Moody releases 2006 water quality report

Under the "Consumer Confidence Reporting Rule" of the federal safe drinking water act, community water systems are required to report water quality information to the consuming public. This annual report is information on the source of our water, its constituents and the health risks associated with any contaminants.

Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency's safe drinking water hotline at 1-800-426-4791.

Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immune-compromised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly and infants can be particularly at risk from infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. EPA and Centers for Disease Control guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by cryptosporidium or other microbial contaminants are available from the safe drinking water hotline.

The sources of both tap and bottled drinking water include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity.

The groundwater source for drinking water at Moody Air Force Base is pumped from the Floridian Aquifer as it runs beneath Lowndes Co. It then travels through a network of underground pipes known as a distribution system.

Contaminants that may be present in source water include:

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

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

(C) Pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water runoff and residential uses.

(D) Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can, also come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff and septic systems.

(E) Radioactive contaminants, which can be naturally occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.

In order to ensure tap water is safe to drink, the EPA prescribes regulations limiting the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Food and Drug Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water, which must provide the same protection for public health.

The 23rd Medical Group bioenvironmental engineering flight continually monitors base drinking water for contaminants. The water provided to Moody AFB meets all drinking water requirements and is safe to drink.

The results for the 2006 water sampling program are as follows.

Detected Regulated Contaminants

(1) Georgia EPD allows us to monitor for certain contaminants less frequently because the concentration of these contaminants is not expected to vary significantly from year to year. Therefore, some of the data, though representative of the water quality, is more than one year old
(2) Lead and copper monitoring is performed by sampling at several locations, then statistically analyzing all the results to determine the 90th percentile value. This value must not exceed the action level

Definitions of key terms:

Maximum contaminant level goal: The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of safety.

Maximum contaminant level: The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set as close to the MCLGs as feasible using the best available treatment technology.

Maximum residual disinfectant level: The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of microbiological contaminants.

Maximum residual disinfectant level goal: The level of a drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRDLGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectants to control microbial contaminants.

Parts per million or milligrams per liter: One PPM corresponds to one minute in two years, or a single penny in $10,000.

Parts per billion or micrograms per liter: One PPB corresponds to one minute in 2,000 years, or a single penny in $10 million.

Picocuries per liter: Picocuries per liter are a measure of the radioactivity in water.

Action level: The concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water system must follow.

For more information call the 23rd MDG bioenvironmental engineering flight at 257-4747.