasta, and to dilute sauces so they are less viscous. When that water has been filtered, it will make so many of the foods you eat tastier and healthier.

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Hard water and skin problems can go hand in hand. Hard water is generally considered more of a nuisance than a health issue.

When people use water conditioners to eliminate hard water from their homes, they do so to protect their fixtures and appliances, to improve the appearance of clothing after it is washed, and to stop scale buildup on ceramic tile and shower doors, as well as spots on their glasses and dishes.

But a recent study from England offers another reason to keep hard water away from your home and your family. It suggests that hard water may damage our protective skin barrier, which can lead to the development of such skin conditions as eczema.

Those most vulnerable to eczema are infants. According to Web MD, between 10% and 20% of babies and small children will contract this itchy skin infection.

Hard water could also worsen existing skin conditions such as psoriasis. In fact, psoriasis is not just a skin condition but it can consequently lead to joint pain (known as psoriatic arthritis), depressive symptoms, and lower quality of life. Nowadays, there are more natural remedies out there (know the connection between medical marijuana and psoriasis) to help diminish and manage symptoms. However, using hard water should be a complete no-no for people with this condition.

Hard water contains higher levels of calcium and magnesium ions, that can stick to skin and also stick to the soap that we use for washing. Prolonged exposure reduces the skin’s natural defenses.

In addition to an increased eczema risk, a compromised skin barrier could also contribute to the development of other conditions, including sunburn. However, a variety of products such as an eczema relief cream or acne reduction cream might help reduce such skin problems. Some doctors might even recommend using different kinds of topical steroids, which can be highly useful, no doubt. However, such methods might come along with the risk of topical steroid withdrawal, which can cause more irritation to the skin, and ultimately require therapy to get under control. Hence, it might be safest to stick to regular skincare products or the ones you trust. You can find the right ones for your skin by taking a quick look online. Little research into ingredients and properties of serums by reading a propaira review or others could be beneficial in deciding which product can work for specific issues. Nevertheless, water being a vital part of skincare and health, it becomes important to ensure its quality as well.

The researchers who prepared the study then looked into whether removing the calcium and magnesium ions using an ion-exchange water softener could halt the negative effects. And that’s exactly what it did.

The link between hard water and skin problems such as eczema is just one more reason to consider adding a water softener to your home.

At Dimewater Inc., our engineers are always prepared to help you choose the right water softener to meet your needs. Contact us at 760.734.5787.

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It happens every few months – a colorful brochure arrives from new water filter manufacturers in the mail with dire warnings about the quality of the water in your home, and offering an exciting new water treatment solution, and maybe the chance to win a trip to Bermuda if you call right now.

These pitches are right about one thing – residential water filtration system offers many health and quality-of-life benefits for your family. But not all water filter manufacturers are alike. There are unscrupulous fly-by-night providers that will overcharge for water treatment while providing a product that doesn’t get the job done.

When you are ready to explore your options, you are more likely to get a quality product from a company that has been around for a while and offers facts instead of inflated claims.

Our advice? Look beyond the sales pitch, the scare tactics, and trumped-up claims about systems that are maintenance-free and cheaper than anything else on the market.

Dime Water has been around for more than 20 years. We offer an array of water treatment solutions, instead of trying to convince you that the same system that works for one type of situation would be equally effective elsewhere.

Our proven residential water filtration solutions include one that can meet your present and future needs, and we will always be upfront with you about installation, maintenance, warranty, and cost.

Get the facts about water filtration by calling Dime Water now: (760) 734-5787.

The EPA has made a preliminary determination to regulate strontium in the nation’s drinking water and will evaluate public feedback following a 60-day public comment period in order to determine whether to issue a final determination to regulate strontium.

If this determination will be made, the EPA will begin the process of developing a proposed rule, with hopes of publishing the final regulatory determinations in 2015, as mentioned in the October 20th, 2014 news release.

The press release also mentions 4 other contaminants (dimethoate, 1,3 dinitrobenzene, terbufos, and terbufos sulfone), which do not require regulation at this time, as they are either not found or are found at low levels of occurrence in public water systems.

What Is Strontium and How Does It Affect Our Health?

Strontium is a natural and commonly occurring element, usually found in nature in the form of minerals. Pure strontium is a hard, white-colored metal, but cannot be found in this form in the environment. There are 2 types of strontium compounds: those that dissolve in water and those that do not. Strontium can also exist as radioactive isotopes, with strontium-90 being the most hazardous of the radioactive isotopes of this chemical element. It forms in nuclear reactors or during the explosion of nuclear weapons.

Strontium-90 is used in medical and agricultural studies, thermoelectric devices, navigational beacons, remote weather stations and space vehicles, electron tubes, radioluminescent markers, and for the treatment of eye diseases. Appearing adjacent to calcium on the Periodic Table of Elements, strontium is not toxic. However, it has the ability to displace calcium in the bones of humans and animals, which can result in poor bone quality and/or bone development issues in infants.

Because strontium is so prevalent in the earth’s crust it appears in an estimated 99% of municipal water supplies and further estimated that 10% of all sources will have levels deemed excessive.

Strontium-90 behaves like calcium in the human body and tends to deposit in bone and bloodforming tissue (bone marrow). Thus, strontium-90 is referred to as a “bone seeker,” and exposure will increase the risk for several diseases including bone cancer, cancer of the soft tissue near the bone, and leukemia. Risks from exposure depend on the concentration of strontium-90 in air, water, and soil. At higher exposures, such as those associated with the Chernobyl accident, the cancer risks may be elevated. The magnitude of this health risk would depend on exposure conditions, such as the amount ingested.

EPA Facts about Strontium-90

Has the EPA made Any Recommendations to Protect Human Health?

The EPA has established a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) of 4 millirems per year for beta particle and photon radioactivity from man-made radionuclides in drinking water. The average concentration for strontium-90 that is assumed to yield 4 millirems per year is 8 picoCuries per liter (pCi/L). Also, if other radionuclides that emit beta particles and photon radioactivity are present in addition to strontium-90, the sum of the annual dose from all the radionuclides cannot exceed 4 millirems/year.

Removing Radioactive or Natural Strontium from Water

Conventional treatment was not effective at removing strontium from the water but the following processes were found to be highly effective for the removal of radioactive or natural strontium:

• adsorptive media: up to 99% removal
• reverse osmosis: >99% removal
• ion exchange: greater than 99% removal

A number of adsorptive media were effective for studies with strontium-90, with a synthetic zeolite being most effective at 75-80% removal and bentonite clay at higher pH (7.4 to 8), removing 85-90% of the strontium-90 from water. Hydrated manganese oxide at higher pH (8 to 10) was most effective at removing natural strontium, with 90-92% removal.

Removal of strontium-90 by 2 cation exchange media was found to be highly effective, greater than 99% removal in one case, based on one study involving bench-scale isotherm tests using groundwater. Also, removal improved with contact time. Ion exchange has proven to be the Best Available Technology for the control of beta particle emitters like strontium-90.

Natural strontium was effectively removed with membrane separation (97 to greater than 99%) and reverse osmosis is the Best Available Technology for the control of beta particle emitters like radioactive strontium. Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today to learn more about strontium and how to remove it from your water!

Resources:

• http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/phs/phs.asp?id=654&tid=120
• https://www.epa.gov/radiation/radionuclide-basics-strontium-90

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Your family’s safety is not merely your responsibility. It should be one of your greatest priorities in life. Dangers can come from different sources so you have to be vigilant all the time. You should be aware that some of the major culprits behind many serious health risks are likely penetrating your home on a daily basis through your water faucet. Dime Water can help you in providing filtered water for your family in San Diego, CA.

Dime Water in San Diego, California, a water treatment manufacturer, manufactures the best quality water systems at the lowest available prices. Call us now at (760) 734-5787 for inquiries.

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There is currently a huge increase in interest in water treatment products. This interest level crosses all market segments- residential, commercial and industrial and appears to be fueled by health and water shortage issues at the residential level. Water treatment products interest in the commercial and industrial markets is motivated by a number of factors primarily water conservation, product improvements, and regulatory demands.As time goes on we anticipate the interest in and demand for treatment products to continue at an even higher rate driven by the publicity of water contaminants, water scarcity, increase in industrial sophistication and bureaucratic pressures.

One of the more positive results of an interest increase is the increase in water treatment options. Prior to developments in the 1970s water treatment options consisted of ion exchange, distillation, and a few filter media selections. Water got treated but chemical and salt waste (pollution) were high, water waste was out of control, energy consumption was out of line and spent media disposal loaded with toxic materials was the norm. Today, we are equipped with better water treatment plants and also highly regulated waste water treatment centers. Also, there are different stormwater prevention plan companies in houston tx (and elsewhere) that could make sure that the waste water from sewer systems, construction sites, and industrial areas are treated properly.

Current water treatment options still include ion exchange, distillation and media filters to be used judiciously and are now supplemented by new treatment products including reverse osmosis, forward osmosis, electro deionization, capacitive deionization, ultraviolet, advanced oxidation process, cartridge filtration, non-chemical (physical) hardness scale prevention, long life redox media and ultrasonic devices.An entirely new family of water options appealing to a rapidly growing group of water purists consists of treatment products and processes to increase alkalinity, add electrolytes, add elemental hydrogen, add crystalline vibrations, add magnetic impulses, follow the Golden Ratio, energize via vortex and improve hydration through surface tension reduction.

As a prospective purchaser of water treatment products, there is wisdom in doing due diligence and explore your water treatment options to obtain precisely what is best for you. Further, you are best served by working with a prospective supplier that offers more than one or two options and is prepared to discuss them at a technical level and not simply provide a glossy brochure.

The shade balls are not necessarily a new invention to help solve our global water issues, they have been around for quite a while, but they have known by the name or “Bird Balls”, “Hallow Balls” or “Armor Balls”, and they have been used by the airports to prevent birds from nesting on the runways. The FAA approved them and it was such a good solution to their problem with wildlife that they are still using them today.

However, the novelty about these shade balls is that now, they are being used to prevent water from evaporation. The city of Los Angeles has coated its reservoirs in millions of black plastic balls, being the first city to use this type of innovation for water quality control. In a press release, the city claims shade balls are a “cost-effective way to reduce evaporation each year by nearly 300 million gallons, enough to provide drinking water for 8,100 people for a full year.” LADWP (Los Angeles Department of Water and Power) is the first utility company to use this technology and the deployment of 20,000 shade balls on August 10 marked the final phase of an effort that involved the deployment of 96 million shade balls into the 175-acre reservoir.

The balls cost 36 cents each, for a total of $34.5 million. Located in Sylmar, the reservoir holds up to 3.3 billion gallons, which is enough to supply the city with drinking water for up to 3 weeks. This project brings the LA Reservoir into compliance with new federal water quality mandates and is expected to save $250 million when compared to other tools considered to meet this goal. The shade balls will also prevent the annual loss to evaporation of about 300 million gallons of water. The utility has been testing the concept since 2008, reporting that shade balls reduce evaporation by 85% to 90%.

Shade Balls Used as a Health Prevention Method

Since this water was meant for public consumption, an emergency method was needed to reduce the amount of bromate to levels accepted by the health standards. On the other hand, the construction of another reservoir was approximated to take about four years to complete, but people could not afford living with a water shortage for such a long time. As far as the water storage facilities are concerned, the shade balls have also been used to cover the open reservoirs in LA since 2008. Because at that time the Ivanhoe Reservoir registered high amounts of bromate, they had to protect the water from the sunlight.

The solution proved to be very efficient because these shade balls, being spherical, would reverse osmosistate and keep up with the water level and would also cover over 90% of the water surface, which was exactly what they were looking for.

In the midst of California’s historic drought, it takes bold ingenuity to maximize my goals for water conservation. This effort by LADWP is emblematic of the kind of the creative thinking we need to meet those challenges. Together, we’ve led the charge to cut our city’s water usage by 13%, and today we complete an infrastructure investment that saves our ratepayers millions and protects a vital source of drinking water for years to come.

Mayor Eric Garcetti

Shade Balls: Keeping Our Water Clean

Depending on their intended purpose, the shade balls have a ballast filling, which makes them weigh around 160g to 275g, and have a constant diameter of 4 inches. The amount of ballast keeps them 30% to 50% submerged, keeping them floating even on windy weather. The thick membrane cover is not affected by rain, snow or ice, and the special formula of polyethylene does not accommodate vegetarian growth on top, nor the formation of algae underneath the water.

They also serve as an air-water separation mechanism and keep the airborne dust, dirt and grime out of the water, which is another advantage of using them. If there is a lower amount of water or a lower amount of turbidity that has to be filtered, they ultimately save a lot of money out of pumping cost. Because all that water from a reservoir has to be filtered somewhere along the line and the cleaner the water is the less pressure it takes to drive it through their filters.

Shade Balls Reduce Global Water Evaporation

The 4 inches thick water cover acts as a shield against evaporation. By being used to separate the water from the heat of the sun, the average temperature of the surface water is going to be kept lower, and therefore, there is going to be less evaporation and you will save a lot of water. The manufacturers (XavierC, Artisan Screen Process, and Orange Products) say the balls should last about 25 years.

Many people have wondered why these shade balls are a heat-absorbing black instead of light-reflecting white. The purpose of those balls has nothing to do with keeping the reservoirs cool! They block sunlight, so the ultraviolet light does not catalyze bad chemical reactions. The balls are coated in carbon black, a food-safe pigment with an albedo near zero. Both these characteristics are vital in explaining why the balls are a dull light-absorbing black instead of a shiny light-reflecting white.

The balls are painted black because the color provides more protection than any translucent or opaque color would, as Sydney Chase, a spokeswoman for XavierC said.

After decades of testing, black has been deemed the color that provides the best protection. The other issue is sun protection — sunlight reflects right off the surface instead of penetrating through, like it would with translucent colors. The color concentrate is made of a certain material, and that also has to be tested to make sure it complies with drinking water standards.

Sydney Chase, spokeswoman for XavierC

Why Are Shade Balls Efficient?

It is a pretty good concept, they are inexpensive, and it surely makes a whole lot of sense to use them. The shade balls work best as air-water separation system when they are used to cover open reservoirs that have a nice concrete side to it and are of a clean geometrical shape, like a rectangular or even an oval. To learn more about how you can save water during these difficult times, contact us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our engineers.

Resources:

• http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/08/150812-shade-balls-los-angeles-California-drought-water-environment/
• https://gizmodo.com/why-are-drought-balls-black-instead-of-white-1724040253
• https://mashable.com/archive/los-angeles-reservoir-shade-balls
• https://www.ladwpnews.com/category/water-conservation/

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Swiss food giant Nestlé might be forced to shut down its water bottling plants after Eddie Kurtz, the executive director of the California-based Courage Campaign has petitioned the California Water Resources Control Board regarding Nestlé’s water consumption. The company (as well as many others) is using the bottled water industry to bottle for profit water that they pipe from public lands, pump from the desert and draw from municipal water supplies.

While citizens are asked to watch and reduce their own water consumption, the company’s 5 bottled water plants and 4 food factories in the state collectively consume about 1 billion gallons of water each year, which amounts to 0.008% of the 13 trillion gallons of annual water use in the state. However, a shutdown of operations in California will not fix the drought, as Nestlé explained on their website.

Bottled Water Industry and Water Use

Despite the bottled water industry’s size, the amount of water used is relatively tiny compared to tap water volumes. According to the UCLA Institute for Environment and Sustainability, at almost 80%, agriculture is the largest user of water in the state, followed by urban residential use at 13%. Have you ever wondered what the water footprint of products we purchase is? High water use can also be less obvious. For example:

• 1 pound of beef – 1,799 gallons
• 1 pound of chicken – 468 gallons
• 1 ounce of chocolate bar – 200 gallons
• 1 pound of potatoes – 119 gallons
• 1 egg – 53 gallons
• 1 apple – 18 gallons
• 1 slice of bread – 11 gallons

Bottled water is a very efficient water user, as 100% of it is intended for human consumption. Conversely, only about 2% of tap water is used for human consumption, according to the International Bottled Water Association. Drinking bottled water is a healthy choice, reducing the overall beverage environmental footprint and keeping people away from unhealthy soft drink consumption. Also, bottled water is comprehensively regulated by the FDA, which has regulations governing the safety and quality of bottled water at least as stringent as the EPA standards for tap water.

How Is Bottled Water Made?

Many bottled water companies use public water sources for their purified bottled water products, thus supporting a strong public water system, which is important for providing people with safe drinking water. Many people believe that purified bottled water is just plain tap water in a bottle, but, once the water enters the bottling plant, there are several processes employed to ensure the water meets the FDA purified water standard. Bottled water treatments may employ one or more of the following processes:

• reverse osmosis
• distillation
• micro-filtration
• carbon filtration
• ozonation
• UV light treatment

The finished water product is then placed in a bottle under sanitary conditions and sold. In an era where more and more people are concerned about their water quality, an excellent business to consider is a water store. Dime Water Inc. provides a range of water store/water bottling units and we build them in a variety of different sizes, anywhere from 1000 gallons a day up to 100.000 gallons a day. Call us today at 760.734.5787 for specifics.

Resources:

• http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/california-drought/ban-bottled-water-industry-scrutinized-parched-california-n357256
• http://www.bottledwater.org/
• http://www.bottledwater.org/california-drought
• http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodborneIllnessContaminants/BuyStoreServeSafeFood/ucm077079.htm

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Improving Water Education:

21 federal grants were recently awarded to universities for the purpose of supporting critical water education programming in agricultural watersheds and rural areas across the country. The grants were awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, through the institute’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative “Water for Agriculture” challenge and the National Integrated Water Quality Program.

The University of Wisconsin- Madison has received one of those 21 grants, and their portion of the more than $10 million in agricultural water grants is $900,000. These grants represent the first year of funding for the Water for Agriculture program.

“Think Water”

“Water is our most precious resource, one that is essential for both human survival and well-being, and for our ability to grow our crops and livestock,” said Sonny Ramaswamy, institute director. “By funding research, extension and education for citizens and the agriculture community, we are able to proactively create solutions to water-related issues like drought and its impact on food security.”

The University has a long tradition of providing leadership in multiple areas of agriculture and, with the new grant, educators will broaden the project’s water-education focus beyond youth to include water education for adults and research specifically focused on crucial agricultural water-use and –impact issues.

What is ThinkWater? NEW from Cabrera Research on Vimeo.The UW was initially awarded a $2.6 million federal grant in 2011 for their project, which focused on improving water education for youth to create greater understanding and caring with regard to water issues.

Why Should We Be Concerned About Agricultural Water?

Agricultural water is water that is used to grow fresh produce and sustain livestock. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), water used for irrigation accounts for nearly 65% of the world’s freshwater withdrawals, excluding thermoelectric power. There are 330 million acres of land used for agricultural purposes in the United States that produce an abundance of food and other products. Agricultural water is used for:

• irrigation
• pesticides
• fertilizer applications
• crop cooling
• frost control

Poor planning of industrial sites, animal farms, and barnyards and feedlots can easily affect the water quality. Poor water quality can affect the quality of food crops and lead to illness in those who consume them. Agricultural water can become contaminated through a variety of ways and can potentially spread bacteria, viruses, and parasites to crops and animals. Agricultural activities that cause nonpoint source pollution include:

• overgrazing
• overworking the land (for example, plowing too often)
• poorly managed and ineffective application of pesticides, irrigation water, and fertilizer
• poorly managed animal feeding operations

Certain microorganisms such as Cryptosporidium, blue-green algae, or Staphylococcus, can be toxic to animals and cause symptoms like diarrhea, lack of coordination, labored breathing, or death. Ill animals can then release millions of infectious microbes into the soil that can further contaminate other water sources. Disease-causing organisms can rapidly spread if animals are drinking from the same trough, so it is important that livestock are provided with adequate amounts of quality water, free of contamination. Also, irrigating crops with contaminated water can lead to contaminated food products, which will lead to illness when eaten.

Water Treatment Solutions for the Agriculture Market

Agriculture-related operations produce a range of wastewaters requiring a variety of treatment technologies and management practices. Water treatment technologies employed for the agriculture markets include:

• biological treatment
• disinfection
• filtration
• mixing/aeration
• reverse osmosis
• ultrafiltration

At Dime Water Inc., our engineers are always prepared to help you choose the right water treatment technology to meet your needs. Contact us at 760.734.5787!

Resources:

• https://www.agriview.com/news/crop/agriculture-water-issues-uw-receives-federal-grant/article_831956f7-b146-5fc7-ae36-b51855fb8771.html
• https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/other/agricultural/index.html
• https://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/footprint/agriculture/impacts/water_use/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agricultural_wastewater_treatment

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Statewide Mandatory Urban Water Restrictions

In April, the 1 million customers of San Jose Water Company cut their use of water by 25%, compared to April 2013, as did residents of Palo Alto. On April 1, Gov. Brown announced an executive order imposing California’s first-ever statewide mandatory urban water restrictions.

Many complained that larger families were being unfairly targeted, so a San Jose water company decided that households of more than 4 people can petition for more water. The San Jose Water Company’s program sets a monthly target based on a family of 4 since that is the average size household in its service area. Starting on June 15, the company is asking customers to cut back water usage by an additional 30%.

California’s relentless drought seems to be far from over but now, water districts and private water companies can receive a $10,000 fine a day if they fail to meet strict conservation targets during these times. Saving urban water is the cheapest and most efficient way to make sure communities have enough water if the drought persists and to avert more drastic cuts later. However, many families do not agree with these targets.

“They should base the allotment on the number of people in the family and everybody should pitch in. It’s as simple as that,” San Jose resident Briana Gaetano said. “I think it only makes sense.”

How Will California Reach 25% Conservation?

Depending on past use, each community has a water reduction mandate of between 8% and 36%. Water-guzzling cities and desert resorts can make huge cuts by neglecting big lawns and letting them go brown. If this is the case for you, then you can find out how to replenish a brown lawn at Lawncare.net. Nevertheless, water-frugal communities with few lawns, such as San Francisco are less able to conserve even more water. Dozens of cities have blasted the water reduction targets as unrealistic and unfair, but communities with pitiful savings face hefty fines.

Large cuts are expected to be seen immediately. Communities will report their water use monthly, and regulators will investigate agencies that lag in conservation.

15 Water Saving Tips for the Outdoors

Summer is the peak time for water use and the best opportunity to save by letting your lawn go thirsty.

Here are some useful water saving tips for the outdoors that you can apply:

1. Adjust your lawn mower to the height of 1.5 to 2 inches (taller grass shades reverse osmosisots and holds soil moisture better than short grass).
2. Apply water only as fast as the soil can absorb it.
3. Avoid planting grass in areas that are hard to water.
4. Call your local conservation office for more information about xeriscaping with water-thrifty trees, plants, and ground covers.
5. Check your sprinkler system frequently to ensure all is working as it should (and, if not, you can contact someone like this sprinkler repair in Castle reverse osmosisck service to get things fixed) and adjust sprinklers so only your lawn is watered.
6. Collect water from your reverse osmosisof by installing gutters and downspouts, and direct the runoff to plants and trees.
7. Group plants with the same watering needs together to avoid overwatering some, while under watering others.
8. If installing a lawn, select a lawn mix or blend that matches your climate and site conditions.
9. If water runs off your lawn easily, split your watering time into shorter periods to allow for better absorption.
10. Leave lawn clippings on your grass, this cools the ground and holds in moisture.
11. Let your lawn go dormant (brown) during the winter. Dormant grass only needs to be watered every 3 to 4 weeks and even less if it rains.
12. Look for WaterSense ® labeled irrigation controllers.
13. Minimize evaporation by watering during the early morning hours when temperatures are cooler and winds are lighter.
14. Spread a layer of organic mulch around plants to help them retain moisture.
15. Use porous material for walkways and patios to prevent wasteful runoff and keep water in your yard.

To learn more about how you can save water during these difficult times, contact us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our engineers.

Resources:

• https://www.mercurynews.com/2015/06/05/california-drought-gov-jerry-brown-says-10000-a-day-fines-for-water-wasting-cities-are-not-bluster/
• https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/san-jose-water-company-south-bay-restrictions-set-to-take-effect-june-15/68649/
• https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/national-international/california-drought-el-nino-water-conservation/1995791/
• https://wateruseitwisely.com/tips/category/outdoor-tips/?view=list

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The residents of Lorain, OH have been facing the issue of brown water running out their faucets for more than 6 years and dozens of fire hydrants outside their homes are not working. There are 3,200 hydrants in the city and currently 220 are what the city calls non-operational or low flow. The residents of this close knit community have been reassured however that in the event of a fire, fire fighters will have enough water to put it out despite not being able to use the hydrants.

Some residents use home filtration systems to treat the water but even after that they avoid drinking it. City of Lorain Director of Public Safety reverse osmosisbert Fowler said the problem lies below the ground and blames the old water lines for the low pressure to the fire hydrants. More than $75 million will be spent to replace the pipes, and the process is expected to be completed early next year. No doubt the replacement pipes will have been carefully made, and potentially have even gone through somewhere like this induction hardening in Wisconsin company to ensure that they are going to be fit for purpose and able to handle the volume of water that will be flowing through them. Officials say this should fix many of the water issues throughout the city.

What Is the Cause of My Brown Water Problem?

In order to choose the right water treatment system for your household, we first need to identify the problem we are dealing with. Contaminants can be health threatening at the MCL (Maximum Contaminant Level) but are not considered to present a risk at the SMCL (Second Maximum Contaminant Level). Secondary standards have been set by the EPA to give public water systems some guidance on removing these chemicals to levels below what most people will find noticeable. The EPA also requested that households still dealing with brown water get in touch with a plumbing service that offers drain cleaning services such as Apollo Plumbing (https://www.apolloplumbing.net/services/drain-cleaning/), which can help to clean and purge their system, ridding it of any excess contaminants.

This step is to be taken should any of the following problems present themselves. There is a wide variety of problems related to secondary contaminants, which can be grouped into 3 categories:

• aesthetic effects: undesirable tastes and odors
• cosmetic effects: do not damage the body but are still undesirable
• technical effects: damage to water equipment, reduced effectiveness of treatment for other contaminants

Aesthetic Effects

Taste, color and odor are useful indicators of water quality. Present methods to measure taste and odor are fairly subjective, and some odors are noticeable even when present in extremely small amounts, making it very expensive and often impossible to identify, much less remove the odor-producing contaminant. Color can indicate:

• dissolved organic material
• inadequate treatment
• high disinfectant demand
• the potential for the production of excess amounts of disinfectant by-products
• inorganic contaminants (metals, for example)

Foaming can also occur, being caused by detergents and similar substances when water has been agitated or aerated. Foaming is commonly associated with an off-taste, described as oily, fishy or perfume-like.

• Standards related to odor and taste: chloride, copper, foaming agents, iron, manganese, pH, sulfate, threshold odor number (TON), total dissolved solids, zinc.
• Standards related to color: aluminum, color, copper, foaming agents, iron, manganese, total dissolved solids.

Cosmetic Effects

Silver and fluoride are 2 great examples of contaminants that cause cosmetic effects. Silver ingestion can cause skin discoloration, called argyria. Although it does not impair body function and has never been found to be caused by drinking water in the US, the EPA has set a standard for silver because it is used as an antibacterial agent in many home water treatment systems. Excess fluoride in drinking water has been a subject of debate for many years, being linked to a number of health effects in children.

Technical Effects

Corrosivity, staining related to corrosion, scaling and sedimentation are processes which have economic impacts, apart from affecting the aesthetic quality of water. Corrosion of iron and copper may stain household fixtures and can give the water a metallic taste, apart from red or blue-green color. If corrosion occurs at the distribution system pipes, the water flow will be reduced. If there is a lot of piping under the foundation of the home that is experiencing this corrosion, it could lead to foundation issues with the need for foundation crack repair in St Louis MO services to be called in to assess what needs to be done to repair and replace the materials in the foundation.

• Standards related to corrosion and staining: chloride, copper, corrosivity, iron, manganese, pH, total dissolved solids, zinc.
• Standards related to scale and sediments: iron, pH, total dissolved solids, aluminum.

Water Treatment Solutions for These Problems

If you notice issues with your water or if you are concerned that your water may be contaminated, the first step to take is to identify your local public water system. Next, contact your local public water system and inquire about your supplier’s monitoring for secondary contaminants. You may receive a public notice regarding drinking standards and a list of secondary contaminants, which are being monitored.

Lorain residents have 2 options when it comes to treating their water. If they want to treat all of the water in their house, then a backwashing filter should be used. The filter needs to contain mixed media, one media being an activated manganese ore and the other being a material called a filter A+, put together in the same tank. The backwashing filter is considered a POE (Point-Of-Entry) system and will provide nice, clear water throughout the house.

If the concern is just in drinking water areas, then they can put a 5-micron cartridge filter underneath the bathroom or kitchen sink. This is a POU (Point-Of-Use) system. The good news is that Lorain’s water can be filtered out, as the problem comes from old water pipes. Even if it is yucky-looking, typically there would not be any health issues with it.

At Dime Water Inc., our engineers are always prepared to help you choose the right water treatment technology to meet your needs.

Contact us at 760.734.5787!

Resources:

• https://www.epa.gov/sdwa/secondary-drinking-water-standards-guidance-nuisance-chemicals

Is a water powered car even possible?

For the past years, scientists, engineers, and mechanics have tried to design and build a water-powered car that would render fossil fuel burning technologies inferior and obsolete. There have been numerous breakthroughs and recently, cars that run on a synthetic fuel, made from water and air, represent the cutting-edge of innovation.

The world is becoming more and more aware of technologies that have the potential to completely change our world for the best by halting the unnecessary damage we create using fossil fuels. But what will happen when the world will run out of fossil fuels? It may be too late for us to find out judging by the fact that we are basically poisoning our air and water at an alarming and increasing rate. However, transitioning our way of life to be more harmonious with the planet is happening for the past years – not only including solar and wind power harnessing but also by developing clean, green technology.

Sweeping the auto industry, Audi reverse osmosislls out the e-diesel that USES, not EMITS carbon dioxide. Another fantastic example of engineering is the nanoFLOWCELL Quant e-Sportlimousine, a research prototype that is powered by saltwater. Audi is generating electricity with wind power or Sun power and uses that to split water into oxygen and hydrogen. Taking hydrogen and combining it with carbon dioxide, they produce a feed stock, from which they can make diesel fuel. They do not need pure water for this – just the opposite! – because they pass an electrical current through it. If you have an Audi vehicle, take a look at this European Car Mechanic.

E-Diesel: The Latest Breakthrough by Audi

It would definitely be great if the only fuel needed to power our cars was a substance as cheap and abundant as water! While we (still) cannot pour water directly into our fuel tank and run the engine on water power, we might be doing just that in a few years. Audi has been working hard and has just opened a pilot plant in Dresden, Germany, where they will be producing biodiesel from a process that uses green power, water, and carbon dioxide.

They call the resulting substance “blue crude”, which behaves just like regular diesel fuel after it is refined. It is so similar to diesel that Audi has managed to put it directly into an A8 TDI without a problem. The image below explains how they make this e-diesel.

This synthetic diesel, made using CO2, is a huge success for our sustainability research. If we can make widespread use of CO2 as a raw material, we will make a crucial contribution to climate protection and the efficient use of resources, and put the fundamentals of the ‘green economy’ in place.

Johanna Wanka, Germany’s Federal Minister of Education and Research

From 0 to 60mph in 2.8 Seconds… with Saltwater!

With a top speed of 217mph (equal to a McLaren P1!), 200-liter water tanks and a range of 600km, the Quant e-Sportlimousine is an exceptional piece of engineering. Sports cars do not really have the best reputation for being environmentally-friendly, but this vehicle has been designed to reach 217.5mph using nothing but saltwater. It uses a nano-network flow battery, which is why the company is called nanoFLOWCELL.

It works just like a hydrogen fuel cell, except that the liquid used for storing energy is saltwater. The saltwater passes through a membrane in between 2 tanks, creating an electric charge, which is then stored and distributed by super capacitors. The car has 4 electric motors and, after making its debut at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, the saltwater technology has been certified for use on European reverse osmosisads. Unlike traditional chemical batteries, to recharge the battery, you only need to replenish the electrolyte, which in this case is just salt water.

Seeing that the automotive industry is making efforts, which result in quite some important advancements in developing “greener” fuel systems and vehicles altogether, does bring hope in terms of domestic energy supplies. The potential is much greater and the manufacturers declare they have got major plans not just within the automobile industry, but also in maritime, rail and aviation industries.

At Dime Water Inc., our engineers are always prepared to help you choose the right water treatment technology to meet your needs. Contact us at 760.734.5787!

Resources:

• http://news.nationalgeographic.com/energy/2015/04/150428-audi-ediesel-made-from-water-air/
• http://www.cheatsheet.com/automobiles/audi-announces-it-can-fuel-cars-with-water.html/?a=viewall
• http://www.collective-evolution.com/2014/09/27/salt-water-powered-car-gets-approval-in-europe-yes-its-real/
• http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2739768/The-sports-car-runs-SALTWATER-Vehicle-goes-0-60mph-2-8-seconds-just-approved-EU-roads.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water-fuelled_car

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How contaminated water affects your health

Our bodies are about 60% water and every organ depends on water to function properly. Apart from drinking enough water every day, its quality is also very important for our health. The US EPA has set standards for more than 80 contaminants that may occur in drinking water and pose a risk to human health. Microbial and organic contaminants cannot always be detected by human senses and you might go years before realizing a problem exists. Whether your water comes from a community water system, a well or you are using bottled water, you can unknowingly be increasing your risk of heart disease, cancer, and other conditions arising from contaminated water.

Some common waterborne contaminants include: aluminum, ammonia, arsenic, barium, cadmium, chloramine, chromium, copper, fluoride, bacteria, viruses, lead, nitrates/nitrites, mercury, and uranium.

Low Quality Drinking Water Affects Your Health

A typical American uses around 80 to 100 gallons of water every day. Everyone knows that water and health are linked, but good quality water can also help your appliances function properly and have a longer lifespan. According to the CDC, the top causes of disease outbreaks related to drinking water are Giardia intestinalis, hepatitis A, norovirus, and Shigella.

Delays in physical and mental development, short attention spans, and learning difficulties in children are linked to high levels of lead in drinking water. Also, Cryptosporidium is responsible for life-threatening diarrhea and arsenic in drinking water can lead to nerve, heart, skin and blood vessel damage.

Arsenic is highly dangerous even in trace amounts that naturally occur in well water, doubling the risk of developing stroke and dying from it, heart disease and atherosclerosis. Diabetes, skin, bladder and lung cancer can develop if one consumes water contaminated with arsenic. Arsenic can also cause oral problems, such as tooth decay and cavities. If these cavities are left untreated, it could lead to more serious dental issues. You could look for a dentist who specialises in dental fillings waco tx (or something similar in your location) to find out more about this procedure.

Softened water can save you money by keeping your appliances working at top efficiency and the amount of dish and laundry detergent you use can be cut by half. Studies conducted by the independent test firm Scientific Services S/D, Inc., of New York, revealed the following benefits of softened water:

• in washing machines, softened water can reduce detergent use by 50% and save energy by making it possible to wash in cold rather than hot water
• cold water washes with softened water achieved the same or better results when it came to removing stains and whitening fabrics
• in dishwashers, softened water can achieve the same cleaning results as unsoftened while using less detergent

Fluoride has long been in the center of attention for many who claim that water fluoridation is harmful to health. The American Dental Association admitted that fluoridation does not reduce the number of cavities. If cavities are left untreated, they will soon become larger and can even affect the deeper layers of your tooth. This can lead to severe toothache, infection, and even tooth loss. As a result, you may want to look into options such as dental implants to see how they can restore your smile and improve your overall oral health. But it is important to be aware that fluoride doesn’t prevent cavities from occurring. Your dental health is extremely important, so to make a cleaning appointment on a regular basis can help you achieve a better dental hygiene plan. Also, according to US regulatory agencies, 3 parts per million of fluoride in water:

• produces severe fluorosis of the teeth and bones
• is neurotoxic
• is a cell toxin
• produces organ damage

Dentists that I know say they can always tell when a patient has been drinking fluoridated water because the enamel of their teeth is soft. Fluoride destroys the teeth – that’s what fluorosis is. It just starts making little pits in the enamel, and the whole idea was that you were supposed to be making your teeth stronger. It doesn’t – it destroys them.

Dr. Russell Blaylock, renowned neurosurgeon and editor of the Blaylock Wellness Report

Again, if you have concerns about the condition of your teeth, you might want to do some research into implant dentistry. Dental implants are a unique treatment option for people struggling with one or more missing teeth. If yoor more u’d rmatiln aike tod wi t makeou reaeatment varies widely between practitioners.

Fluoride can also injure the nervous system and even cause cancer. Degenerative brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s are possibly linked to drinking fluoridated water. Cancer, behavioral problems, thyroid suppression, male infertility and impotence are also some examples of what may happen to the body when too much fluoride is present. Once in the body, fluoride is very difficult to remove, but some nutrients, including vitamin C and magnesium, can decrease its toxicity.

Dr. Russell Blaylock, renowned neurosurgeon and editor of the Blaylock Wellness Report

Water Treatment Solutions

Depending on what contaminants are present in your drinking water and your daily water use, you can either choose point-of-use (POU) solutions or water treatment systems for the entire building. POU solutions provide the final barrier to the contaminants of concern before water is consumed or used. Some POU technologies can also be applied at the point-of-entry and include:

• activated carbon
• reverse osmosis
• UV technologies
• distillation

Periodically, especially if you are on a well system, you should get your water tested by a reputable laboratory. If the test results show that your water is contaminated with arsenic, chromium or other contaminants, you will need to find someone who is able to correctly interpret the results in order to find the best water treatment solution for your problem.

At Dime Water Inc., our engineers are always prepared to help you choose the right water treatment technology to meet your needs. Contact us at 760.734.5787!

Resources:

• http://www.newsmax.com/Health/Headline/drinking-water-health-dangers/2015/04/05/id/636533/?ns_mail_uid=6054019&ns_mail_job=1615632_04062015&s=al&dkt_nbr=3ssouten
• http://www.wqa.org/Improve-Your-Water/Benefits-of-Good-Water-Quality

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The end of Water Problems in Ethiopia

Water is a precious resource in Africa, especially in countries such as Ethiopia, where women are forced to walk for miles to the nearest water source, just to draw contaminated water from shallow, dirty ponds. Unfortunately, most of the times the water is not safe to drink and many people suffer from the lack of access to clean drinking water.

According to the World Health Organization, 34% of Ethiopia’s rural population lacks access to clean drinking water, one of the reasons that 54,000 children die each year from diarrhea. However, a humanitarian approach to architecture and design might be the end of water problems in poverty-stricken countries.

Arturo Vittori is a man with a clear goal set in his mind: providing a relatively cheap, easy to build and maintain eco-friendly alternative water source for Ethiopians. Vittori, founder of the Italian firm Architecture and Vision gathered a team of fellow designers and visited Ethiopian villages in the country’s mountainous northeastern region in 2012. After assessing the water issue in the area, Vittori’s team responded to the problem by developing Warka Water, an alternative water source project with architecturally stunning water collection towers.

The Birth of a Project

Infrastructure is scarce in rural areas of Ethiopia and building a well is neither easy nor affordable. To find water source, you need to drill deep in the ground up to 1,600 ft (500 m) and bringing water to the top requires pumps and electrical equipment, which are both expensive and difficult to maintain.

Air always contains a certain amount of water, irrespective of local ambient temperatures and humidity conditions, making it possible to produce water from air almost anywhere in the world. Locations with high rates of aerosol and humidity are best to install WW, such as the mountainous regions of Ethiopia.

Warka Water (WW) is named after the Warka tree, which is a giant wild fig tree native to Ethiopia. This tree has a very important part in the local culture and ecosystem and serves as a central gathering place in many villages. It is designed to be owned and operated by villagers, and not only provides a fundamental resource for life, but also creates a social place for the community, thanks to its design. WW is a vertical structure designed to harvest potable water from the atmosphere by collecting rain, fog and dew.

However, Warka Water should not be considered as the solution to all water problems in developing countries but rather as a tool that can provide clean water in selected areas, particularly in mountainous regions where conventional pipelines will never reach and where water is not available from wells.

Inspired by Nature

Many plants and animals have developed unique micro- and nano-scale structural features on their surfaces that enable them to collect water from the air and survive in hostile environments, where water is scarce. The Warka’s water harvesting technique and construction system are inspired by several sources found in nature:

• the Namib beetle’s shell
• lotus flower leaves
• spider web threads
• integrated fog collection systems in cactus
• termite hives

The team identified specific materials and coatings that can enhance dew condensation and water flow storage capabilities of the mesh used in the construction of the Warka towers. The design of the outer shell, its airflow, shape and geometry was influenced by termite hives. Weirdly enough, no one like termites and yet here we are designing something after their hive. Obviously, it’s better because no one is struggling with a termite infestation. However, if this is something that you are experiencing then don’t worry, all you have to do is call up someone like termite control los angeles to help you out with your problem. There are a lot of people who suffer from a termite problem. They love wood you see and so reverse osmosistting wood or wood that hasn’t been looked after properly attracts them. This is when there are different types of termite treatment available. The WW team also looked at local cultures and vernacular architecture, incorporating traditional Ethiopian basket-weaving techniques.

Warka Water 3.1 Characteristics

Below are the key details of Warka Water 3.1:

• Daily water collection: 13 to 26 gallons (50 to 100 L), annual average.
• Water tank storage: 264 gallons (1000 L).
• Construction: 4 days, 6 people (by hand, no electrical power machinery required).
• Assembly: 3 hours, 4 people.
• Weight: 132 pounds (60 kg).
• Materials: Bamboo, hemp, metal pins, bio-plastic.
• Dimensions: Height 33 ft (10 m) – Footprint Ø 13 ft (4.2 m).
• Surface Area: Mesh 262 sq ft (80 sq. m), Collector 141 sq ft (43 sq. m), Canopy 285 sq ft (87 sq. m).
• Cost: ~ $1,000 (production in Ethiopia).
• Maintenance: easy to be maintained, cleaned and repaired.

Warka Water 3.1 consists of 5 modules that are very easy to assemble, from top to bottom. The outer frame structure, made with split bamboo elements, is structurally optimized for lightness and strength:

• elegant design of the triangulated frame geometry offers both stability and reverse osmosisbustness
• joints are made with metal pins and hemp reverse osmosispes
• a network of reverse osmosispes provides additional stability
• the tension in the diagonal guy-wire, combined with the compressional strength of the bamboo structure, allows the tower to withstand strong winds
• 8 fixation points placed radially at 26 ft (8 m) distance from the WW base and tightened with 8 polyester reverse osmosispes, which are very low-stretch and ultraviolet resistant
• Inside the bamboo structure hangs the plastic mesh that collects droplets of water from the high humidity in the air and the collector where the dew condensation can happen at night
• a textile canopy around the WW bamboo structure creates a shaded area

Help Warka Water Make a Difference in Ethiopian Villages

So far, Vittori’s team built 9 water towers, one in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, and is currently raising funds on Kickstarter to construct and test 10 new Warka Water 3.2 prototypes. Many usually look for means to give the money directly to the communities (through https://charity.gofundme.com/c/giving-tuesday methods or others), which has its merits, but by developing this product a long term solution could be found. There are 19 days to go and a $40,000 goal, with a little over $16,000 pledged for the project. Vittori and his colleagues also plan to offer training courses to village inhabitants, teaching them how to construct, use, and care for the towers. The water WW collects from the atmosphere in rural regions will likely comply with WHO standards for drinking water purity.

It’s about answering a need. I believe we all should do something to make our planet a better place for all of us and not thinking only to our immediate interests.

Arturo Vittori, CEO and founder of Warka Water

Warka Water Kickstarter Campaign

This is definitely a project that deserves public support and many people will be excited to hear that it could become a reality. Warka Water is a great opportunity to help those truly in need for safe, clean drinking water and could help save thousands of lives each year. Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today to learn more about sustainable water saving practices to apply at home.

Resources:

• http://hyperallergic.com/176874/a-promising-design-solution-for-ethiopias-water-problem/
• http://www.warkawater.com/
• https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/366225655/warka-water-32

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Water Infrastructure in Question after Water Main Breaks

When the water main broke in San Diego, it gave rise to several questions about water infrastructure. A water main rupture left most of Shelter Island without functional plumbing through the late morning and the entire afternoon Friday, January 23, when the failed 63-year-old concrete pipeline began drenching the reverse osmosisadway in the 2300 block of Shelter Island Drive about 9 am.

The flow was under control in about 45 minutes and no structural flooding was reported. According to workers, a corroded connector attaching 2 segments of the 12-inch-diameter main, not the pipe itself, had given way. Water service was restored to the area around 5 pm after repairs were completed.

A week earlier, another water main broke in Little Italy on January 14, shutting down the local businesses. Nearly 20 restaurants, 6 apartments, and 5 other businesses were without water for most of the day. You can read the news report here.

In the US, a Water Main Breaks Every 2 Minutes

That is a lot of wasted water if you do the math… Unfortunately, money also goes down the drain when a water main breaks – the cost of fixing a problem after it occurs is much more than that of fixing it in advance. Since 2010, San Diego has paid at least $3.9 million for issues related to water main breaks. In 2013, the city estimates 6.6 million gallons gushed from ruptured mains, which is enough water for the average San Diegan for 205 years, according to the city’s estimated average daily use of 88 gallons per person each day.

According to city officials, it is too expensive to do the reverse osmosisutine inspections of water lines to reveal which ones are close to collapse and need replacing. Only about 5 ½ of its 505 miles of large transmission pipelines and none of San Diego’s 2,958-mile network of smaller distribution pipelines were inspected since 2005. According to an analysis of city data by inewsource, mains are breaking at a pace of more than 100 per year.

The solution to this infrastructure crisis is to replace all the 100-year-old cast iron pipes first. Rupture-prone cast iron pipes should be replaced with PVC, which is not as apt to rupture, and professionals will know whether Schedule 40 PVC vs. schedule 80 PVC, or a different type of pipe altogether, will be best for this particular job. Additionally, water breaks can often be seen at the point where a pipeline ends and the reason could depend on various factors such as blind flange rust, improper flange fit, etc. To address this issue, using rust-proof stainless blind flange could be considered. Since 2007, only 51 miles of the most rupture-prone cast iron pipes have been replaced and there are still 129 miles to go. Double Block and Bleed Valve technology can also be fitted to pipes, relieving pressure and reducing the chances of rupture.

Smart Pig Technology for Water Pipes

Smart pigs or Pipeline Inspection Gauges (PIG) are large pieces of machinery pulled together with powerful technology that helps with the maintenance of transmission pipelines. These devices are used to detect stress corrosion cracking, general and pitting corrosion and in specific, gouges, dents, pit corrosion, anomalous weld seams, longitudinal cracks/grooves and general pipe corrosion.

Although used to inspect oil pipelines to see where the problems are, smart pigs could be used in water pipelines obviating the necessity of digging up the pipeline in order to inspect it. Some common components of smart pigs include:

• odometers
• calipers (detect reverse osmosisundness)
• tilt sensors
• capacitive sensors
• ultrasonics – the same technology found in ultrasound equipment

Unfortunately, San Diego does not know exactly where the biggest problems are. Considering the difficulties in which our state is with the water shortage, something must be done to reduce the chances of water main ruptures.

EPA is committed to promoting sustainable practices that will help ensure that citizens continue to have access to clean and safe water. Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today to learn more about sustainable water-saving practices to apply at home.

Resources:

• https://www.kpbs.org/news/2015/jan/23/shelter-island-businesses-without-running-water-af/
• https://sandiegofreepress.org/2015/01/water-main-breaks-cause-major-problems-in-san-diego-and-nationwide/
• https://inewsource.org/2012/02/27/cost-of-main-breaks-water-loss-add-up-for-city/
• https://water.epa.gov/infrastructure/sustain/index.cfm

Polluted Water Problem Resolved

In recent months, the public has learned that the 2 hot water tanks at Memorial Elementary School in Burlington, MA had failed. The tanks were installed with the new Memorial building in 2011 but failed before reaching their 5-year guarantee, leaving 14 months before they expired. This led to a variety of polluted water problems. In an effort to not have this as a recurring issue, the newly-installed tanks are stainless steel with a 15-year warranty.

High levels of copper and lead were reported in one sink in the cafeteria during one of the several water quality tests conducted annually by the town’s Water Department at each school. The sink was the only one found in the area to test positive for elevated levels of copper and lead. A water fountain was also tested and did not have the same levels.

The School Department subsequently conducted its own investigation with the help of some expert plumbing professionals similar to those at Metro Vancouver Plumbing. The results revealed the need for replacing a back-flow preventer. A new backflow preventer was installed and after another water test was conducted, the department reported copper and lead levels well below the Department of Environmental Protection’s threshold.

Everything is back on and usable except for the one sink in the kitchen, which is not being used for cooking. It is more of a discoloration issue, not a polluted water issue, as the levels are all below where they need to be. It just does not look attractive.

Craig reverse osmosisbinson, Director of Finance and Operations

Copper and Lead in Drinking Water

Copper and lead turn out in our water source as a result of erosion of natural deposits, corrosion of household plumbing systems, or a lack of safety equipment like a back-flow preventer. The latter two can be inspected for and resolved by a plumbing service similar to https://www.americaneagleplumbing.net/lago-vista-plumber/. Should these metals enter your fresh drinking water supply then they can cause health problems – especially if present in public or private water supplies in amounts greater than the drinking standards set by the EPA.

How Will I Know If There Is Copper or Lead in My Water?

If you are concerned about the presence of these metals in your drinking water, the first thing to do is to have your water tested by a certified laboratory. Water testing is the only sure way of telling whether there are harmful quantities of copper or lead in your drinking water since you cannot see, taste or smell these metals dissolved in water. Once the testing is done, you might want to call for a great plumber in Milford or somewhere near your location to check how this problem could be fixed. In our on-site laboratory at Dime Water Inc., we reverse osmosisutinely test for:

• Physical appearance -pH -DO -TDS -Conductivity –Copper
• Calcium and magnesium hardness -All forms of iron -Manganese -H2S
• Chloride -P and M alkalinity -Nitrates/Nitrite -Oil -Bacteria P/A -Calculate LSI
• Arsenic -Fluoride -Chlorine -Chloramines -CO2 -Tannins –Silica

How to Reduce Elevated Copper and Lead Level in Your Drinking Water

Public water suppliers should use corrosion control, which is an effective treatment technique to reduce the amount of copper in drinking water. As for lead, the more time water has been sitting in your home’s pipes, the more lead it may contain. Most lead in household water usually comes from the plumbing in your house, not the local water supply. You may want to have your pipes replaced by professionals such as those from this website (https://macvik.com/plumbing/plumbing-service-areas/denver/).To reduce lead in drinking water at home:

• flush your pipes before drinking
• only use cold water for consumption
• flush your cold water pipes by running the water until it becomes as cold as it will get, anytime a particular faucet has not been used for 6+ hours
• use only water from the cold water tap for drinking, cooking and baby formula

Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today to learn more about removing copper and lead from your drinking water.

Resources:

• https://www.epa.gov/dwreginfo/lead-and-copper-rule
• https://www.epa.gov/dwreginfo/drinking-water-regulations

Water Shortage Solution

As the state and northern region grows, Colorado faces a water shortage as the population grows and becomes more and more dependent upon a limited resource. Inaction could lead the communities being stranded in a dry river with only a paddle if the population does not identify new sources.

Of high importance is also the need for conserving the existing supply as possible. In tandem with other efforts, the Northern Integrated Water Supply project is key to solving Colorado’s water problem. The population of Colorado is expected to double to 10 million by 2050 and the growth rates in Fort Collins and Larimer are expected to mirror that of the state.

With Growth Comes a Need for Water

Conservation efforts in Northern Colorado are working, according to the city’s 2013 water conservation report. In an 11-year period, from 2002 to 2013, the water use per person in Fort Collins was reduced from 183 gallons per day to 141. This multi-faceted water conservation program is based on public education, incentives, assessments and enforcement, being guided by the Water Conservation Plan.

The WCP set a goal of 140 gallons per capita per day (gpcd) by 2020. The incremental target to reach this goal was 149 gpcd for 2013 and the average demand (adjusted for weather) in 2013 was 147 gpcd.

The Northern Water agency would like to build 2 reservoirs, pipelines and water pumping stations to help secure the region’s water source. Their project is estimated to cost around $500 million and has been named the Northern Integrated Supply Project, or NISP. Although the idea of this project was conceived long ago, it has long been a source of conflict.

NISP would supply customers, rural or urban, with approximately 40,000 acre-feet (or more) of new, reliable water supply each year through pumping stations, pipelines and 2 new reservoirs at Glade (which will be built northwest of Fort Collins) and Galeton, northeast of Greeley. The amount of water will be slightly larger than the Horsetooth Reservoir.

Northern Water is set to receive a long-awaited report from the Army Corps of Engineers later this year. However, the statement has been postponed at least twice and the study will probably not be released until spring 2015, according to Northern Water spokesman Brian Werner. Colorado might not have a lifetime to wait for more water, according to draft versions of the Colorado Water Plan completed this summer.

The state is on track to be short 500,000 acre-feet of water by 2050, enough to cover half a million football fields in one foot of water. The Fort Collins-Loveland Water Conservation District has already passed its water shortage date and by 2005, the district was short 1,100 acre-feet of water, an amount that could grow to 7,500 acre-feet by 2050, according to the Army Corps of Engineers.

Saving Water at Home

Considering the situation in Colorado, we could all take notes on how we could better save water in our own homes, as California is facing its worst drought in the last years. Click on the image below to read more than 200 water-saving tips!

Since the world has become more “green” aware, products offering to save water are flooding the market. WaterSense-labeled products used in your home, yard or business can help you save and protect the environment with just a few simple steps.

These products included in the EPA WaterSense Partnership program have been certified to be at least 20% more efficient without sacrificing performance. Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today to learn more about how you can save gallons of water in your household!

Resources:

• https://www.coloradoan.com/story/opinion/editorials/2015/01/25/northern-integrated-supply-project-key-solving-region-state-water-problem/22164815/
• https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/local/2014/11/08/plan-massive-new-reservoir-delayed/18748323/
• https://www.northernwater.org/
• https://www.fcgov.com/utilities/img/site_specific/uploads/2013_Water_Conservation_Annual_Report_2.pdf
• https://wateruseitwisely.com/100-ways-to-conserve-water/?view=list

Flint River’s Concerns

Since the city of Flint, MI began using the Flint River as its source of water in April 2014, council members said they continue to hear complaints from residents about differences in the taste, smell and color of drinking water. The switch to the Flint River as a source of drinking water came after 50 years of the city buying water that comes from Lake Huron, treated by the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department.

The most vocal outcry against Flint water problems began earlier in January this year, when the city informed customers it was in violation of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act because of the high level of total trihalomethanes (TTHM). At the time of the switch from Lake Huron water to Flint River water, city and state officials assured residents there would not be any difference in the smell or taste of tap water once the river was tapped.

However, citizens began complaining almost immediately about the smell, color and taste of river water. Within 4 months, tests showed bacteria, including E. coli, in the water system boil and water advisories were issued for parts of the city. The city cleared up the bacteria problem by upping the level of disinfectant and implementing other changes.

Flint received another blow when General Motors said it would no longer use the city’s water in one of its plants there because high chloride levels were causing corrosion in engine parts. Despite quality problems, a Flint consultant reported the water is safe to drink and currently meets all state and federal standards.

By mid-2016, the city is expected to start receiving raw water from Lake Huron through the Karegnondi Water Authority pipeline that is currently under construction.

What Are Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM)?

To protect drinking water from disease-causing organisms, or pathogens, water suppliers often add a disinfectant, such as chlorine, to drinking water. The major challenge is controlling and limiting the risks from pathogens and disinfection byproducts. The main goal of water suppliers is to provide protection from pathogens, while simultaneously minimizing health risks to the population from disinfection byproducts.

Trihalomethanes occur when naturally-occurring organic and inorganic materials in the water react with the disinfectants, chlorine and chloramine. The EPA regulates the following trihalomethanes:

• bromodichloromethane (75-27-4)
• bromoform (75-25-2)
• dibromochloromethane (124-48-1)
• chloroform (67-66-3)

People who drink water containing TTHM in excess of the MCL over many years could experience liver, kidney, or central nervous system problems and an increased risk of cancer. MCLs for disinfection byproducts are set at the following levels:

How Will Disinfection Byproducts Be Removed from My Drinking Water?

Water systems that use surface water/ground water under the direct influence of surface water and which use conventional filtration treatment are required to remove specified percentages of organic materials. These organic materials may react with disinfectants to form disinfection byproducts, prior to disinfection. Other control strategies include modification of disinfection practices, but this must be done in a manner that still provides adequate protection against pathogens.

Trihalomethane (THM) compounds are the byproducts of decaying vegetation reacting with one of the halogens, which in this case is chlorine. They can be effectively reduced virtually to the point of elimination by passing the water containing the offending THM through activated carbon, either for the entire facility (Point of Entry – POE) or at drinking water faucets (Point of Use – POU).

Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today!

Resources:

• https://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2015/01/flints_dilemma_how_much_to_spe.html
• https://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2015/02/flint_consultant_tells_city_de.html#incart_related_stories
• https://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2015/02/unofficial_results_show_flints.html#incart_story_package
• https://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/disinfectionbyproducts.cfm
• https://cityofflint.com/?p=6251

chloride, flint river water, Flint Water, water concerns, Water Filter Systems

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Oil Spill Contamination in Montana

An hour-long breach in a pipeline along the Yellowstone River near Glendive, Montana contaminated the drinking water supply of the city after up to 50,000 gallons of oil entered the city’s water on January 17. This oil spill contaminated the majority of Montana city’s water supply. A break in a 12-inch pipeline owned by Wyoming-based Bridger Pipeline Co. has rushed residents to buy bottled water until the danger was over.

Truckloads of bottled water were expected to be brought on Tuesday, January 20, and people were warned not to drink or cook with tap water. In such situations, it is advisable to switch from the city water supply to a privately owned water supply. This can be done with the help of portals like https://www.switchwatersupplier.com/ that can help you easily switch the water connection. However, the advisory against ingesting tap water from the city’s treatment plant was issued late Monday, 2 days later after the crude oil spill. Oil spills can be dangerous to the citizen’s health. Some may even say used oil can also be harmful; however, one can check out the used oil waste classification that can provide such data. Oil spills, whereas, can pollute water sources along with groundwater and can lead to diseases in humans as well as marine livestock.

Preliminary tests from Montana and the US EPA representatives did not show a cause of concern. Additional tests were ordered and carried out after residents complained of a petroleum- or diesel-like smell coming from their tap water.

Tests revealed the water contained elevated levels of benzene, a cancer-causing component of oil. The elevated amounts of benzene found were above the levels recommended for long-term consumption but do not pose a short-term health hazard, as scientists from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.

Facts about Benzene

The major sources of benzene in drinking water come from discharge from factories, and leaching from gas storage tanks and landfills. EPA regulates benzene in drinking water to protect public health. Benzene may cause health problems if present in public or private water supplies. Other facts you should know about benzene:

• it is a volatile organic chemical, a clear, colorless aromatic liquid
• it is highly flammable which will need to be stored in protective cabinets (click here) when needed
• it is formed through natural processes, such as volcanoes and forest fires, and also from industrial processes
• it is a natural part of crude oil, gasoline and cigarette smoke
• used as a building block for making plastics, rubber, resins and synthetic fabrics
• used also as a solvent in printing, paints, dry cleaning
• people who drink water containing benzene in levels that are above the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for many years could experience anemia or a decrease in blood platelets, and may have an increased risk of getting cancer

As for EPA’s drinking water regulations for benzene, the MCLG set for benzene is zero. EPA has set an enforceable regulation for benzene, called a maximum contaminant level (MCL), at 0.005 mg/L or 5 ppb. However, states may set more stringent drinking water MCLGs and MCLs for benzene than EPA.

When reverse osmosisutine monitoring indicates that benzene levels are above the MCL, your water supplier must take steps to reduce the amount of benzene so that it is below that level. They must notify customers as soon as practical, but no later than 30 days after the system learns of the violation.

Additional actions, such as providing alternative drinking water supplies, may be required to prevent serious risks to public health.

Removing Benzene from Water

Water containing more than 0.005 parts per million of benzene should not be used for domestic water supplies! Benzene requires a specific treatment process for removal from water. Granular activated carbon or charcoal are recommended to remove benzene from well water if your water source comes from a well. Activated charcoal or granular activated carbon filters:

• improve the taste
• remove odor of the water
• remove some contaminants in water supplies
• are effective in removing benzene, as well as vola ­tile organic compounds (VOCs)

A typical water softener will not remove benzene from the water! Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today.

Resources:

• http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/basicinformation/benzene.cfm

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Each month, 3.9 million gallons of drinking water is consumed in the US and for many Americans, the idea that the country might someday run out of fresh water is horrifying. Global water consumption has tripled in the last 50 years and the demand for fresh water in the US is estimated to exceed the supply by 40% by the year 2030, according to a report. This is quite alarming, although we have faced severe droughts over the past years. This water scarcity that we might confront results from short- and long-term droughts and of course, human activity.

The amount of water that we use in the United States is so significant that we are running out of fresh water. Aquifers are drying up. Whilst this may mean some businesses need to find out how to switch your water supplier, for others this means that the chance of having no water at all is very high in the future, and so we need to consider changing our water retention system. For example, Germany has long ago been on an austerity program as far as the use of water and interestingly enough, their water consumption is done in such a way that the water table is rising. And it is rising to the point that they are actually having problems with building supports and basements. If we start using our heads and getting more involved in conservation, we might duplicate what is going on with Germany and the aquifers and reservoirs could indeed be refilled in a relatively short period of time.

3/4 Million Gallons per Capita Use of Drinking Water Annually

According to a recently issued report by The Journal of the American Geophysical Union, the last 3 years of California drought have been the worse experienced in 1,200 years, with 2014 being the worst of all. Scientists came to this conclusion after studying the growth rings in over 200 ancient California trees and coordinating results with at least one university. Some of the solutions that are believed to contribute long term to more available water come in the form of:

• diverting rain runoff into more reservoirs
• employing seawater to drinking water processes
• constructing wastewater reuse facilities
• weather manipulation, either individually or in combination

More conservation should be employed in the short term and it appears that diet changes can also have an impact on the draught as well. With all of us being part of the problem, we must all make personal choices to be part of the cure! The 3/4 million gallons per capita use of water annually for all uses in the US is simply unsustainable. At home, people can save water by using:

• drought resistant landscaping
• low flow toilets
• low water clothes and dishwashing appliances
• shower flow controls
• water treatment devices that use less or no waste water

Have you ever wondered what the water footprint of the products we purchase is? High water use can also be less obvious. For example:

• 1 pound of beef – 1,799 gallons
• 1 pound of chicken – 468 gallons
• 1 ounce of a chocolate bar – 200 gallons
• 1 pound of potatoes – 119 gallons
• 1 egg – 53 gallons
• 1 apple – 18 gallons
• 1 slice of bread – 11 gallons

Of course, we are not talking about days or weeks, but rather in a generation we could be back where we belong if we just practice good policies as far as the use of good water. Germany is exceptional in what they are doing – they are using a water quantity per person that is 50% or less of what we are doing here in the United States. They are prospering and I hope that we can take a lesson from them.

Water Conservation Tips

The average home in California uses 192 gallons of water a day, according to a 2008 study by the state Department of Water Resources and the Urban Water Conservation Council. A small lawn of 1,000 square feet takes about 35,000 gallons of water per year!

Water agencies around the Bay Area offer rebates to replace grass with more drought-tolerant plants such as native grasses and wildflowers, succulents and other plants. The East Bay Municipal Utility District pays 50 cents a square foot to people who replace lawns with native, drought-tolerant landscaping, and up to $2,500 a yard. The Santa Clara Valley Water District pays $1 per square foot.

“It’s pretty easy to save 20 percent. You want to remember that your plants – even with it being dry outside – are not needing as much water this time of year because it is cooler than in the summer,” said Chris Brown, former executive director of the California Urban Water Conservation Council, a nonprofit group in Sacramento. “The easiest way to save water is to save it outdoors.”

Among other tips that experts recommend:

• take a 5-minute shower instead of a 10-minute shower: it saves you 12.5 gallons with a low-flow showerhead, and 25 gallons with a standard 5 gallon-per-minute shower head
• turn the faucet off while brushing teeth or shaving: it saves you about 10 gallons a day
• use a broom to clean driveways, sidewalks, and patios instead of a hose: this saves 8-18 gallons a minute
• fix the worn washers in a faucet with a slow steady drip saves you 350 gallons per month, and 2,000 gallons a month if the leak is a small stream. If you could have the necessary skills to repair your faucet, you might consider buying it from reliable online stores such as Home Depot. That said, you could also look at this great site which could help you get some discounts on your purchases from the aforementioned site!
• putting a new flapper in a leaking toilet can save 7,000 gallons a month (to test for leaks, put food coloring in the tank and do not flush; 10 minutes later if you see color in the bowl, you have a leak). If you have a leaky toilet you can get in touch with a plumber (see this page here) who can fix the leak, doing this can also help to prevent the leak in the future and save water.
• installing a water-efficient clothes washer saves up to 16 gallons a load
• a water-efficient dishwasher saves up to 8 gallons a load
• soak pots and pans instead of letting the water run while scraping them clean
• replacing a pre-1990 toilet, which can use 5 gallons per flush, with a newer high-efficiency model can save 38 gallons a day per toilet.

Most Bay Area water agencies offer free water use inspections. An expert will come to your house to check for leaks and offer tips on how to save water and lower your water bill. Call us at 760.734.5787 and get in touch with one of our water experts today!

However, if you are from Maryland (especially from Jessup) and are unable to avail our services, then you can search for T.E. Spall & Son plumbing services in Jessup online to find a reliable plumber who could do the job of plumbing and water inspection for you.

Resources:

• https://www.nationaljournal.com/s/71122/america-is-still-running-out-fresh-water/
• https://www.mercurynews.com/2014/01/20/california-drought-tips-for-conserving-water/
• https://gizmodo.com/berlin-is-threatened-from-below-by-its-rising-water-tab-1562805223

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Water Management Tips – Water is a precious gift and must be used wisely by each and every one of us. When it comes to conserving water, even small adjustments can have a significant impact. The water management tips that you will learn are going to help you save water.

After two years of drought, California finally experiences the arrival of rain. Studies have shown that the 2012-2014 drought has been the worst in 1,200 years, and the state could be waiting for years to recover, as above-average precipitation will be necessary to rebalance the state’s water resources.

Although the current period of low precipitation is not unusual in California’s history, the rainfall deficits combined with sustained record-high temperatures created the current multiyear severe water shortages. 80% of groundwater measurements taken in the spring of 2014 showed decreasing levels from the spring of 2013 and much of the agricultural land in the Central Valley and in California’s thirstiest coastal cities have recorded 50-foot drops in groundwater levels.

Kitchen, Bathroom and Laundry reverse osmosisom Water Management Tips

We use large amounts of water in the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry reverse osmosisom, especially when we’re using hot water, but unfortunately, even more, water is lost in the process of washing dishes, clothes, or bathing. All ways to save water start with us and our willingness to do so. Here are a few tips to help you save water:

Kitchen

• cook food in as little water as possible
• designate one glass for your drinking water each day, or refill a water bottle
• dishwashers typically use less water than washing dishes by hand
• for water efficiency and food safety, defrost food in the refrigerator
• cut back on rinsing if your dishwasher is new
• keep a pitcher of drinking water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap
• reuse leftover water from cooked or steamed foods to start a nutritious soup
• soak pots and pans instead of letting the water run while you scrape them clean
• compost vegetable food waste and save gallons every time
• wash your fruits and vegetables in a pan of water instead of running water from the tap
• do not let the water run when washing dishes by hand

Bathroom

• be sure to test your toilet for leaks at least once a year
• drop tissues in the trash instead of flushing them and save water every time
• if your toilet flapper does not close properly after flushing, replace it
• install water-saving aerators on all of your faucets
• plug the sink instead of running the water to rinse your razor (save up to 300 gallons a month)
• shorten your shower by a minute or two (you will save up to 150 gallons per month)
• take 5-minute showers instead of baths
• time your shower to keep it under 5 minutes (you will save up to 1,000 gallons per month)
• turn off the water while washing your hair (save up to 150 gallons a month)
• turn off the water while you brush your teeth (save up to 4 gallons a minute)
• when running a bath, plug the bathtub before turning on the water and adjust the temperature as the tub fills
• when washing your hands, turn the water off while you lather
• while you wait for hot water, collect the running water and use it to water plants

Laundry reverse osmosisom

• compare resource savings among Energy Star models when shopping for a new washing machine (some can save up to 20 gallons of water per load).
• have a plumber re-route your greywater to trees and plants rather than the sewer line but check with your city and county for codes
• match the water level to the size of the load when doing laundry
• wash dark clothes in cold water (it saves water and energy and helps your clothes retain their color)
• when buying a washer, check the Consortium for Energy Efficiency website to compare water use between models

California Faces a Multi-Stage Recovery

Drought has multiple phases and there is a distinction between the so-called meteorological drought and hydrological drought. There is often a lag between these two. Even if there is abundant rain, it will not translate immediately into more water in reservoirs. Intermediate forces such as trees, soils, and the Sun each take their own share of the resource, preventing precious water from reaching California’s historically low reservoir levels.

Before precipitation can generate significant runoff, most of the state’s soil has a long way to go to become truly moist. The ideal rain that would allow soils to saturate several feet below would be slow and soaking. Although the recent rains have provided a small but welcomed boost to reservoirs so far, there still is a long way before California is completely out of the water crisis.

However, the violent cloudbursts that are lately happening across the state are not that good. They may only dampen the first few inches of soil and the Sun dries out the top layers quite fast, but the real problem sits in streams, where these cloudbursts produce a quick flush of water resulting in flash floods.

Resources:

• https://www.circleofblue.org/waternews/2014/world/yes-raining-california-drought/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=yes-raining-california-drought
• https://wateruseitwisely.com/100-ways-to-conserve/?view=list
• https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/12/141205124357.htm

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Clean water has become one of our most precious resources in the 21st century, but 1 in 9 people live without access to clean and drinkable water. The access to clean water is a human right that everybody should have, regardless of their race, gender, location or social status.

Clean water is not a privilege, but a right of every human being. However, around 780 million people lack access to clean water, which represents more than 2 and a half times the United States’ population! Some people live with dirty water due to having a faulty water heater. If you know anyone in a situation like this, they may be grateful to find this!

Here are 5 water facts to make you cherish water in all its purity:

1. Only 3% of Earth’s water is fresh water. 97% of the water on Earth is salt water.

Of all the water used in the US in 2000, (about 408 billion gallons per day of fresh and saline water), about 21% came from underground sources and water from surface sources accounted for the remaining 79%. Almost 99% of groundwater came from freshwater aquifers.

Our nation’s rivers, streams, creeks, lakes and reservoirs are vitally important to our everyday life. The availability of freshwater varies from country to country, with Suriname and Iceland having the most freshwater resources, and Egypt together with the United Arab Emirates have the least freshwater resources. Salt water on Earth has an average salinity of 3.5%, roughly equivalent to 34 grams of salts in 1 kg of seawater.

2. 36% of US rivers and streams are too dangerous for fishing or drinking!

Back in 1998, over 290,000 miles of 840,000 miles of assessed rivers and streams did not meet water quality standards. The Great Lakes were also studied, with 90% of their shoreline miles being assessed, indicating pollution exceeding water quality standards.

A 2012 survey conducted by the EPA concluded that more than 13,000 miles of rivers have fish with mercury levels that may be unsafe for human consumption. 9% of assessed river and stream miles were found unsafe for swimming and recreationdue to high bacteria levels. 27% of the nation’s rivers and streams have excessive levels of nitrogen, and 40% have high levels of phosphorus. These nutrient pollutants cause toxic green slime outbreaks that are harmful to public health.

3. 18 States are currently facing droughts, according to the US Drought Monitor.

Severe to extreme drought affected about 8% of the contiguous United States as of the end of October 2014, an increase of about 5% from last month. About 12% of the contiguous U.S. fell in the severely to extremely wet categories.

4. 60% of US lakes are too dangerous for swimming or drinking.

The pollutants found in water can lead to acute symptoms like nausea, sore throat, vomiting, dizziness, headache, fever, muscle and joint pain. The pollutants can also trigger allergic reactions such as asthma, lung irritation, eye irritation, skin rashes, blisters around the mouth and nose, liver damage and sometimes even death. If someone is experiencing symptoms like breathing problems then they need to seek medical attention right away, and if they notice prolonged issues such as asthma, it may be wise for them to speak to a lung specialist like Gwinnett Lung or a specialist in their area for treatment. Asthma can be exacerbated by their surroundings, so if a doctor’s diagnosis has been administered then it is important to follow medical guides on how best to calm an attack and make sure there are no triggers, e.g. mold in the home. Homeowners can buy mold test kit to check their home and get it sorted out as quickly as possible.

5. Water makes up between 55-78% of a human’s body weight.

Staying hydrated not only helps with your alertness, controlling appetite, and improving activity and sport performance, but it also keeps every day symptoms like headaches, fatigue, and dry skin away. Daily water intake must be balanced with losses to keep and maintain your total body water. Some people even add things like CBD oils UK to their water to increase the effectiveness of the water in aiding these symptoms as well as improving relaxation and overall health.

Losing body water can adversely affect your functioning and health! Once you start feeling thirsty, you have lost about 1% of your body water and at this point you are dehydrated. A 2% water loss means you could experience serious fatigue and cardiovascular impairments.

This Thanksgiving we are grateful for clean water!

Resources:

• https://water.org/water-crisis/water-facts/water/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_distribution_on_Earth
• https://www.eoearth.org/view/article/152861/
• https://earthjustice.org/news/press/2013/new-survey-same-evidence-our-streams-and-rivers-are-dangerously-polluted
• https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/drought/

The holidays are fast approaching and alcohol always goes hand in hand with celebrations. Vodka is probably one of the most used alcohols for consumption, but buying a couple of bottles of this high quality spirit is something that not many may afford. Vodka can be made from just about anything! Russians use potatoes, and in southeastern US it is made with grain often called “moon shine”. This distilled beverage is composed primarily of water and ethanol, sometimes with traces of impurities and flavorings. Vodka is combination of ketone and acetones, which are toxic. They exist in trace amounts and are the ultimate cause of hangovers. Product sold as “vodka” in the US must have a minimum alcohol content of 40%. You can improve “vodka by using a water filter and we will show you how.

Cheap Vodka? Improve It at Home With a Water Filter!

Distillers producing a high-price product are actually aging the vodka in an oak cask. However, there is a faster and cheaper way of obtaining quality vodka in the comfort of your own home. You will need the following:

• a coffee strainer
• a bottle or vessel
• activated carbon
• cheap vodka

The first step is to put a coffee strainer over a bottle or vessel (1) and put a good grade of activated carbon into the coffee strainer (2). The best carbon to use is coconut-based carbon and pre-acid washed (3) to get the impurities out of the carbon. You can find it at pet stores, aquarium supplies or purchase it directly from us.

Next, slowly pour the vodka over the carbon (4) and let it percolate through it and through the coffee strainer (5). This procedure will remove some of the off-taste that the cheap vodka has. Vodka should really have NO taste at all and hopefully, if you over-consume, you are not going to end up with a hangover. Why? Because ketone and acetone will be gone and you will end up with a very high quality vodka!

California Proposition 1, or the Water Bond, is a legislatively-referred bond act and replaces a previous measure known as Proposition 43. Upon voter approval, the measure would enact the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014 and will allow California to issue bonds to pay for water infrastructure projects. Coming up in the 4th of November 2014 elections, Prop 1 would allow California to issue $7.12 billion in general obligation bonds.

The money raised from the bonds would be used for a litany of water-related infrastructure projects if the majority votes “YES”. Also, it would require that money from the general fund be used to pay off the bonds. Certain water projects will be required to find 3rd party non-state sources to match the money they would receive from Proposition 1.

California Proposition: Yes or No?

I personally believe we should vote “YES” on Prop 1 because water is precious and we desperately need it. But whether you vote for or against it, one of the most important things is to start using water more responsibly. The way we use water is very important and I believe that we need to eliminate the use of the water that has been treated to drinking water, for doing nothing more than watering grass, plants and shrubs. Irrigation water needs to be used more wisely to and another important step would be to produce more water with the help of sea water desalination systems on the coast and capture more water with building reservoirs and dams.

Other PRO arguments include:

• Proposition 1 will help California prepare for droughts by enhancing local water supplies and increasing our ability to store water so it is available when we need it
• Proposition 1 will ensure reliable water for farms
• Proposition 1 will clean up contamination of drinking water by removing pollutants from streams and rivers
• Proposition 1 will protect against the collapse of our water system in an earthquake
• Proposition 1 will repair the Delta, one of the most important ecosystems on the West Coast
• Proposition 1 will fix vital infrastructure and create jobs
• Proposition 1 will NOT increase taxes, as it is funded through existing funds
• Proposition 1 will protect tax payers with strong fiscal safeguards

However, there is a campaign against the measure led by Vote NO on Proposition 1. The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance issued a “statement of opposition” to Prop 1 and provided 14 reasons to vote against the proposition. The following are just a few of those reasons:

• Proposition 1 undermines the public trust doctrine
• Proposition 1 undermines the principle of beneficiary pays
• Proposition 1 crowds out other critical investments
• Proposition 1 ushers in a new era of big dams
• Proposition 1 undermines the principle that projects should mitigate adverse impacts
• Proposition 1 is fiscally irresponsible
• Proposition 1 sabotages efforts to meaningfully resolve California’s continuing water crisis

California’s Water and Prop 1’s Objectives

Most of the state’s water supply comes from northern Californian rivers, snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains and groundwater. The main objective is to provide water throughout the state, while supporting and maintaining the environment. To do so, we often use:

• pipelines
• watersheds
• irrigation systems
• pumping stations
• dams and canals
• waste management plants

The state of California’s primary water-related responsibilities are to conserve, store and transport water around the state, protect water quality, fish and wildlife habitats and to provide flood control. The objectives of Proposition 1 would be to increase water supplies and flood protection, improve water quality, and protect and restore watersheds. Specific spending proposals in the Proposition are shown in the figure below.

The fiscal impact of Prop 1 would be an added $7.1 billion of debt to California, which will be in the form of general obligation bonds that the state would issue. It would take around $360 million each year for about 40 years to pay off!

I think the time has come that, either through legislation or through some changes in infrastructure, we get rid of lawn watering and watering of shrubs with water that has been treated to the point that it is good for drinking water. It just seems to be a very expensive thing to do; we should give people tax credits or whatever to get rid of the lawns for something that does not require watering. We all are part of this and we have to use water a lot more judiciously. Vote “Yes” but keep your eye on how the money is being spent.

Resources:

• https://ballotpedia.org/California_Proposition_1,_Water_Bond_(2014)
• https://www.voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/propositions/1/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3mbHP3XMXw

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Dehydration effects can range from mild to life threatening and dehydration affects numerous body systems. Water is an essential compound of our body, making up a large percentage of blood and lymphatic fluids. Dehydration is the excessive loss of body water, with an accompanying disruption of metabolic processes but it is a lot more than just not drinking enough water.

If the body does not receive a continuous, safe and reliable supply of water, essential systems throughout the body can become impaired and various conditions or diseases will appear. Studies have shown that the vast majority of people are chronically dehydrated.

Long-term health conditions can develop and evolve if proper hydration is neglected. Unfortunately, lack of water can lead people into choosing more flavorful alternative such as alcohol, caffeinated drinks and sugar-laced replacements, but they become unknowingly further dehydrated. And, of course, people can become addicted to alcohol, which causes a whole host of other problems in their lives. They may not even realize that they have an addiction, although resources like thid https://www.aristarecovery.com/drug-addiction/alcohol-addiction/am-i-an-alcoholic-quiz/ quiz can help out with that – the sooner they admit their problem, the sooner they will feel able to seek the help that they need in order to overcome their addiction so that they can live a sober, healthy life.

Dehydration Effects on the Human Body

Water makes about 60% of one’s body weight! Most people can tolerate a 3-4% decrease in body water without difficulty. If you lose 5-8% you will experience fatigue and dizziness, and over 10% decrease can cause physical and mental deterioration, along with severe thirst. Fatality occurs when there is a decrease of more than 15-25% of the body water.

Studies have shown that dehydration affects the brain negatively and contributes to depression, requiring treatment with CBD products (such as those available through Blessed CBD) or other medications. The lymphatic system is also affected, as dehydration inhibits its effectiveness and allows cellular waste products to linger in the body. Nerves suffer when a person is dehydrated and once a nerve dies, it will not regenerate back within the central nervous system. Headaches, diminished memory, a sensation of pain, fatigue, low energy, poor endurance and loss of muscle strength are also important symptoms of dehydration you should keep an eye out for.

How Do You Prevent Dehydration?

If you do feel dehydrated, then you can have a look at the Magnak website as they explain how to rehydrate fast, however sometimes, prevention is better than cure. Dehydration is obviously avoided by drinking sufficient water; adults require 2-3 L of fluid per day, including water content of food. Fruits and vegetables are full of water and tomatoes for example are 94% water. Maintaining proper electrolyte balance becomes an issue when a large amount of water is lost through perspiration and concurrently replaced by drinking.

The treatment for minor dehydration, which is considered the most effective, is drinking water and stopping fluid loss. Fluid loss can happen for a variety of reasons such as:

• external or stress-related causes
• infectious diseases
• malnutrition
• diabetes insipidus
• foodborne illness
• Crohn’s disease

It is important to know that plain water restores only the volume of the blood plasma and inhibits the thirst mechanism before solute levels can be replenished. Solid foods can contribute to fluid loss from vomiting and diarrhea. In more severe cases, dehydrated patients are given the necessary water with a proper balance of replacement electrolytes through oral rehydration therapy or fluid replacement by intravenous therapy. As dehydration (including the more severe cases) is becoming more common nowadays, many are looking into places such as icryo (as iCRYO offers iv therapy franchising) to delve into this subject in the business world, so they can help the many people suffering from it. There are a few different forms of treatment out there for dehydration, the first one is the treatment of choice as it is less painful, less expensive and invasive and easier to provide. Water plays a significant reverse osmosisle in the maintenance of health and prevention of disease, so make sure you always keep yourself hydrated. Contact us at 760.734.5787 for your water-related questions!

Resources:

• https://www.newvision.co.ug/news/647040-dehydration-a-leading-cause-of-diseases.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dehydration

According to a new study by researchers from the University of Otago in New Zealand, water fluoridation does not lower IQ. The addition of fluoride into drinking water remains one of the hottest topics in the water treatment industry with those for and against the process, equally passionate about their stand on the issue.

Some people claim that fluoridated water is associated with a range of adverse health outcomes. reverse osmosisutinely added to drinking water in the US and other countries as a supplement to safeguard against tooth decay, fluoride is added to public water supplies at an average concentration of about 1 part per million (1 ppm) or slightly below. Naturally occurring fluoride concentrations in surface waters depend on location but are generally low and usually do not exceed 0.3 pm. In 2012, researchers from Harvard University in Cambridge, MA, casted doubts on the health benefits of fluoride in water supplies.

Water Fluoridation and the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Study

Researchers from the University of Otago conducted a study, which involved 1,000 people born in Dunedin in New Zealand during 1972-1973, comparing the IQs of study participants who grew up in suburbs with and without fluoridated water. They also took into account to what extent the participants were exposed to fluoride toothpaste or tablets while growing up.

The IQ scores of 992 participants were examined between the ages of 7-13. Of these people, 942 were tested again at age 38. Lead author Dr. Jonathan Broadbent describes the team’s findings:

“Our analysis showed no significant differences in IQ by fluoride exposure, even before controlling for the other factors that might influence scores. In line with other studies, we found breastfeeding was associated with higher child IQ, and this was regardless of whether children grew up in fluoridated or non-fluoridated areas.”

The Dunedin Multidisciplinary Study, by comparison, is world-renowned for the quality of its data and rigor of its analysis. Current optimal fluoride ingestion from all sources for a healthy adult should be 3-4 mg/day. If you wish to reduce fluoride in your drinking water, you have some options:

• Bottled Water. Beware! Many bottled waters come from municipal supplies that may or may not be fluoridated and may only be filtered or passed through UV light, neither of which will remove fluoride.
• Reverse Osmosis. 75% to 95% reduction depending on system design, water pressure and water chemistry.
• Hydorxyl Apatite Media Filtration. 75% to 95% reduction depending on flow rates and equipment design.
• Activated Alumina Media Filtration. Reasonably effective but only in a narrow band of water pH values.

Resources:

• http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/277240.php
• http://www.livescience.com/37123-fluoridation.html

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Toledo Lake Water Contamination

Lake Erie turned fluorescent green and contaminated the drinking water of Toledo, Ohio, affecting more than 400,000 people in the area. The massive algal bloom, which took part in the lake, is caused by the growth of certain kinds of algae in response to changes in chemicals in the water, often from fertilizer components. This led to massive water contamination in Toledo. Algae in water is typically non-toxic and invisible to the human eye, but can become toxic if allowed to accumulate to levels where it is visibly thick.

Blooms are commonly made by cyanobacteria, which form in warm and still bodies of water. Cyanobacteria are also called blue-green algae, after the color of their algal blooms. The algae has released certain chemicals including microcystin, a deadly cyanotoxin too small to be filtered using normal water treatment techniques. People are advised to avoid boiling the water, as it will only increase the concentration of microcystin. The toxin is completely unaffected by heat, and as the water boils away, the toxin remains. Cooking with this water is also forbidden, as it will only make the water more toxic.

In some people, the toxin can create a sensation similar to being drunk. The toxin attacks the liver, causing vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness and numbness. Skin contact with contaminated water can cause a rash. The water supplies that were affected by the toxins include those in the following areas:

• ALL of Lucas County
• Bedford Township
• Eastern Swan Creek Township
• Erie Township
• La Salle Township
• Lake Township
• Luna Pier
• Maumee
• Northwood
• Ottawa Hills
• Perrysburg
• Perrysburg Township
• Rossford
• South County Water Customers – Michigan
• Springfield Township
• Sylvania
• Sylvania Township
• Toledo
• Troy Township
• Village of Metamora
• Village of Whitehouse
• Walbridge
• Waterville

ABC News | More ABC News Videos

My Thoughts on This Warning

The recent highly publicized unsafe water situation in Ohio caused by a toxin (microcystin) released by a particularly large algae bloom in Lake Erie brought to mind a very effective yet minimally known process for eradicating algae – ultrasonics. I was concerned that the governing agencies would introduce chemicals or a fish species that could assist in algae abatement but with possible unintended consequences. Apparently, the treatment plants are able to neutralize the toxins or they self expired.

If you have an algae problem in a water storage tank, a cooling tower, a pond or pool, give serious thought to an ultrasonic system – no chemicals introduced into the environment and perfectly safe for animal life.

Resources:

• http://www.thewire.com/national/2014/08/city-officials-announce-that-toledos-water-is-unsafe-to-drink/375493/
• https://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/02/1318607/-Alert-Do-not-drink-the-water-in-Toledo-Ohio-and-Surrounding-Areas-INC-parts-of-Michigan
• http://abcnews.go.com/US/caused-toledos-water-contamination/story?id=24825275

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Filter For Clean Drinking Water

ETH student Jeremy Nussbaumer set himself the goal of a contribution to solving the clean drinking water problem that affects people around the world. The 23-year-old spent a year researching a membrane filter and developing a prototype, working with researchers from a group led by Wendelin Stark, head of the Functional Materials Laboratory.

Roughly 780 million people around the world have no access to clean drinking water and, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 3.4 million people die from water-related diseases every year. Nussbaumer’s invention is ideal for development aid projects.

How Does It Work?

Called DrinkPure, the filter’s uniqueness is best represented by the fact that the filter can be screwed on to virtually any plastic bottle. “It does not require a pump or a reservoir, so it is very easy to use,” explains the student from the canton of Aargau. “You simply screw the filter onto a bottle containing polluted water, then you can put it straight in your mouth and take a drink.” The advantages of DrinkPure include:

• weighs less than 100 grams
• provides a high flow pressure
• possibility of purifying as much as 1L of water per minute
• less expensive
• easier to manufacture

What Makes DrinkPure One of the Most Reliable Devices on the Market?

The filter features 3 filtering stages. The first pre-filter captures large particles, such as sand and plant fragments; the second stage consists of an activated charcoal powder that removes odors and chemical contaminants; the third and most important part of the filter is a special polymer membrane that removes bacteria. Nussbaumer says this membrane does its job more reliably than virtually any other water filter intended for outdoor use.

The membrane was developed by two ETH doctoral students and patented three years ago. Since then, the polymer membrane has been used in a wide range of applications. The manufacturing process that the membrane is based on shows great potential.

Sending First Filters to Africa next January

The research team is currently looking for financial support in order to manufacture enough filters to use in developing countries. The proceeds will be used to purchase the tools needed for the manufacturing process. 80% of what is left over will be used to produce the filter and transport it to Africa and 20% to further develop the concept, as Nussbaumer declared. The first completed filters are expected in January 2015 and will be sent to project supporters and to Africa for use in a test phase.

Sources:

• https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/280093.php

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