Water has always been crucial to our survival. But the coming challenges from climate chaos and new diseases are about to put it into sharp perspective, and hopefully we can protect water in time.
COVID-19, or the new coronavirus disease, is affecting our nation and world in major ways. Between school and workplace closings, mandatory lockdowns in some places, a panicked run on grocery stores, and the burden on hospitals which are not equipped with enough supplies to help everyone who will need it, the coronavirus is showing us just how vulnerable we are.
But with climate chaos nipping at our heels, coronavirus might just be the first of new viruses, or prehistoric ones, coming at us. Pair that with major threats to our water sources, like fracking, and it becomes clear we need to act now to protect our future.
We Need Running Water To Combat Coronavirus
Without running water for everyone, fighting the new coronavirus disease is impossible. Food & Water Watch demands a nationwide moratorium on water shutoffs and rapid restoration of water service for all people. Our leaders need to make sure water is turned back on in households where it’s been shut off for non-payment. Without water, people can not wash their hands to combat the spread of the coronavirus.
Support the WATER Act by urging your member of Congress to support it!
Coronavirus is showing our nation the importance of universal access to water. Decades of federal underinvestment in water infrastructure has caused a water affordability crisis in our country. Let this moment prove the critical urgency of revamping our water systems. Congress must pass the Water Affordability, Transparency, Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act, dedicating $35 billion a year to help repair drinking water and sewage systems, while also creating almost 1 million jobs. It is a crucial step to proactively improve our water infrastructure and make access universal.
The WATER Act Is Our Best Tool To Protect Our Water Future
Safe water is non-negotiable. Access to affordable service is non-negotiable. Clean drinking water is a human right — people shouldn’t have to worry about whether their water is safe to drink or whether they can wash their hands.
We need dedicated funding to keep our water systems up-to-date and affordable, protecting our water for generations to come.
Senator Bernie Sanders (VT) and Representatives Brenda Lawrence (MI) and Ro Khanna (CA) introduced legislation that will help fix our aging water systems and ensure that every person has access to safe, clean water. And the Congressional Progressive Caucus unanimously endorsed the WATER Act on October 1, 2019.
Now is the moment to call for federal action. In fact, today is World Water Day, an annual holiday designed to highlight the connection between water and public health. Let’s honor it by calling on Congress to pass the WATER Act to ensure every person in our country has safe water.
Nearly Every Future Climate Change Headline Will Trace Back To Water
Warmer air holds more water than cooler air. As our planet warms, so changes our water cycles. Wildfires, supercharged hurricanes, flooding, drought, agricultural anomalies, rising sea levels, emerging viruses — our survival in all of these areas hinges on how we are protecting our planet and the water that’s on it.
We must rewrite that water story for future generations — a story where the ones who came before them acted in time to preserve this precious resource.
Fracking Threatens Our Water Supply
It turns out, fracking is even more of a water hog than many realized, even those of us critical of it from the beginning. A Duke study showed that not only was fracking sucking up more water than the industry told us, but that much of it was forever unusable and untreatable afterward.
The study found:
From 2011 to 2016, the water use per well increased by as much as 770 percent.
Toxic wastewater produced from fracking had increased up to 1440 percent between 2011 and 2016.
There has been no practice of water treatment that returns this water to usable condition for humans — and at this scale, one can reason that unless fracking is stopped, it’s on pace to severely impact U.S. water sources.
We Must Stand Together To Fiercely Protect Our Water
Food & Water Watch and its members battle the corporations stealing water, polluting water, and causing climate change. We expose their playbook through our research and we organize community members to stop these predators. We’ve done this work for fifteen years, and shoulder to shoulder with you we will continue this work until our water is safe from these threats. Will you support The WATER Act to protect our water future?
Send Congress a message to show your support for the WATER Act.
We’ve known for years that when communities sell their water systems to private companies, water bills tend to go up. But by how much?
Food & Water Watch did asurvey of 500 municipal water systems – the largest survey of its kind – and found that public utilities charge an average of $315.56 per year for a typical household. Private water utilities averaged $500.96 – an increase of 59%.
That’s an extra $185 each year for the same amount of water.
In some areas, private water companies’ track record is even worse:
In Illinois, private water cost $286 more.
In New Jersey, private water cost $230 more.
In New York, private water cost $260 more.
In Pennsylvania, private water cost a whopping $323 more.
What do residents get for their extra money? Generally nothing good. As we’ve worked with communities affected by privatized water systems, we see the same trends everywhere: service gets worse, maintenance costs increase, and jobs vanish. Private water companies are motivated by their own profits, not by the public good, and they make decisions about their services accordingly. And unlike publicly operated systems, these companies aren’t accountable to residents, leaving people with little recourse to fix the situation.
Drinking tap water should be safe, affordable, and taste good. Follow our guide to check your tap water quality and find the best filtration system for you.
The word is out: bottled water can be bad for our wallets, our health and our environment. If you’re among the growing number of people kicking the bottled water habit and making the move to tap water, you may be curious about your local water supply. Consumer standards are actually more stringent for the quality and safety of tap water than for bottled water.
The best way to find out about your local water is to read your water quality report, a document that your water utility is required by federal law to provide to you every year telling you if your water has any contamination. This guide will help you understand how to interpret what your report tells you.
Beyond basic safety, many people prefer to filter their tap water to remove minerals and particulates, which may affect the taste. We’ll walk you through the different types of tap water filters and help you pick the best one for your needs.
Is Your Water Safe? Your Water Quality Report
Annual water quality reports, also called consumer confidence reports, are intended to help consumers make informed choices about their drinking water. They let you know what contaminants, if any, are in your drinking water and how these contaminants may affect your health. They list all the regulated toxins that were detected in your water over the preceding calendar year. This guide will help you understand what’s in your water quality report and how to interpret what it tells you.
Who Gets a Water Quality Report?
A water quality report is available for every customer of a community water system, which is one that provides year-round service to more than 15 households or more than 25 people.
When Is a Water Quality Report Issued?
You should receive your report by July 1 of each year.
What Does a Water Quality Report Tell You?
Every water quality report must contain:
The source of the drinking water, be it a river, lake, groundwater aquifer or some other body of water;
A brief summary of the state’s source water assessment, which measures how susceptible the source water is to contamination, and how to get a copy of the complete assessment;
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations and health goals for drinking water contaminants;
A list of all detected regulated contaminants and their levels;
Potential health effects of any contaminant detected at a level that violates the EPA’s health standard;
An educational statement for people with weakened immune systems about cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants;
Contact information for the water system and the EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline.
Worried about lead? Make sure you get the right water filter.
The crisis in Flint, Michigan has brought attention to the serious problem of lead in drinking water. Fortunately, a water filter that is either NSF/ANSI Standard 53 or NSF/ANSI Standard 58 certified can reduce lead in your drinking water. These certifications are established by NSF International, a public health organization that develops standards and providing certifications with the mission to improve global human health.
These certified filters come in different shapes and sizes. Certification requires that manufacturers state how much water the filter can treat before it must be changed. Some filters even include a device that will let you know when the filter needs to be changed. When changing filter cartridges, it’s important to use a certified cartridge. A non-certified cartridge may not effectively filter lead from the drinking water.
There are a variety of filter options that meet the NSF’s certified standard. Outlined below, these filters include: pour-through pitchers/carafes, faucet mounts, and even plumbed-in filters that are installed under your sink or reverse osmosis drinking water treatment systems.
On the NSF website at www.nsf.org you can search for specific suppliers and product codes to see if they are NSF certified. Their lead specific guide provides a list of all NSF Standard certified brands and models with details for each: www.nsf.org/info/leadfiltrationguide.
Why Is a Water Quality Report Important?
Your water utility is required by law to tell you about any violation of EPA water quality standards when it occurs (through the mail or media outlets such as newspapers and television) and again in the annual water quality report. You should not drink water that fails to meet EPA standards because it may be unsafe. Thankfully, public utilities have worked hard to improve water quality. As a result, more than 90 percent of water systems meet all EPA regulations.
The report must also disclose a list of all regulated contaminants that have been detected in the water supply. The Safe Drinking Water Act sets the maximum level of contaminants allowed in drinking water based on the filtering and treatment capabilities of current technology. The water quality report also tells you about potentially harmful substances found in your water at levels below their legal limit.
How Is a Water Quality Report Distributed?
All very large community water systems, serving more than 100,000 people, must post the report online. All community water systems that serve more than 10,000 people must mail or email either the report or its web address to customers.
Water systems also must make a “good faith effort” to reach renters, workers and other consumers who use the water but do not receive water bills. Utilities should use a combination of different outreach methods to notify users, such as posting the reports online, mailing them and advertising in local newspapers.
The United States provides some of the cleanest drinking water in the world, and more than 90 percent of water systems meet all EPA regulations. Some people may prefer to filter their tap water, however, because they prefer the taste, want to remove minerals and particulates or have concerns about lead piping and plumbing. This section highlights the types of available filters to help you to determine which one is best for your needs.
What to Consider When Buying a Water Filter
What impurities do you want to remove from your water? Are you concerned about health risks, or simply unappetizing tastes and odors? Different filters are designed to remove various impurities, so be sure that the filter you buy will do the job.
Once you have read your water quality report, determine what, if anything, you would like to filter out of your water. Depending on the water quality where you live, you may decide that you do not need to filter your water at all.
Water Filtration: What Are Your Options?
Water filters come in many shapes and sizes. Depending on your filtration needs, lifestyle preferences and budget, you may want to consider the following options, whose descriptions were adapted from a May 2010 Consumer Reports article:
Carafe, or “pour-through,” filters are the simplest water filters to use. The filter fits inside a pitcher that you can keep in your refrigerator. Carafes are inexpensive and easy to use. However, the filters have a short lifetime and can only filter a limited amount of water at a time.
A faucet-mounted filter is exactly what it sounds like — a filter that is screwed directly on to your faucet. These filters require minimal installation, but they slow the flow of water and can’t be used on all faucets.
Countertop filters are best for filtering large quantities of water without modifying plumbing. They’re less likely to clog than carafe or faucet-mounted filters, but can clutter countertops and can’t be used with all types of faucets.
Plumbed-in filters are installed directly into an existing water pipe. Often, they are installed under the sink (and are sometimes referred to as “under-sink” filters). They can be plumbed-in to the existing sink faucet, which may require drilling a hole in the countertop, or they can dispense water through a separate tap. These filters are best for filtering large amounts of water without modifying the existing faucet or cluttering the counter. However, they take up cabinet space and require plumbing modifications.
Point-of-entry, or “whole-house,” filters are installed directly in the water main and filter all the water in a house, including water for the kitchen, laundry room and bathrooms. These filters have a long lifetime and are an inexpensive way to remove sediment, rust and, in some cases, chlorine from household water. But most won’t remove most other contaminants. They also require professional installation.
Water Filter Technologies
Different water filter products use different technologies. Some use more than one. If you are looking for a home water filter, you are likely to come across some of these terms:
Particulate/mechanical filter: These are simple screens that block large particles. They often function as “prefilters” in a multiple-step water filter.
Adsorption/Activated Carbon: Adsorption refers to a physical process where particles in water are removed because they stick to the surface of the material in the filter. These filters are usually made with carbon, often in granulated or powdered form. They are the most common filters on the market and come in different forms including pitchers and faucet-mounted systems. They are generally effective for reducing the most typical worrisome compounds that can be found in municipal water: chlorine, chlorine byproducts and dissolved volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) such as pesticides and herbicides. Carbon adsorption filters generally work well for reducing bad odors and tastes.
Softeners/Ion Exchange Units: Water softeners use a process called ion exchange to reduce hard metals — including lead — in water. When water passes through an ion exchange unit, hard metal ions are replaced by sodium ions, leaving the water “softer” as a result — but also saltier. This technology is often used in combination with adsorptive or reverse-osmosis filters. Potassium chloride water softeners work in a similar way to sodium chloride softeners, but without increasing levels of salt in the water; this makes potassium chloride softeners a better choice for some uses, such as watering plants.
Ultraviolet (UV) Treatment: This treatment uses UV light to kill germs that may be present in the water. UV treatment is the only treatment certified by the National Sanitation Foundation International to reduce bacteria.
Reverse Osmosis: Reverse osmosis is a process where water is forced through a membrane that filters out molecules physically larger than the water molecules. Although reverse osmosis works well for reducing minerals, it is not effective for chlorine or volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are more likely to be concerns in municipal tap water. However, many reverse-osmosis units are combined with pre-filters and carbon filters to address this concern. Reverse-osmosis filters are expensive and very inefficient — they waste from one to three gallons of water for every gallon that they filter.
Distillation: Water distillers heat water so that it turns into steam, which is then collected and returned to its liquid form. Contaminants are left behind when the water evaporates. Thus, distillation is very effective for removing most minerals and bacteria. However, some distillation units do not remove VOCs. Distillation also requires more energy than other methods, to heat the water.
Consider Which Filter Is Best for You
Each product has its own pros and cons. Individual products may use multiple technologies and are often marketed as two (or more) stage filters. Carafe, faucet-mounted and countertop filters typically use a combination of adsorption and ion exchange resins, while plumbed-in systems may use those technologies in addition to reverse osmosis.
Filters also come in a wide range of prices. Most carafes and faucet-mounted filters cost between $20 and $50, while countertop, under-sink and whole-house filters can range from $50 to $900.
When considering the price of a water filter, remember that the total cost includes your initial purchase price as well as any installation, maintenance or replacement fees. Filter parts need to be changed periodically to prevent clogging, so be sure to consider how much replacement parts cost, as well as the manufacturer’s estimated life span for the product.
Also consider the amount of water you use. Some filter types have larger water capacities than others. Carafes, for example, can filter a few cups or gallons at a time, while faucet-mounted or under-sink filters work directly through a tap.
Most importantly, make sure that the individual product reduces the specific contaminants that you want to remove from your water. Generally, products will include claims on their packaging or advertising regarding which contaminants they reduce and the percentage reduction rate. See the table below for more information about common contaminants of concern and which type of filter will reduce the contaminants.
Water Quality Concerns and Filtration Methods*
Contaminant/Quality Concern
Filtration Method
Notes
Chlorine
Carbon/Charcoal Filter
Contact your local water utility to find out which disinfectant is used in your drinking water. Water filters certified to reduce chlorine do not necessarily work for chloramine.
Chlorine Byproducts (Trihalomethanes)
Carbon/Charcoal Filter
Trihalomethanes are a type of VOC (volatile organic compound), so products certified to reduce VOCs will reduce this contaminant.
Taste and Odor
Carbon/Charcoal Filter
Lead
Carbon, Distillation, Reverse Osmosis
Fluoride
Distillation, Reverse Osmosis
Not all public drinking water systems add fluoride to the water. Check to see if your community does by reading your annual water quality report.
Chloramines
Some Carbon/Charcoal Filters
Check that the system you select is certified to reduce chloramines. Systems that reduce chlorine do not necessarily reduce chloramines.
Perchlorates
Reverse Osmosis
Arsenic
Distillation, Reverse Osmosis
Two different forms of arsenic can be found in water, so it is important to know which type of arsenic you want to filter before choosing a water treatment system.
*Information taken from National Sanitation Foundation’s Contaminant Guide. Please note that filters and treatment systems should be certified by a third party agency. Check to ensure that the brand of filter you choose is certified to address your water quality needs.
Pharmaceuticals, Personal Care Products and Hormone-Disrupting Chemicals
Consumers are increasingly concerned about pharmaceutical residues and other hormone disrupting chemicals in drinking water. These chemicals are not regulated, but studies have shown that they are showing up in trace amounts in drinking water. According to the National Sanitation Foundation, there is no testing available at this time to measure the potential ability of home water treatment systems to reduce pharmaceuticals.
Verify the Quality of Your Filter
Make sure that your filter is certified by an independent certifying agency. Not all filters live up to the claims on the package, so make sure that the product you are buying does. The packaging should display certification from an independent certifying agency such as the National Sanitation Foundation International or Water Quality Association.
Check the internet for product reviews, and make sure the reviewer is impartial. The best reviews and ratings come from organizations that do not sell the products, such as Consumer Reports. Consumer Reports is published by Consumers Union, a nonprofit organization that provides consumers with unbiased product tests and ratings.
Privatizing local water and sewer systems usually does far more harm than good for our communities. Here’s why.
Water privatization – when private corporations buy or operate public water utilities – is often suggested as a solution to municipal budget problems and aging water systems. Unfortunately, this more often backfires, leaving communities with higher rates, worse service, job losses, and more.
Problems with Water and Sewer Privatization
Loss of Control
Privatization is irresponsible. By privatizing water and sewer systems, local government officials abdicate control over a vital public resource.
Privatization limits public accountability. Multinational water corporations are primarily accountable to their stockholders, not to the people they serve.
Loss of public input. Because water service is a natural monopoly that lacks a true market, consumers can exercise choice only at the ballot box through the election of the public officials who oversee their utility. They don’t have a vote in the corporate boardroom. With public ownership, residents can visit their elected officials and directly express their opinions about the operation of their water systems. If the officials fail to respond, the community can vote them out of office. The public lacks similar mechanisms to address their concerns with private utilities and appointed state regulators, and long-term complex contracts can tie the hands of local governments.
Loss of transparency. Private operators usually restrict public access to information and do not have the same level of openness as the public sector.
The objectives of a profit-extracting water company can conflict with the public interest. Because a water corporation has different goals than a city does, it will make its decisions using a different set of criteria, often one that emphasizes profitability. This can create conflict.
Cherry picking service areas. Private water companies are unlikely to adopt the same criteria as municipalities when deciding where to extend services. They are prone to cherry-picking service areas to avoid serving low-income communities where low water use and frequent bill collection problems could hurt corporate profits.
Contributing to sprawl. Local governments can use the provision of water and sewer services to promote smart growth, while water companies often partner with private developers to supply service to sprawling suburbs.
Undermining the human right to water. As a result of price hikes, service disconnections, inadequate investment and other detrimental economic consequences, water privatization often interferes with the human right to water. Read the issue brief: Water Equals Life: How Privatization Undermines the Human Right to Water
Rate Increases
Investor owned utilities typically charge 59 percent more for water service than local government utilities. Food & Water Watch compiled the water rates of the 500 largest community water systems in the country and found that private, for-profit companies charged households an average of $501 a year for 60,000 gallons of water — $185 more than what local governments charged for the same amount of water.
Investor owned utilities typically charge 63 percent more for sewer service than local government utilities. Food & Water Watch compiled sewer rates survey data from dozens of states and found that private ownership increased sewer bills by 7 percent in West Virginia to 154 percent in Texas.
After privatization, water rates increase at about three times the rate of inflation, with an average increase of 18 percent every other year. Food & Water Watch examined how water prices changed under private ownership following the 10 largest known sales of municipal water or sewer system to for-profit companies between 1990 and 2010. As of 2011, after an average of 11 years of private control, residential water rates had nearly tripled on average, increasing a typical household’s annual bill by more than $300.
Higher Operating Costs
Private operation is not more efficient. Empirical evidence indicates that there is no significant difference in efficiency between public and private water provision.
Lack of competition. In theory, competition would lead to cheaper contracts, but in practice, researchers have found that the water market is “rarely competitive.” The only competition that can exist is the competition for the contract, and there are only a few private water companies that bid to take over municipal water systems. Once a contract is awarded, the winning company enjoys a monopoly. A lack of competition can lead to excess profits and corruption in private operations.
Privatization often increases costs. Corporate profits, dividends and income taxes can add 20 to 30 percent to operation and maintenance costs, and a lack of competition and poor negotiation skills can leave local governments with expensive contracts. Read the fact sheet: Public-Private Partnerships: Issues and Difficulties with Private Water Service
Public operation often saves money. A review of 18 municipalities that ended their contracts with private companies found that public operation averaged 21 percent cheaper than private operation of water and sewer services. Read the fact sheet: The Public Works: How the Remunicipalization of Water Services Saves Money
Other Costs
Privatization contracts can be expensive to implement. The privatization process is complicated, expensive and time-consuming. In total, contract monitoring and administration, conversion of the workforce, unplanned work, and use of public equipment and facilities can increase the price of a contract by as much as 25 percent. Other hidden expenses, including change orders and cost overruns, can further inflate the price of private service.
Privatization can increase the cost of financing a water project by 50 percent to 150 percent. Local governments usually use municipal bonds to finance water projects; these bonds have an average interest rate of about 4 percent. Private water companies use a mix of equity and corporate debt with a weighted average cost that ranges from 7.5 percent to 14 percent or higher. So, in total, over 30 years, private financing is nearly 1.5 to 2.5 times as expensive as public financing, adding $0.8 million to $2.5 million onto the total cost of every $1 million investment.
Service Problems
Privatization can worsen service. There is ample evidence that maintenance backlogs, wasted water, sewage spills and worse service often follow privatization. In fact, poor performance is the primary reason that local governments reverse the decision to privatize and resume public operation of previously contracted services.
Private operators may cut corners. When private operators attempt to cut costs, practices they employ could result in worse service quality. They may use shoddy construction materials, delay needed maintenance or downsize the workforce, which impairs customer service and slows responses to emergencies.
Privatization typically leads to a loss of one in three water jobs. A survey of 10 privatization contracts found that after taking over a system, water companies reduce the workforce by 34 percent on average. Other surveys have found similar results. With fewer employees to make repairs and respond to customer service requests, it is not surprising that service quality often suffers.
Privatization can allow systems to deteriorate. Such neglect can hasten equipment breakdowns and allow water system assets to deteriorate. Because 70 to 80 percent of water and sewer assets are underground, a municipality cannot easily monitor a contractor’s performance.
What role should the private sector play?
From developing new technologies to providing construction crews for new treatment plants, the private sector plays an important role in protecting our water resources and finding innovative solutions to the water crisis. Although the public and private sectors work well together in many areas, businesses should not operate, manage or own public drinking water or wastewater systems. Those duties should fall under the purview of local governments, who have a responsibility to ensure safe and affordable service for all.
Solutions: Improving our Water and Sewer Infrastructure
Public-Public Partnerships
Instead of privatizing water systems, municipalities can partner together through public-public partnerships. Public partners are more responsive, reliable and cost-effective than private water companies. Intermunicipal cooperation, interlocal agreements and bulk purchasing consortiums can improve public services and reduce costs, while allowing communities to retain local control.
Clean Water Trust Fund
We need to plan ahead and create a dedicated source of public funding that will help public utilities protect our country’s valuable water resources. A national water trust fund can achieve this feat and ensure the safe and sound operation of our water and sewer systems. With a renewed federal commitment, our nation’s good public operators can keep our water safe, clean and affordable.
Sign our petition to support the WATER Act and fund affordable, public water for all Americans
Get the latest on your food and water with news, research and urgent actions.
By submitting my email, I agree to receive emails about urgent food, water and climate issues from Food & Water Action and Food & Water Watch. I may unsubscribe at any time.
