LEGISLATION - PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES "Drinking liquid manure with your cup of tea, finding blood from the local abbatoir in the tap water or discovering glowing, growing green aglae fillling your sink may sound like the plot of a Hollywood movie, but it's not. These are just some of the real incidents that have occurred in Australia and New Zealand because proper backflow prevention measures were not in place. Backflow prevention is not a new issue. It was developed in the late 1800s after large companies realised that one of the major reasons for employee illness, and consequently loss of production, was contaminated drinking water. Yet some two hundred years later, many water utilities still struggle to convince people of the potential dangers associated with backflow and cross connections. ...Recognising the importance of both protecting mains water quality and the health and safety of their communities, most water utilities in New Zealand and Australia require their commercial and industrial customers to install and maintain backflow prevention devices at the water meter to ensure that contaminated water does not find its way into the mains. This commitment to backflow prevention is not a worldwide trend. With the exception of the United States, Canada, Australia and, of course, New Zealand, the issues of cross contamination and backflow prevention are primarily seen as the accountability of the individual business with the governing bodies, both at a local and national level, taking little or no responsibility. This is illustrated by the French and British models. In France there is a mixture of private and public ownership, with the latter assuming a minimal amount of responsibility. In the United Kingdom there are limited formal standards for the types of backflow devices used (primarily head and break tanks) and the competence of the installers." Metrowater, Aug. 29, 2005

Boil advisory issued after E. coli found "Customers of a north Spokane water district have been advised to boil their drinking water after E. coli bacteria were found during a monthly check. About 4,000 people in 1,300 homes and businesses are affected in Spokane County Water District No. 3, north of Francis Street and West of North Division Street, Dan Sander of the state Department of Health drinking water division said Friday. It was not known if anyone had become infected, but health officials urged water district customers with flu-like symptoms to contact their health care providers. A cause of the contamination was not immediately known after district employees checked the closed system's wells and reservoirs for vandalism or tampering... ...Sander and Wick said it is possible someone blowing out a yard irrigation system with high-pressure air may have forced contamination into the system. Each fall, many Spokane residents blow out their sprinkler systems to prevent pipes from freezing and bursting during winter. Backflow preventers are required by health and building codes, but some homeowners may not have installed them, Wick said. The north Spokane district has never had a contamination problem in the 30 years he has been with the state agency, Sander said. " Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Oct. 1, 2005

City advises water boiling "An advisory to boil water remained in effect today for up to 10,000 residents in seven pockets of the city and Manheim and East Lampeter townships following Thursday’s break of a main water line in the city. ...The advisory issued Thursday evening, 10 hours after the water line break, is a precaution, said Mayor Charlie Smithgall, who said he drank city water throughout the day. Whenever there is negative water pressure, the state Department of Environmental Protection requires an advisory to boil water for drinking, brushing teeth, washing dishes or preparing food. Theoretically, negative pressure could allow groundwater or toilet water to be sucked into water pipes in buildings where there isn’t backflow prevention devices, Katzenmoyer said. ...Crews worked through the night to repair a 4-foot section of 1930s-era cast iron pipe that cracked open shortly before 6 a.m. Thursday on Burle Industries property, off New Holland Avenue. They were hindered because the pipe sits on solid bedrock that had to be removed. Though old age was probably the chief cause for the rupture, it didn’t help that the pipe did not have a gravel “cushion” around it and received decades of vibrations from the adjacent Amtrak rail line, Katzenmoyer observed." Lancaster Online, Sept. 30, 2005

Backflow and Water System Safety "Protecting and maintaining water quality is one of the most important aspects facing us today. Since we cannot increase our supply of water, we must insure measures are in place to keep it safe. Fortunately, there are simple solutions to protecting the quality of this valuable resource. There are three basic elements to maintaining water system safety; backflow prevention, security, and the ability to monitor the backflow assemblies. Understanding the health risks of cross-connection and backflow, and the solutions available, is paramount to insuring a continued source of safe and secure potable water systems. ...The proper selection of a backflow preventer is crucial to insure that the device works properly and is providing adequate protection for the specific application. It must be stressed that these devices are not all equally acceptable as protection against all types of hazards..." Reeves Journal, Aug. 30, 2005

Pathogens in Drinking Water – The Next Battleground (TechZone Ed.: 10 years, old but still relevant article found on the WWW) "Municipal water treatment techniques developed 95 (now 105 yrs.) years ago used chlorine compounds to disinfect drinking water. This has dramatically reduced the incidence of waterborne diseases such as typhoid, cholera, and amoebic dysentery. Third world countries still fight this pitched battle where human and animal wastes pollute water supplies and little or no mechanisms exist for proper disinfection. ...Since the early 1900's, the rule of thumb "potability" standard has been the absence of coliform bacteria in a measured minimum volume of water. ...However, as our understanding of microbial contaminants and their detection has improved, scientists have found that a wide range of microorganisms, including viruses, parasites/protozoa and bacteria, may persist in "potable" or so-called "safe" drinking water. ...Recent research studies have identified a wide range of microbial problem areas including community drinking water supplies, delivered and store-bought bottled water, water coolers, water lines in dental offices, shower heads, air conditioning systems, ship holds, home plumbing systems and even under-sink reverse osmosis water treatment systems purchased, ironically, for the removal of water contaminants. ...Legionella were formerly regarded as a hazard only when inhaled in aerosolized water(remember the original problem in Philadelphia years ago with the air-condition system in the hotel where dozens died), but there is considerable new evidence that aspiration from drinking water leads to many cases of Legionnaires' disease. ...This raises the next question: Are defective or inadequate anti-siphon valves, water faucets and other home, school, office and industrial plumbing apparatus permitting infectious material from one infected family member(or even a neighbor) to be "sucked back" into the home plumbing lines--breeding there on the surfaces of water pipes in a cooperative biofilm environment--and then being released when water flowing past the microbe growths breaks a group free and carries it into the next glass of water?" Willow Glen Times, Oct. 1994

Highlanders in full cry... (scroll down to the bottom) "DEFRA and the British Horse Society are to hold talks next month to clear up the scare over hosepipe restrictions on equestrian yards. A yard owner in the South was told that she had to use storage systems for the pipes, or remove the fittings because of the danger of backflow of animal waste into the public water supply. The action was covered by the Water Supply (Water fittings) Regulations of 1999. It was the first time I had heard of the alleged danger, or anyone in authority taking action about an equine yard. It was talked up as a big issue when reported at the time. But her local water supplier has compromised for now because she has fixed a hose to never touch the ground. But the whole thing could have been sorted by fitting a non-return valve to her pipe, available at a builder's merchants and completely ruling out the unlikely chance of waste getting into drinking water." Equestrian Today, Sept. 26, 2005

Water Supply Industry Interpretations and Advice e.g. "...In general, laboratories should be regarded as presenting the highest level of backflow risk (Fluid Category 5) unless, following a risk assessment, there is evidence to the contrary. However, arising from Health and Safety restrictions which should be in place, the laboratories of secondary schools can be considered less than a Category 5 risk. ...Steam ovens that are pressurised are to be classified as Fluid Category 5. Unpressurised steam ovens may be regarded as Fluid Category 3 - with protection by a double check valve or equivalent device." (etc.) Water Regulations Advisory Scheme

Backflow: Levels of risk "The water utilities have a duty to supply water, which complies with the water regulations, and the water industry act 1991. This ensures the supply of clean wholesome water suitable for domestic or food production purposes. Drinking water should therefore be obtained direct from the mains water supply without any intervening storage before use. For the purposes of classification this quality of water is called 'fluid category 1' and is the category that needs to be protected against all forms of contamination and pollution. There are four further categories that have an increasing degree of risk these are described below. Links are provided to the backflow prevention components that are acceptable under the new regulations." plumbingpages.com

Love that dirty water? Holliston waits out ban "An emergency water ban remains in effect for west Holliston after a fan sucked in epoxy fumes from a painting project Wednesday at a water treatment plant. As a result, about 1,500 households have been warned not to drink, bathe or cook with the water until further notice. ...Town officials said water testing is stillunder way, but that initial results are safely within drinking water standards. But the town advised affected residents to avoid public water use until at least tomorrow." Boston Herald, Sept. 25, 2005

Bacteria Find Delays Move "WALSGRAVE Hospital bosses have delayed moving into new buildings after potentially-killer bacteria was found in the water. Staff at the Coventry hospital discovered legionella, which causes the lung infection Legionnaires' disease, in the new radiotherapy unit this month. ...Walsgrave staff estimate it will take about four weeks to ensure the water supplies are clear. A hospital spokesman said: "All buildings get regularly treated and the legionella was found as a result of routine maintenance. "Immediate action was taken to eradicate it from the system. No patients have been affected and we have postponed moving into the new buildings. "My understanding is it (legionella) can be in any water system anywhere." ...Bug facts: The legionella bacteria ...was discovered in 1976 after delegates at the Philadelphia convention of the America Legion were struck down with the disease. Legionnaires is contracted by inhaling water droplets contaminated by the bacteria. Legionella in large building water supplies is relatively commonplace and normally poses little risk to the public. It is found naturally and grows best in warm, stagnant water, like the kind found in hot tubs, cooling towers, hot water tanks, plumbing systems or parts of air conditioning systems." Red Nova, Sept. 22, 2005

Construction fees for school project waived by Council "...the city has to have its Cross-Connection Control Program in place by the end of the year, per the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH). The program regulates the safety of the public water system and the prevention of backflow out of factories, businesses and homes in the event of a water main break. Scheffler said backflow filters have been installed at 40 locations and have to be inspected each year by a certified inspector. He added that he has questions about whether filters should be installed at dentists offices, hair salons and restaurants, among other businesses. The owners of the businesses with filters have to provide the city with a receipt from a certified inspector each year. Scheffler said he will be sending out letters to business owners explaining the process. The letter will state either city or the ADH can provide business owners with a list of certified inspectors." The Piggot times, Sept. 21, 2005

Dying for A Drink of Clean Water "In the United States and Europe, people take it for granted that when they turn on their taps, clean water will flow out. But for those living in U.S. cities devastated by Hurricane Katrina, as in large parts of the world, obtaining safe water requires a constant struggle. Water is essential to all aspects of life, yet 99 percent of water on Earth is unsafe or unavailable to drink. About 1.2 billion people globally lack safe water to consume and 2.6 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation. There are also stark comparisons: Just one flush of a toilet in the West uses more water than most Africans have to perform an entire day's washing, cleaning, cooking and drinking. ...But most of all, water is a fundamental global health issue. Unsafe water and sanitation is now the single largest cause of illness worldwide, just as it has been a major threat to the health of people affected by Hurricane Katrina. ...If action is not taken now, 135 million people could die of water-related diseases by the year 2020." Washington Post, Sept. 20, 2005

Potential Contamination Due to Cross-Connections and Backflow and the Associated Health Risks "...The purpose of this document is to review existing literature, research, and information on the occurrence, magnitude, and nature of the public health risks associated with cross-connections and backflow, from both acute and chronic exposures,and methods for detecting and controlling the occurrence of cross-connections and backflow withindistribution systems. More specifically, the goal of this document is to review what we know regarding: (1) causes of contamination through cross-connections; (2) the magnitude of risk associated with cross-connections and backflow; (3) costs of backflow contamination incidents; (4) other problems associated with backflow incidents; (5) suitable measures for preventing and correcting problems caused by cross-connections and backflow; (6) possible indicators of a backflow incident; and (7) research opportunities." EPA’s Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, Aug. 13, 2002

RMWD backflow device issue a joke "William “Bill” Bopf is supposed to be on the board of directors for Rainbow Water. The battle with Rainbow over the “backflow” requirements is out of hand. Lyons says they are legal, but Rainbow says they are not. Rainbow says they must be tested, but the board says you don’t even need one if the pipe is less than one inch. The whole thing is a joke. You call the people at Rainbow and if they return the call he gives you the same song and dance he has been spouting for over a year. He says the board needs to determine the specifics, but in a year they have never dealt with the issue of need for a residence. In the meantime, we keep paying a monthly surcharge to have the backflow tested — but it never gets tested." The Village News, Sept. 15, 2005

Irrigation systems' backflow preventors "Found this short video regarding backflow prevention devices on irrigation systems' waterlines" Unknown author/videographer

Vessel Sanitation Program "Request: Exemption from installing backflow prevention devices on the international shore connection(s) for the fire suppression system(s). VSP Operations Manual Requirement: 5.7.1.1.3 "The vessel shall provide a comprehensive cross-connection control program that provides safe connections to the potable water system through air gaps or appropriate backflow devices for specified locations aboard the ship including the international shore connection." Denied: Backflow prevention devices on the international shore connections for the fire suppression systems are required to protect the shoreside water system. This system is connected to the ship and other ships during emergency situations that may be bunkering water from the same system at that time. This variance was denied because not using a backflow prevention device puts other water systems at risk of becoming contaminated." CDC

New homes must have 1000-litre rain tanks "ALL new homes in South Australia will have to have a 1000-litre rainwater tank, under strict new water conservation laws detailed yesterday. Premier Mike Rann and Environment and Conservation Minister John Hill announced the requirements for new homes and significant home extensions. Mr Hill said a tank that could hold at least one kilolitre, or 1000 litres, would be compulsory from July 1 next year. New homes will also have to comply with other requirements, such as: AUTOMATIC switching between tanks and mains water, mosquito control and backflow prevention devices." The Advertiser, Sept. 12, 2005

Luxury nail industry faces health risks "The sign in the window of Chau's Nails on Aurora Avenue North in Shoreline proudly advertises "SPA PED," a pedicure in a padded leather massage chair that sits like a throne atop a footbath. Salon owner Chau Nguyen said she paid a total of $6,100 for two of the chairs and footbaths — hard earned at $20 a pedicure — because customers kept asking for them. But she knows such luxury comes with risks. "If I don't clean, they get infection. They don't come back," said Nguyen as she poured hospital-grade disinfectant into the bubbling water. Whether in a suburban storefront like Nguyen's, or a ritzy downtown salon, the booming $6 billion nail-service industry in the United States has become as much about preventing the spread of disease as it is about making fingers and toes pretty. ...While Washington licensing officials are considering beefing up regulations, only five state inspectors are assigned to check out more than 10,000 salons and 83 cosmetology schools in Washington. The law requires salons — which include barber, hair, nail and skin-care businesses — to be inspected every other year and schools once a year. And while inspectors uncover hundreds of unlicensed cosmetology businesses every year, the inspection schedule is three to four months behind. ...The worry about infections in nail salons first emerged in October 2000, when more than 100 customers of one California pedicure salon got boils on their legs that left scars. The cause was mycobacteria — commonly found in tap water — which presumably entered the footbaths through the plumbing and multiplied in the warm bits of hair and skin in the baths' filter screens. Since then, cases of the disease have popped up in Arizona, Georgia, Illinois and Oregon. ...Neither public-health officials nor the Department of Licensing randomly tests salon footbaths for the bacteria, or even asks doctors to keep an eye out. ...Two years ago, after learning about the California outbreaks, inspectors started unscrewing the filters in footbaths to see if operators were keeping them clean. The answer usually was no. Now salons are advised to rigorously disinfect footbaths, and conditions are cleaner, Touchette said." The Seattle Times, Sept. 6, 2005

Oak Bluffs building office worker fired "Following a number of complaints to their office, and one to the Oak Bluffs police department citing missing documents, the Oak Bluff’s selectmen’s office fired the building department administrative assistant this week. Eliza Usher, who had worked for the town since 2001, was fired on Monday. She had worked as the administrative assistant for the building inspector since 2003... ...Ms. Usher was a union employee, and under the town’s union contract, she still has the right to appeal the selectmen’s decision. ...Jerry Wiener, the recently appointed Oak Bluffs building inspector, said, "The job was not getting done. It’s a personnel matter, so I really can’t say more than that." At least part of the problem, according to town officials, was that documents, ...and material for building permits, were missing from the building department offices at the town hall. Chip Mitchell, an Oak Bluffs contractor, told The Times last week that a zoning board of appeals decision on one of his projects back in early June was never filed with the town clerk. ...On August 4, Mr. Mitchell filed a civil complaint with the Oak Bluffs police department detailing his dilemma. While he was the only one who went to the police with his grievance, Mr. Mitchell was not the only person to report missing documents. Casey Sharp, Oak Bluffs town administrator, who is also the sister of Ms. Usher, said that the selectmen’s office had received a number of complaints of lost or missing documents in recent weeks. When she was fired, Ms. Usher was ordered to return any and all documents that she had in her position, town officials said. On Monday, large stacks of documents were returned to the town hall. Ms. Sharpe said that all documents that were missing had been returned. On Tuesday afternoon a number of town employees continued to sift through hundreds of pages of paper spread out on a large folding table in the building inspector’s office." The Martha's Vineyard Times, Aug. 11, 2005

Contractors' costs, nation's health still concerns for Stack "Considering how many centuries that plumbing was made out of lead, it's ironic that Jim Stack suffered lead poisoning from paint. That was good for the plumbing business and bad for the painting business. Stack, the incoming president of Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors --National Association, was flat on his back in a hospital room in 1970 from the effects of lead poisoning as a result of his work painting bridges. The man in the bed next to him, dying from congestive heart failure, owned a plumbing firm that his son had taken over. Stack knew he couldn't paint another bridge, so he went from being an $ 8 an hour painter to a $2 an hour plumber's helper. Stack learned the trade and worked for the firm for about 10 years. In 1983, he decided it was time to do his own thing, so he founded Stack Plumbing in the Seattle suburbs. ...As president, Stack is working with a long-range strategic plan, so he doesn't have big initiatives that would be unique to his presidency. But he does, see ...areas of concern. (One major) ...concern is that plumbers have done such a good job protecting the health of the nation that nobody remembers cholera. He's seen do it yourself installations without traps, or with S-traps, or lawn sprinklers without backflow protection. " The codes were created for a reason, but people think they can do it themselves," he said. "Sometimes they do it illegally and they put their families in harm's way." CONTRACTORmag.com

Towanda Remembers Storm Victims "Wed-nesday at 7 p.m., the City of Towanda opened its council meeting with a moment of silence for the victims of hurricane Katrina. ...The council revisited a current ordinance that requires a breakdown and cleaning of irrigation systems every five years. The members unanimously approved a new ordinance to meet state regulations by requiring a yearly inspection of systems with cleaning as needed. The inspection will concentrate on backflow devices, and a report must be filed." El Dorado Times, Sept. 5, 2005

Water advisory steams residents "Notice fails to precisely describe affected area and inform residents... Patrons of Ancaster Rotary Centre got a rude start to their Monday morning workout when they entered the recreational complex earlier this week. Posted to each entrance door was a boil water advisory. The note went on to tell people the water supply was contaminated with bacteria and should not used. "This water can make you sick if you use it as it comes from your tap," read the announcement dated Aug. 28. ...the notice also failed to precisely describe the affected area and inform residents what the issue was. ...Mr. Ferguson said city staff believe the contamination was caused by the high school which hasn't used the water system since school finished in June. With teachers returning to classrooms in preparation for next week water was again used which caused negative pressure in the system and flushed bacteria into water pipes. The city's theory could account for why the contamination was so localized. Eric Matthews, a manager with public health said the bacterial contamination was not found either upstream or downstream of the contaminated site." Ancaster News, Sept. 2, 2005

Auburn seeks public's help on hydrant safety "Auburn utility officials want residents to get involved with homeland security by keeping an eye on city fire hydrants. There are about 2,800 hydrants in Auburn and each one is a potential avenue to contaminate the city's water system, according to Dennis Dowdy, the city's public works director. Theft of water from hydrants also is a problem, he added. The contamination could be done unwittingly by people who take water improperly from a hydrant without a permit or without training in how to do it. Dowdy said the city is asking residents to report any suspicious activity around hydrants or people taking water illegally. Police and city workers can't check them all. ...We have two people full-time hired for backflow protection where irrigation is tied into the system,'' the public works director said. ...He said the city has implemented two legal methods to allow third parties to buy and obtain water from water hydrants. The first involves taking water from a dedicated hydrant. There are six of those dedicated hydrants scattered about the city. They are painted red and have a white tubular assembly (backflow preventer) attached to them. Construction companies can use those dedicated hydrants with a city permit. Nondedicated hydrants are painted yellow. Water may also be withdrawn from those fire hydrants only through the use of a special Hydrant Meter Cart and a permit. The cart is a two-wheel dolly with a valve assembly attached to it. Dowdy said any other activity around a hydrant should be reported immediately to 911." King County Journal, Aug. 29, 2005

Guidance Document: Cross-Connection Control for Small Water Systems "The purpose of this manual is to provide guidance on the development and implementation of a cross-connection control (CCC) program that will comply with the drinking water regulations, Chapter 246-290-490 Washington Administrative Code. This manual was prepared for Group A public water systems with less than 1,000 connections. Although the elements of a CCC program for small, medium, and large water systems are essentially the same, a small water system program may often be streamlined to: Suit the lower health risk posed by a predominantly residential customer base; and Reduce the purveyor's program administration, and thus, operating costs. ...There are numerous well-documented cases where drinking water has been contaminated via unprotected cross connections. These cases have caused illness, injury, and in some cases, death, to consumers served by the system. The task of eliminating all cross connections is enormous. However, all purveyors can implement CCC programs that reasonably reduce the risk of contamination to their systems." Washington State Department of Health

Parasite outbreak among worst in U.S. "The contamination at Seneca Lake State Park's Sprayground is likely one of the largest waterborne parasitic outbreaks nationwide in a decade. According to statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it appears that only two other contaminations in Wisconsin and Georgia beat out the 3,131 people and counting who reported becoming ill from water contaminated with the parasite cryptosporidium at the sprayground near Geneva, Ontario County, sometime between July and mid-August. Revelers were struck with a gastrointestinal illness that brings with it diarrhea and low-grade fever, the symptoms of which can last up to two weeks. Cryptosporidium is a one-celled parasite that lives in infected human and animal intestinal tracts. ..."We recognize this is a significant outbreak and our priority is to continue working with counties to increase public awareness about the precautions everyone should take to stop further spread of illness," said state Health Department spokesman Jeffrey Hammond. Wendy Gibson of the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation would not comment on the CDC statistics. Gibson also declined to comment on why crypto was found in the sprayground's two water tanks last week. She said the investigation is continuing." Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, Aug. 26, 2005

City to seek action against illegal water tap "Despite evidence of an unapproved water tap into an Ely city water main, the city may not be able to press criminal charges. According to a memo from City Engineer Dean Day to City Clerk-Treasurer Jim Alworth, he discovered an addition to a city water line at the White Pine County Industrial Park. After finding the extension, Day said he checked with city staff to see if anyone had information about the extension. Day said he had several problems with what happened. The connections were made without contacting the city and there was no plan submitted to him showing what was going to be done. Additionally, whoever put in the extension shut off a city water main which terminated service to a paying customer and discontinued fire protection to the area without notifying the Ely Volunteer Fire Department. That created a health hazard and a public safety hazard. Also, neither Day nor the water supervisor inspected the connections and did not approve of how the connections were done. ...Alworth contacted White Pine County Sheriff Bernie Romero about enforcing a city code for an illegal water tap. However, because the water tap occurred outside the city limits, the city code cannot be enforced. At the Aug. 11 meeting, Utilities Board chairman Art Olson said there were several violations, including that the work that was done was substandard. He said while city ordinances cannot be applied outside city limits, he believed there were violations of state and federal standards. ...Mayor George Chachas said he would like to have the city water department dig up the illegal water taps, photograph them and document them to build a case." Ely Times, Aug.19, 2005

HydroGap Animation "These two animations show how the Hydro Gap - Air Gap Eductor mixes water and chemicals to dilute concentrations while preventing against backflow." pharmcal.com

Oxnard Water Backflow Animation Also see the main page of City of Oxnard California Water Division and it's comprehensive Backflow Prevention/Cross-Connection Control Program Evaluation "...A reversal of flow in a public water distribution main or in the consumer's system can be created by any change of system pressure wherein the pressure at the supply point becomes lower than the pressure at the point of use. When this happens, in an unprotected situation, the water at the point of use will be siphoned back into the system, thus potentially polluting or contaminating the remainder of the consumer's system. It is also possible that the contaminated or polluted water could continue to backflow into the public water distribution system. The point at which it is possible for a non-potable substance to come in contact with the potable drinking water system is called a cross-connection." City of Oxnard Water Division

Businesses get letters on water regulations (scroll down page) "As the city of Franklin works to fix problems with its water system, local businesses have received letters with stern instructions to install a backflow device in their buildings. ..."It protects the city and drinking water system as best you can," said Chris Milton, acting water and wastewater director. ...Milton said between 55% and 60% of all the businesses surveyed didn't have the device. The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation recently slapped the city with a failing report and put the water system on a list of "unapproved" public water systems in the state." Tennessean.com, Aug. 21, 2005

Geneva water playground closes after hundreds report illness "Debbie Pierce of Ithaca called the illness her children experienced after visiting Sprayground in Geneva horrible and debilitating. An outbreak of gastrointestinal illnesses possibly stemming from the state-run water playground spread to 20 counties on Thursday, the state Health Department said. “The numbers are growing significantly,” said Rob Kenny, spokesman for the Health Department. By Wednesday night, the total number of cases affecting mostly children and teenagers had jumped to 746 across eight counties, up from 100 cases the night before. Seneca Lake Park's popular Sprayground, which features water jets shooting up from a hardtop surface, will be closed for the remainder of the summer. Tests show the tank system that feeds the water jets was contaminated with a common waterborne disease called cryptosporidiosis or “crypto.” Drinking fountains and a nearby snack bar are also being tested for contamination, Kenny said. ...According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, crypto is very contagious and can cause symptoms including diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and fever that can last for weeks." theithacajournal.com, Aug. 19, 2005

American Society of Sanitary Engineering History "The American Society of Sanitary Engineering grew out of a meeting held in Washington, D.C., January 29-31, 1906. Henry B. Davis, Chief Plumbing Inspector for the District of Columbia, believed it was vital that plumbing practice in the United States be standardized. ...In the 1940's the Society and the industry undertook an extensive effort to prove that polio, than a major scourge -- was a waterborne disease. ASSE and the industry contended the viral disease was spread through polluted potable water, much caused by such faulty plumbing practices as cross-connections which led to backsiphonage. Surprisingly, this theory was not universally accepted, as obvious as it may seem today." www.asse-plumbing.org

Ancient water system discovered near Jerusalem "...archaeologists have discovered what they term a "monumental rock-hewn water system" near Jerusalem dating back to the eighth century B.C. ...A statement by Gibson and archaeologist James Tabor from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte said that the latest excavations have revealed the cave to be part of "a much larger Iron Age water system, rock-cut in places to a depth of 65 feet." The archaeologists said the cave, which dates back to the time of King Hezekiah (according to pottery shards from that period), contains a vertical shaft, an open horizontal corridor, a flight of stone steps above a tunnel and three external plastered pools, all of which was on the slope above an underground reservoir. ...Although elaborate water systems "have been found elsewhere," Gibson said, until now they were discovered only within Israelite cities such as Beit Shemesh and Gibeon. "Never before has such a massive water system been found isolated in the countryside without a town or city attached to it," Gibson said, leading the team to believe that the project had been undertaken "by the Kingdom of Judah." Biblical Recorder, Aug. 11, 2005

Water company surveys users "The 395 Montezuma Water Co. members who didn't fill out and return a cross-connection - water line - survey may get a knock on their door soon. The survey asks customers what additional water lines might be in their ground in proximity to the water company’s delivery system. Company officials are attempting to locate any possible or existing water contamination points already buried that could pose a current or future threat to drinking water. ...Sending and receiving questionnaire forms back allows the water company to comply with a relatively new Colorado law. The regulation states a water supplier’s responsibility to customers starts at the supply, or point of origin, and ends at the ser vice connection. “If you have anything hooked up to our system, then something can be thrown back,” Director Allen Lichliter said. ...As a possible solution, water user Eric Gray mentioned that the company could install back-flow preventers. “You could put those in and address any (water-related) problems from there,” he said. If preventers are installed, MWC would have to check all of the devices annually. The cost for a back-flow device is about $1,800 each — or $7.2 million for 4,000, which is the number of MWC users. Board members debated who should pay for the back-flow devices. “The owners of our company should realize there will be annual inspections at an unknown cost,” Director Glenn Fish said. Officials of the water company are rolling the dice..." Cortez Journal, Aug. 12, 2005

Water company brands hosepipes ‘hazardous’ "A Dorset yard owner's dispute with her local water company over use of hosepipes around horses has uncovered longstanding but little understood legislation that could cost the equestrian world millions. Gillian Makey-Harfield, a List Three British Dressage judge, had no idea she was breaking the law by using hosepipes directly from the water mains at her private four-horse yard until she was inspected by Wessex Water Ltd on 7 July. She contacted Horse & Hound after being issued with a contravention report telling her to switch to a water storage cistern by 15 August or remove hosepipe fittings. ...According to DEFRA and the Water Regulations Advisory Scheme (WRAS), using hosepipes from the mains exposes public drinking water to potential contamination from animal waste due to “backflow”. Backflow can occur when the main water supply comes under high demand, for example due to a fire, burst main or mass use of garden hosepipes, resulting in a loss of pressure and suction action on the system. Contamination may happen if the end of a hosepipe is in contact with fluid containing animal waste (faecal matter) at the exact moment the water system experiences a loss of pressure. ...Makey-Harfield felt she was being unfairly singled out, given that hosepipes at neighbouring equestrian properties, including the Cattistock hunt kennels, had gone undetected. Now seeking legal advice and willing to take her fight to court, she said her situation set a dangerous precedent across the industry." Horse and Hound, Aug. 11, 2005

Health Official Says Deadly Infection May Be Treatable " Researchers say there might be a new weapon to fight the deadly infection that killed two Tulsa boys last week. Tulsa hospitals now know of the possible new treatment. ...naegleria is caused by an amoeba and it's usually found in warm bodies of fresh water and under-chlorinated pools. If the amoeba gets into the nasal passages, it can be deadly. The two boys killed by the rare infection played at a splash pad at Mohawk Park. And the boys might have also played in other nearby water. Officials believe two small, stagnant ponds next to the pads might be the source of the infection. The water at the splash pad is chlorinated, but city officials drained the area Now a researcher at Oklahoma State University's Center for Health Sciences says a drug might treat the infection. The researcher says Zithromax, which is used to fight other sinus infections, worked the only time it was used in treatment." KOTV.com, Aug. 9, 2005

Tulsa Waterpark May Be Link In Boys' Deaths "Health officials believe a Tulsa water park may be a link between two Tulsa boys who died Friday from a rare, waterborne disease. The Health Department is testing stagnant water in a drainage area near a "splash pad" in Mohawk Park. The two boys had apparently played at the water park about two days apart within the last two weeks, health officials said. "We don't believe at this time that the sprinkler is what could have caused this," said Melanie Christian, a spokeswoman for the Tulsa City-County Health Department. "It looks like a cross-contamination issue." Children playing in the water park's sprinklers apparently also were playing in stagnant water that was pooling about 30 feet away, Christian said. Water from the sprinkler was an unlikely source of contamination because it is cold, chlorinated and moving, she said. ...Local parents were warned Friday to keep children from swimming underwater in lakes and ponds after health officials reported the deaths of the two boys as a result of naegleria. ...The boys, who apparently did not know each other, went to doctors with symptoms of fever, hallucinations and headaches. Naegleria is caused by an amoeba that lives in warm water. The condition cannot be caught by drinking water or merely wading in it; the water must go up a person's nose, where the amoeba enters the body through the nasal passage and from there follows the central nervous system to the brain. ...A total of 24 Naegleria infections were documented in the United States between 1989 and 2000." channeloklahoma.com. Aug. 7, 2005

Details emerge in city official’s bribe case "The instructions were simple: Just sit there and "look intelligent." That, according to a federal affidavit, is what Albert Carothers, then chief assistant plumbing inspector for the city of St. Louis, told a man he thought was bribing him to help the man cheat on a license exam. Carothers gave the man a copy of the test with the answers already filled in and sat him in the back so no one could look over his shoulder. But it was Carothers who was being watched. The man taking the test was a paid informer who had been secretly recording their conversations for months. On that particular day in February 2004, the man wore a hidden video camera that captured the day's events.Carothers, 64, was arrested last month, charged with mail fraud, conspiracy and aiding and abetting. Two local contractors accused of helping Carothers face similar charges. ...Court documents paint Carothers as the mastermind of the scheme who kept those who didn't bribe him from getting a city license. ...Carothers was the secretary for the plumbing exam board. ...The accusations in the plumbing office come as Comptroller Darlene Green announced the first three months of her fraud hot line yielded 28 substantive tips. Of those, three have been referred to federal agencies, including the FBI and Internal Revenue Service." St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 12, 2005

Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations "Subject to the following provisions..., every water system shall contain an adequate device or devices for preventing backflow of fluid from any appliance, fitting or process from occurring. ...The device used to prevent backflow shall be appropriate to the highest applicable fluid category to which the fitting is subject downstream before the next such device." Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Domestic Cold-Water Systems "Domestic cold-water systems are not a major site for Legionnaires' disease bacteria (LDB) growth. However, elevated levels of LDB have been measured in ice machines in hospitals. ...Dental water lines have been recognized as sources of water contaminated with high concentrations of microorganisms including LDB. ...Cross-contamination of a domestic cold-water system with another system should always be suspected of promoting bacterial growth. ...Emergency water systems such as fire sprinkling systems, safety showers, and eye wash stations are other domestic cold-water sources from which LDB have been cultured. These systems experience little water flow and can be subject to periods of elevated temperatures. In addition, operation of these devices will aerosolize water. ...Operating conditions for dental water lines are especially appropriate for LDB proliferation because the water is stagnant a majority of the time, the narrow plastic tubing encourages bio-film formation, and the water temperature is usually 20°C (68° F) or higher... ...How do I maintain a cold water system? ...Protect all connections to process water with a plumbing code-approved device such as a back-flow preventer or air gap." www.osha.gov

Palm Beach County warns of scams targeting its water utility customers "Scam artists have approached about a dozen Palm Beach County households, according to the Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department. “We want to make sure that innocent people are not tricked into believing that they need to purchase unnecessary filters to treat their tap water,” department director Bevin A. Beaudet said. County Commissioner Mary McCarty’s office said that calls to the department’s customer service center alerted county officials that someone is targeting utility customers with an erroneous letter. The letter states that customers who suffered diarrhea between February 20 and May 30 were exposed to fecal matter in drinking water. The letter also recommends that customers install a reverse osmosis filter and contact a plumber to install a backflow valve system. “Whoever mailed this letter is posing as our water utility to frighten people into believing that they need to hire a plumber and buy expensive water treatment systems,” Beaudet said. “We suspect that they will follow up by soliciting business from the people they have scared with the letter.” “Please don’t be misled into believing that your water is unsafe,” Beaudet said. “There is no need to call a plumber or purchase a reverse osmosis filter. This is a scam. ...Stephen K. Lower, retired department of chemistry professor at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia has examined the many way in which con artists have used water as the source of a scam. He said such scams have included “magnets and ‘catalysts’ for softening water, magnetic laundry balls, waters that are ‘oxygenated’, ‘clustered’, ‘unclustered’ or ‘vitalized’ (purporting to improve cellular hydration, remove toxins, and repair DNA), high zeta-potential colloids and vortex-treated waters to raise energy levels, halt or reverse aging “and remove geopathic stress.” “All of these wonders and more are being aggressively marketed via the Internet, radio infomercials, seminars, and by various purveyors of new-age nonsense,” Lower said. “The hucksters who promote these largely worthless products weave a web of pseudoscientific hype guaranteed to dazzle and confuse the large segment of the public whose limited understanding of science makes them especially vulnerable to this kind of exploitation.”" Boca Raton News, August 4, 2005

Your Drinking Water "Considering the fact that safe drinking water is vital to human survival, it seems strange that the utility companies (purveyors) charge so little for the life-giving product they sell. The courts have deemed that water is a product and not a service to the public. The water purveyors take the raw material and process this material through their factories (water plants) and then sell this product to their customers for a profit. In the U.S. products which are sold for a profit have an implied warranty that the products are usable. Water has a warranty that it is fit for human consumption. The water purveyors deliver the product through a series of pipes (transmission mains and distribution mains) to the customers' water meters. Once the product (clean water) is delivered through the water meters to the customers, the water purveyor does not want this same water to return back through the meters and out into the public water supply." nobackflow.com, June 10, 2005

Aging waterlines require repairs, replacement "Frequent reports of water main breaks and media coverage of a spectacular water spout in Green Tree notwithstanding, local water authorities believe they're maintaining the viability of their aging infrastructures. ...Water main breaks are as inevitable as rain at the Three Rivers Arts Festival, despite millions of dollars water authorities spend upgrading their systems. ...But a national industry group says that might not be enough for Pittsburgh or any other aging city over the next few decades as pipes reach the end of their projected life spans. "Now's the time to start talking to the public about the need to replace the infrastructure," said Jack Hoffbuhr, executive director of the American Water Works Association, a technical and professional society that does education on water issues. "It's not going to go away, and the longer you put it off, the larger the problem you're going to have eventually." Perhaps, but any kind of complete, systematic replacement is, in the eyes of officials from Pittsburgh area authorities, impossible. "[The cost] would be astronomical, and it would be a needless expense," West View's Bruno said. ...The American Water Works Association's doomsday attitude stems from a 1991 study called "Dawn of the Replacement Era," which looked at 20 utility companies' needs for repair and replacement of drinking water infrastructure. It cited the fact that three different types of pipe installed in different eras will be reaching their life expectancy over the next 20 to 30 years. That includes the durable cast iron pipe installed late in the 19th century up through the lighter-weight and less durable pipe called transite that was used in the post-World War II era. Now pipe is either ductile iron or plastic, primarily the former here, expected to last 100 years." Post-Gazette.com, August 1, 2005

We will overcome space setbacks "It was not a pretty sight. I was down on all fours in my front yard, butt in the air, fumbling with a wrench trying to shut off a submerged valve I couldn't see. Necktie drooping into a bubbling pool of water spreading across the lawn, it was clear I'm no plumber. Minutes earlier I had been in The Herald's East Manatee newsroom, watching the televised launch of the space shuttle Discovery. That's when my wife called with news that the backflow apparatus at home had sprung a big leak. Speeding home, I tried to recall how I handled a similar emergency a year earlier. Then I remembered. All it took was a turn of a wrench and bit of skin off my knuckles. Considering how the same species that struggles with simple tasks - like closing a water shutoff valve, or loading plastic line into a string trimmer - also launched the Discovery, it makes you wonder, "Just how do they do it?" The ground crew that readies the vehicle and the men and women who fly the shuttle are the best and brightest. But in many ways they are people just like you and me and the guy down the block. ...The next generation of manned space exploration is intriguing: back to the moon and on to Mars. Not bad for a race of knuckle-busters." HeraldToday.com, July 31, 2005

Martin v. The Department of the Army "This is a proceeding under the employee protection provisions of the Safe Water Drinking Act, 42 U.S.C. § 300. John W. Martin (Complainant), a plumber employed at Ft. Jackson, a Department of the Army facility filed his complaint on May 5, 1992. The District Director issued his decision rejecting Mr. Martin's complaint on October 13, 1992. ...Ft. Jackson is required to have a backflow prevention program. The regulations on backflows apply to this facility as they would to any municipality or water district. ...Complainant in the period March 14 to mid or late April went to Mike Munn, Mr. Pittman's supervisor telling him that he was having problems and could not get answers concerning backflow preventer test procedures. Mike Munn also was unable to answer his questions. ...Mr. Martin informed Mr. Pittman that the list of backflows provided to him, was incomplete and therefore it would take longer to complete the testing. Complainant found some 341 backflows on the base. More building inspections were needed to locate the additional backflows... ...Complainant concluded there were many instances of non-compliance with respect to backflow and cross connection control at Ft. Jackson of the State Safe Drinking Water Act. He could not figure out why. "I found that the new buildings were not being tested, or not being -- backflows were not being installed on the newer buildings, as required by law.. The law said that any cross-connection, which is potable water tied into two lines, potable water tied into a contaminated source, the law says there shall be no cross-connection. And we had plenty of them at Ft. Jackson, and nobody was doing anything about it."" U.S. Dept. of Labor

Warning about tainted water in West Boca is a fraud, official says "Someone posing as the Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department has sent fraudulent letters to homeowners west of Boca Raton saying their tap water had been tainted with fecal bacteria. The county issued a consumer alert Wednesday after receiving calls about the letter -- which targeted the Woodcrest section of Boca West -- from a handful of recipients. ..."It's sort of like a foot in the door," water utilities spokeswoman Brenda Duffey said. "The tactic is to try to frighten people into thinking there's something wrong with their water, when in fact our water quality is great." The letter suggests that coliform bacteria may have caused diarrhea in drinkers of unfiltered water during the period of Feb. 20 to May 30. It recommends installing a reverse osmosis filter and contacting a plumber to put in a backflow valve." South Florida Sun-Sentinal, July 28, 2005

Mayor steamed over 'stinky' water "Those residents of Andalusia who think they have "stinky water," will just have to suck it up for now. "I was frustrated," Utilities Superintendent and Andalusia Mayor Jerry Andrews said. "I am real concerned with them (utilities board members) not wanting to address the water situation. "People are concerned about it and they have complained about it," Andrews added. The superintendent brought in Tom Walters, a representative of CH2M Hill (a professional engineering firm based in Montgomery), to give a proposal to the Utilities Board Tuesday evening about the steps his company could take to get to the bottom of the odor some are saying emanates from the city's water supply. ...Andrews' proposal died due to lack of a motion. ...Walters told the utilities board that the smell and other problems with the water was most likely caused by hydrogen sulfide, which gives off an odor similar to rotten eggs. ...The representative said hydrogen sulfide in the water supply is not in and of itself harmful. The smell, Walters noted, is usually generated from a biological reaction occurring somewhere within the system itself. Kenneth Blackburn, Water and Sewer Operations Manager for the utilities department, said that water will "stink" if lines aren't frequently flushed out. For those who go on vacation or leave their homes for extended periods of time, that could be the source of their problem, Blackburn noted." Andalusia Star News, July 27, 2005

Preparing for the big show "On Thursday, the first 2005 Fayette County fair-goers will flood through the entrance gates to enjoy the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of all the fair has to offer. But, more than likely, not one will give a thought to the time and effort it takes to make the fair a possibility. On the other hand, Chris Piwowar, head of the fair's maintenance crew, is not likely to forget any time soon. In order to get the grounds ready for the annual event, Piwowar and his crew began working at the end of May. "Over the winter all of the waterlines are drained because the buildings aren't heated, so we have to start turning on all of the water and make sure everything is working," Piwowar said. That includes flushing every toilet on the grounds, at least a few times, to make sure they will function when the public comes. This year, hooking up the water once again, was a more difficult task than it has been in the past. That's because of a law that made it mandatory for backflow preventers to be installed. ..."There is just so much that needs done," Piwowar said. "People just don't realize all that goes into this. You'd be amazed how many people ask what all has to be done."" Daily Courier, July 26, 2005

HOA to change water times "Highlands at Arrowhead Ranch resident Carol Monnig was so concerned about the reclaimed water that sprays out of nearby sprinklers, she took a sample from a sprinkler head for testing. ...Sprinklers spray the grass several times a week during the day and when the wind blows, Ms. Monnig said the mist reaches her front and back yard. "We cannot be out in the yard when this is going on. It gets in our faces, it gets on our skin," Mrs. Monnig said. "We're like prisoners in our home." The water has 70 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters of fecal coliforms, based on lab results presented July 19 to the Highlands Homeowners Association. Fecal coliform is a type of bacteria that could include E. coli but does not necessarily, said Susan Butler, a lab technician for Legend Technical Services, Inc. in Phoenix. "I would think it's a little bit high," Ms. Butler said... ...Arizona Department of Environmental Quality officials note state law requires fecal coliform to be nonexistent in drinking water, a restriction that does not apply to reclaimed water because it is not intended to be consumed. It was after her daughter's doctor said the water quality could be unsafe for someone with medical problems that Mrs. Monnig wanted to make sure her HOA was aware. ..."Somebody's going to get sick one of these days and then there's going to be a lawsuit," Mrs. Monnig said. Reclaimed water is wastewater treated well enough to be used for non-drinking purposes, such as irrigation, industrial coolant or water features. It is significantly cheaper than potable "drinking" water that comes out of the tap. Water experts do not recommend drinking reclaimed water but say it is cleaner than it used to be and considered safe to use on lawns. ...Paul Bennett, an eight-year Highlands resident, said the sprinklers spray during peak hours when homeowners walk around the lake and children ride bikes on the sidewalks. The mist creates a slippery surface and must be dodged by park users, he said. ...Arizona Administrative Code Title 18 requires entities to "reasonably preclude" the public from coming in contact with reclaimed water." newszap.com, July 25, 2005

Water tank break-in detected "The day before Akron responded to a national Orange Alert for mass transit on July 7 by increasing vigilance in the city's sprawling multicounty watershed, Akron police were investigating a security breach much closer to home. Someone broke open an access hatch and crawled inside an East Akron water tower and lit candles on a platform overhanging 2 million gallons of the city's drinking water. City workers discovered the break-in during a routine inspection on July 6 and speculated that someone perhaps swam in the water. ``We're thinking it was probably some time over the July Fourth weekend,'' said public utilities manager Michael McGlinchy. ``They did find Slim Jim wrappers, pop cans and cigarette butts.'' The big cylinder-shaped tower at Eastwood Avenue is surrounded by a barbed wire fence. The first rung of the access ladder is 8 feet off the ground. The first few rungs are covered by a hinged sheet of metal. ...Although no system is 100 percent safe in the ``new normal'' after 9/11, Akron Health Director Dr. Michael Moser said, he won't stop drinking from the tap. For one thing, the water supply retains its treatment chemicals -- which keep bacteria and many viruses at bay -- between the time it leaves the plant and it arrives at the tap. Any nasties dumped intentionally or accidentally inside a water tower would have to survive those chemicals." Akron Beacon Journal, July 23, 2005

City's water the result of much planning, hard work "When people in Corvallis turn on their tap, they expect a safe and reliable water supply. What they don't know is what it takes for the city to ensure that safety and reliability. Most people have some understanding about the city's process to treat and filter water to ensure bacteria and contaminants have been removed. But this is only the first step in protecting the water supply. Once the water has been treated to a level that it meets or exceeds all state and federal regulations, it is put into the distribution system of pipelines, pump stations, and reservoirs, where it is available for use by customers. While in the distribution system, the city continues to monitor the water quality. ...The city also protects against contaminants flowing back into the water system. Devices to prevent backflow are required in specific circumstances where the threat is highest, such as industrial facilities. The device protects the water supply from any dirt, bacteria or chemicals that could back-flow to the water system. On residential properties, a backflow prevention device is required for irrigation systems. The city operates a state-mandated program to ensure appropriate backflow prevention devices are installed and tested annually." Corvallis Gazette-Times, July 22. 2005

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink "Drink the water. Don't drink the water. Residents, businesses and municipal officials spent most of Wednesday deciding what to do. Mass confusion followed the boil water advisory issued by Indiana American Water Co. late Tuesday evening. A power outage caused a loss of power, then pressure, at the company's Gary and Ogden Dunes plants. Restaurants closed. Traffic snarled. Rumors spread. ...Porter County Health Department Administrator Keith Letta said his department decided to order all restaurants in the affected areas closed out of concern for public health. "They cannot tell us they did not have back siphonage and sucked in contaminants. There are a lot of people who could be affected," Letta said. "State code said they can't be in operation without a potable water source. If we are going to make a mistake, we are going to make it on the side of public safety." ...Hospitals also had to change their routines because of the advisory." nwitimes.com, July 21, 2005

Backflow Prevention Cross Connection Control Handbook "Man has long recognized the need for pure drinking water, but only in the last 50 or 60 years has there been any real effort to prevent contamination caused by cross connections. Although double check valves came into use around the turn of the century to isolate fire mains and industrial water lines from the potable water supply, little interest was shown in the individual treatment of plumbing fixtures. In 1929 the major breakthrough came when a device consisting of two check valves with a relief valve between them was successfully tested in Danville, Illinois. However, this valve was not produced commercially and it was not until the late 1930’s that the real development of effective vacuum breakers and backflow preventers took place. It was in this period that ordinances for cross connection control began to be enforced" SPX Valves & Controls

Back to Basics: Backflow Prevention "The basic principles of cross-connection control are very simple, yet there are thousands of variables that enter the formula in designing and engineering backflow prevention into any potable water system. It is a complete understanding of the elementary aspects of cross-connection control that will allow us to engineer and design systems that achieve the goal of preventing backflow in an effective and cost-efficient manner. The goal is to assure a backflow event does not cause an unintentional reversal of flow of any substance into the potable water system that can affect water quality by means of a cross-connection. Backflow can happen because of two hydraulic conditions, backpressure and/or backsiphonage. Backpressure is a condition where a greater pressure is created on the outlet side of a piping system than from the inlet side. Pumps, thermal expansion or elevated storage tanks are different examples that can cause this condition to occur. Backsiphonage is a reversal of flow caused by a negative or sub-atmospheric pressure. Broken water mains often cause negative pressures in a potable water system by increasing demand to a point where a negative pressure can be created. The hydraulic conditions of backpressure and backsiphonage can only cause a problem if there is a passageway from the unwanted material and the drinking water. This passageway is called a cross-connection. There are two types of cross-connections that can be created: either an actual (direct) or potential (indirect) connection. An example of an actual connection would be the feed line from the potable water supply connected to the boiler feed. An example of a potential connection would be a janitorial sink faucet with a hose thread outlet. This has the potential of connecting an open-end hose into the sink of soapy water or dangerous chemicals…" pmengineer, 1/7/05

Illegal connections: Mayor warns of action against defaulters "MAYOR Nahar Singh Gill today stated that the mixing of water, ‘‘if any’’, in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Colony and adjacent areas where gastroenteritis cases have been reported are due to illegal water connections taken by the residents. The mayor added that such connections are being checked, while a few have also been disconnected. The Mayor specified that anyone who has illegal water/ sewer connections should get them rectified, or the Municipal Corporation (MC) will initiate legal action against the culprit. Earlier in March when gastro outbreak had been reported at Tibba Road colonies and Karamsar Colony, the Operation and Maintenance Cell of the Municipal Corporation had conducted a thorough survey of illegal water and sewer connections in the city. Nearly 20,000 such connections had been identified in various areas. The survey found that most of these illegal connections had been taken by residents in the outskirts of the city..." Ludhiana Newsline, July 15, 2005

Tap-water worries "Colorado's system to oversee the safety of drinking water is significantly understaffed, threatening the integrity of a program designed to protect public health, a federal report says. The Environmental Protection Agency, in a review of the state health department's drinking water program, repeatedly warned that staffing levels far below national standards spread supervisors too thin and could delay important new regulatory initiatives. "The drinking water program must be able to respond to . . . emergencies, maintain (its) basic program and be able to move the program forward in a comprehensive manner to . . . ensure the safety of drinking water," the report said. "The current level of resources simply does not make this possible, and this course of action is not without its risks to the public health." Despite a number of strongly worded concerns in the report, an assistant administrator at the EPA downplayed the notion that staffing shortfalls posed any imminent risk to public health. ...The EPA's emphasis on staffing shortfalls marked the latest red flag over personnel levels at Colorado's Water Quality Control Division, a branch of the state Department of Public Health and Environment. A draft report by the division itself last year found that the state's water pollution watchdog agency was staffed 40 percent below states of comparable size and responsibilities, and could be at risk of takeover by the federal government." Rocky Mountain News, July 18, 2005

World supply of clean water at risk "The lack of clean drinking water throughout the world and resulting disease could kill millions of people in coming decades, a Montana State University professor said Friday. "Unless we're extremely careful, at least half the world is going to be facing a water shortage by the year 2050," Tim Ford, head of MSU's microbiology department, told more than 50 government officials, environmental advocates and journalists from around the globe who gathered in Bozeman. ...Drinking water polluted by human waste, heavy industry and other sources is the cause of 80 percent of infectious diseases, Ford said. And contaminated water causes 3 million deaths a year and 4 billion cases of intestinal diseases. ...But, Ford noted, the shortage of clean drinking water isn't a problem only in far-off, underdeveloped countries. Throughout the world, including in the United States, aging municipal water systems are crumbling. Ford showed pictures of a century-old Boston water pipe caked with residue, which makes it a perfect host for disease-carrying bacteria. To tackle the problem, communities throughout the world need better training for water system operators, improved public health monitoring and stronger enforcement of water standards." Bozeman Daily Chronicle, July 16, 2005

Plumbing Employment: An Additional 110,000 Plumbers Are Needed by 2012 "According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the demand for experienced Plumbers is likely to increase by 10 – 20% over the next seven years. Based on the labor statistics from 2002, an additional 110,000 Plumbers could be needed by the year 2012. About 70% of these Plumbers would be working for contractors engaged in new construction, repair, modernization, or maintenance work. As the demand for experienced Plumbers increases, so does that of Plumbing Sales People, Estimators, Project Managers, Designers/Drafters, Foremen, Superintendents, etc… Although much of this growth is likely due to residential and commercial new construction in the United States, there’s always a need to modernize existing structures which provides consistent work for industry professionals. With the demand for skilled Plumbers outpacing the supply, compensation levels are expected to increase as employers continue to get more aggressive in their recruiting strategies." eMediaWire, July 13, 2005

Council revises ordinance... "The City Council approved changes Tuesday to ordinances it adopted earlier this year aimed at curbing false burglar alarms and requiring some businesses to install safety devices on water lines. ...The council ...adopted extensive revisions to an ordinance requiring certain businesses to install "backflow" prevention devices between their buildings and the city's water line. The devices are designed to prevent liquid materials used in the businesses from contaminating the water supply. The ordinance also applies to buildings with sprinkler systems for fire suppression. The city is under pressure from the state Department of Health and Hospitals to adopt an ordinance that complies with state health regulations, according to a discussion at a meeting last month. Mayor Charlene Smith and council members said last month they had received complaints from some owners after about 40 letters went out to businesses informing them of the requirements. The city adopted the original ordinance in February, but the revisions include numerous technical changes and specific references to standard plumbing and building codes." 2theadvocate.com, July 13, 2005

St. Louis Assistant Chief Plumbing Inspector Arrested On Bribery Charges "A St. Louis Assistant Chief Plumbing Inspector was one of three people arrested in what prosecutors are calling a bribery scheme. St. Louis City Assistant Chief Plumbing Inspector Albert Carothers, 63-years-old, is accused of taking bribes to give out drain layers' and plumbers' licenses. Prosecutors say a witness who cooperated with investigators paid Carothers $3,000, and that Carothers gave the witness a test with all the answers already filled in before issuing the license. Two contractors were also arrested. ...The U.S. Attorney's Office says each defendant could face up to 20 years in prison if they are found guilty." 5ksdk.com, June 22, 2005

Fairview in wake of E. coli scare "The city’s monthly water quality tests revealed that three out of 10 water samples taken Thursday, July 7, contained E. coli bacteria. Public Works employees canvassed Fairview neighborhoods Friday morning issuing health notices telling residents not to use any tap water without boiling it first, even for brushing their teeth. ...Ron Hall, the manager for the drinking water program with the Oregon Department of Health and Human Services, said there are more than 200 types of E. coli bacteria, most of which are relatively harmless. However, some strains of E. coli can cause illness and are of particular concern to people with weakened or suppressed immune systems and infants and children. People infected with the E. coli bacteria could experience diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches or other symptoms. The bacteria was discovered during a routine monthly water test required by the state, Cochran said. Bacterial contamination can occur when there is a break in the water main, through an illegal cross connection like a residential irrigation system or when new water lines or facilities are constructed, health officials said. The source of the problem is still unknown..." Gresham Outlook, July 10, 2005

Water may be unsafe to drink "State inspectors have found sand in the drinking water of a lower Richland home and evidence of leaking pipes in the surrounding neighborhood — both signs that pollution threatens the water system at Albene Park. The discovery Wednesday prompted one state inspector to caution Albene Park residents against drinking the water. “As far as Albene Park, considering what we did find on Wednesday, it may not be in the customer’s best interest to consume that water,” said Willie Morgan, an official with the state Office of Regulatory Staff. The regulatory staff agency ran across the problem while looking into complaints of poor water service by Piney Grove Utilities Inc. The company faces a total of more than $4.4 million in state health department fines levied over water and sewer system violations. ...The threat occurs because such outside contaminants as bacteria, which can cause stomach ailments, could filter into water lines. ...Nearby Franklin Park also is served by Piney Grove Utilities. But Morgan said he could not address whether people should drink the water there. The regulatory staff office found evidence of leaking water lines in each neighborhood, but the sand in the tap at Albene Park provided more cause for concern, he said." The State.com, July 9, 2005

Money dispute left town's water problem simmering "When an O'Fallon, Ill., city worker turned on a faucet in his home and water only dribbled out, he "acted like Paul Revere, and we headed out to the pump station," recalled city engineer Dennis Sullivan. They were able to avoid water crisis No. 1 that day in early June. Just three weeks later, demand surged, and water pressure plummeted again in O'Fallon and eight other Metro East communities. Water crisis No. 2 could not be defused. Water pressure sank below the state-mandated minimum, potentially contaminating the water supply with bacterial backflow. The city and Illinois-American Water Co. were forced to call a three-day boil water order affecting at least 100,000 people. Residents and businesses were caught off-guard and upset. But the water utility and O'Fallon officials had known for years about a distribution problem that led to these two incidents, interviews and documents show. The two sides had battled over who should pay for the costly fix. ...Water is often taken for granted. The power may go out. The cable may go on the fritz. But the water? For at least two decades, no major water utility supplying the Metro East area, the city of St. Louis, or the counties of St. Louis and St. Charles had suffered a broad pressure crash and systemwide boil order. Then it happened once - and nearly twice - in one month to Illinois-American and O'Fallon. "It's an interesting and perplexing situation," Sullivan said." St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 10, 2005

Legionnaires’ Disease Contracted from Patient Homes: The Coming of the Third Plague? "In biblical times, 10 plagues were inflicted on Egypt, causing fear and consternation. The plagues included locusts, frogs, hail, and, ultimately, the deaths of the first-born sons of Egypt [1]. Similarly, Legionnaires’ disease swept into our medical consciousness like a plague, causing fear and consternation. The first plague was discovered as an outbreak of severe pneumonia during an American Legion convention at a Philadelphia hotel in 1976. The abruptness of the outbreak, the high mortality despite antibiotics and modern ICU care, and the unknown cause contributed to its notoriety, which has endured today. The general public and the lay media retain their fascination with Legionnaires’ disease. ...The second plague was the discovery of outbreak- related pneumonia in the hospital setting in 1978. This plague occurred when, over a course of 4 years, hospital acquired Legionnaires’ disease was diagnosed in over 300 patients in U.S. Veterans Hospitals in Los Angeles, CA, Pittsburgh, PA, and Togus, ME. ...Panic and consternation occurred among patients and hospital employees and was fueled by media coverage. The third plague is the emerging recognition that sporadic community-acquired legionellosis can be contracted from drinking water in patient homes. ...Attention initially focused on cooling towers and air conditioners, which became convenient lightning rods that could defuse panic because these sources could be easily confronted and disinfected. However, in the era of molecular epidemiology with case-control studies and DNA fingerprinting, it soon became clear that potable water was the primary source. Air conditioners have never been scientifically linked to an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, and its role now approaches mythical folklore. Nevertheless, cooling towers and air conditioners continue to be identified by health departments as sources, especially in Europe and Australia... ...Given the fact that, for the majority of cases, the source has been linked to drinking water supplies, prevention can be successfully enacted by water system disinfection. Unfortunately, a strong bureaucratic tendency to publicly avoid consideration of drinking water as the source soon appeared among public health authorities, given the panic and irrational action that often followed such a discovery." www.legionella.org

Water bills to rise 7-10% "Residents and businesses could see their water bills increase an average of 7 to 10 percent as a massive project to replace every water meter on Guam with new, radio-transmitting meters is expected to begin soon. The Guam Waterworks Authority is expected to close a $15.38 million loan with Colorado-based finance company Municipal Services Group to fund a project to install 2,000 large meters and 36,000 small meters, said GWA General Manager David Craddick. "This will replace every water meter on Guam and will allow us to more accurately bill customers for their water use," Craddick said. ...Craddick said the installation work is expected to begin in the next 60 to 90 days. ...There will not be any widespread water outages during the meter project, Craddick said. Water will be out at individual residences only for the few minutes it will take to install each new meter. The replacement of the large, commercial meters, which will happen first, likely will be done at night. "All commercial and agricultural customers are required to have backflow preventors. If people don't have them, they will have to get them installed," Craddick said." Guam Pacific Daily News, July 3, 2005

New center at UCLA researches efficient potable water "The UCLA School of Engineering and Applied Science has announced the development of a new Water Technology Research Center to improve methods of water conversion from salt water to potable water and to integrate these methods with more efficient and cost-effective energy sources. Also known as the WaTeR Center, its mission is "to advance water production technologies in order toeconomically develop new and sustainable alternative sources for potable, irrigation and other consumptive water uses." ...The primary goal of the center is to drive down the cost of desalination so it is priced competitively with other water sources..." Daily Bruin, July 5, 2005

Council sinks rebate plan for plumbing "A move to grant $150 rebates to Middletown homeowners to pay for plumbing repairs is dead in the water. The Borough Council rejected the program last month. At issue are potential problems associated with the recent installation of backflow prevention valves on water lines at 1,800 homes. The rebates were recommended by a task force formed after angry residents complained that their hot water tanks ruptured or pipes began leaking after the backflow valves were installed. Last month, the council voted 7-0 to advertise an ordinance for the rebates. Councilman David Rhen chastised fellow council members for agreeing to advertise the ordinance and then voting against it. "If you had a problem ... why wasn't the discussion done at that time?" Rhen asked, likening the situation to a "dog and pony show." The valves were installed as safety measures during a $1.1 million project to replace water meters with digital meters. It was later learned that plumbing codes recommend installing thermal expansion tanks along with valves. pennlive.com, July 5, 2005

Governor Blagojevich directs state agencies to conserve water "In an effort to weather current drought conditions, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich today directed state agencies to conserve water and asked for a similar effort from all Illinoisans. After the tenth driest month of June on record in Illinois, public water supplies are stressed... ...Continued large water demands are taxing available water production and distribution systems. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has been working with public water supply operators across the state and they report excellent cooperation from their customers. However, during these times, it will be difficult for public water supplies to provide quantities of water that people are accustomed to using. ...“If consumers do not conserve, there may be shortages due to drops of pressure, said Illinois EPA Director Doug Scott. “We have required public water supplies in some communities to institute boil orders due to low water pressure.” If water pressure falls below 20 PSI, or pounds per square inch, there is a risk for backflow of water that brings contaminants with it. Water available for fire protection uses could also be compromised due to the low pressure." Illinois Government News Network, July 3, 2005

Surviving the surprise "Dan Mattern spends a lot of his life walking into buildings and surprising people. Mattern isn't bearing good news, or bad, necessarily. It depends on you. "He never lets us know when he's coming," said the general manager of a Bismarck restaurant. "It depends on the place," said Mattern, a former microbiologist who has spent the last 25 years doing restaurant inspections and other duties for Bismarck's Environmental Health Division of the Fire and Inspections Department. Sometimes Mattern is greeted with smiles. Sometimes not. ...Mattern, who is persnickety at home and here -- "My tendency is to be careful around food. My family ... would attest to that," -- starts his inspection. It will take about one hour. ...Then he walks downstairs and finds the restaurant's one and only critical violation for the day. There is a hose attached to a sink faucet that doesn't have a backflow prevention device. That could potentially create a major problem. Mattern said that if there had been contaminated water in that sink and at the same time there had been a sudden change in the water pressure -- such as if a water hydrant was suddenly put into use -- the contaminated water would be sucked into the hose, through the restaurant's water system, and eventually into the city's water system. Not allowed. Mattern said those things do happen. He investigated a situation once where a hotel was filling its swimming pool and ran into a major problem. The water was green and had the consistency of antifreeze. Turns out it was a backflow situation. Filling the pool had caused a change in water pressure. When that happened, a corrosion-prevention additive that had ethanol glycol in it -- the same active ingredient in antifreeze -- was sucked through a line attached to the boiler and ended up in the pool. "If there had been someone swimming in the pool, a small amount of water could have killed them," he said. The manager immediately disconnected the hose and the hose has been thrown away. They never found out which employee did it. "I guess it was a ghost," the manager said later." Bismark Tribune, July 3, 2005

New laws in effect July 1st "Starting July 1st, a number of new (Florida State) laws take effect. ...CS/CS/CS/CS/SB 442 — Building Safety -- by Government Efficiency Appropriations Committee; Banking and Insurance Committee; Regulated Industries Committee; Community Affairs Committee; and Senators Bennett, Haridopolos, and Campbell. This bill addresses a number of issues relating to the development and administration of the Florida Building Code (code) and related building safety requirements. Specifically, the bill implements the following provisions: ...• Requires the inspection of backflow prevention assemblies every three years." NBC-2.com, June 30, 2005

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