Author: jackpo

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Can Fracking Pollute Drinking Water? Don’t ask the EPA.

The Environmental Protection Agency still does not have a clear answer to if fracking could contaminate drinking water. The EPA has been unsuccessful in collecting the data the need to dully address the issue. There was a study that was supposed to be “definitive” in 2010 but the answer still looms today.

This is relevant to our APES class because we just learned about fracking and how it could potentially help supply energy during this energy boom. If fracking could pollute drinking water, then we should be working on a way, if possible, to make it enviormentally friendly as possible and have it not damage our drinking water. I hope the EPA continues their investigation as the answer to this question “could prove critical to future U.S. regulation of the multibillion-dollar fossil fuel sector and to ensuring water safety for millions of Americans.”

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Thousands of Children Could Be Drinking Lead-Tainted Water Years After NBC4 Exposed the Problem.

7 years ago an NBC4 team discovered that Los-Angeles area schools were offering contaminated drinking water. Today, the schools have not fixed the problem of having too much lead in their water. Parents are pushing for the schools to fix the issue immediately.

This is relevant because it makes me wonder if M-A has clean drinking water. It also makes me wonder how often local schools have their water checked for toxins. If any local school has gone years without a checkup, I would want one sooner rather than later. The thought of drinking contaminated water is scary. It is surprising that the schools have not fixed this problem sooner as the students’ safety should be a top priority.

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Rising seas threaten South Florida’s drinking water.

South Florida is known for having plenty of drinking water. There is a great amount of rainfall each year and lots of ground water. However, rising sea levels could quickly change all of that. It could potentially cause the drinking water to become too salty.

This is relevant because as the Earth’s temperature increases, more ice melts. As more ice melts, the sea levels rise. As sea levels rise, the more carbon they absorb and the warmer they get; causing more ice to melt. It is all connected. Rising sea levels are a very dangerous threat and could impact many costal areas in the United States and all around the world.

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Chiquita Bananas Accused of Contaminating Drinking Water.

A lawsuit from February 2015 accuses Chiquita Bananas of not only using methods that contaminate local drinking water but also that they consciously hid it from the public. The firm Hagens Berman filed the lawsuit. Steve Berman, a partner of the firm, stated “Chiquita promised its customers it follows ‘strict standards’ of eco-friendly production including practices that ‘conserve wildlife habitats, national resources and promote community wellbeing,’ yet, its business practices have wreaked havoc on local communities where it grows and harvests its produce. Chiquita knew that consumers valued environmentally sound production methods and used its deceptive marketing to cover up its foul production methods.” This possible pollution of local drinking water could impact local loves greatly.

This is personally relevant to me because I have Chiquita bananas in my kitchen now. If I knew this company was potentially harming the environment, then I would have picked a different brand. We should always try to buy from companies that are doing their part in helping the environment. One easy way to accomplish this is to buy local.

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Worlds biggest drinking water reservoir.

Saudi Arabia’s Strategic Water Storage project in Jeddah has set the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest drinking reservoir. The National Water Company states “this achievement includes the implementation 11 cylindrical tanks with a capacity of 188,000 cubic metres for each tank in the first phase.” This project was implemented in response to growing water demand.

This is a very interesting project underway. There are two more phases to be implemented that would help with the drinking water issue. The article states “the total future capacity would reach up to two million cubic metres at a cost of SR824 million Saudi for the second and third phases. “ It is interesting and good to see that Saudi Arabia has taken action to meet their increasing water demand. These projects are the first of their kind.

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Fullerton using groundwater and imported surface water to supply water

Myers, Ann. (2014 November 20). Water supply to Fullerton comes from a mixture of groundwater and imported surface water. Local News: Daily Titan

Retrieved November 22 from

http://www.dailytitan.com/2014/11/water-supply-to-fullerton-comes-from-a-mixture-of-groundwater-and-imported-surface-water/

Fullerton tap water is now coming from its own backyard in Orange County. Fullerton’s water supply is a combination of surface water and groundwater. People across the state are using groundwater as their main source of water now. The Orange County water district spent $79.3 million in the last three years buying imported water. “The OC Water District is using this imported water to put into the Orange County groundwater basin to recharge it to help offset the impacts made from the drought.”

It is a common thread in a few of these articles that cities have to find new ways to supply tap water. San Diego is trying to use the ocean and other cities are using more groundwater. $79.3 million is a lot of money and this also shows how the drought is affecting us economically as well. Without the drought, that money could have been put towards education or helping build homeless shelters, etc. However, because of our drought the entire state’s main focus is on water and making sure we have some

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Can California survive without water?

Dokoupil, T. (2014, September 12). Not One Drop: How Long Will California Survive Life Without Water?

Retrieved November 21 from

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/not-one-drop-how-long-will-california-survive-life-without-n195976

Wells throughout the state are drying up and are in serious danger without heavy rainfall sometime soon. People across the central valley, mostly farmers, are finding themselves with no water. This hurts their business and families. They have no water to cook, clean, grow food, etc. Residents explain how their lives have changed since the drought; one man says how he showers with a cup. Another man compares it to living in a third world country.

This was a very sad and scary article to read. Luckily, since it was published we have had a decent amount of rain but not much. We need a lot more to keep these wells full. If this drought and continues we could all run out of water and life in California could be inhabitable.

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East Porterville running out of drinking water

Breslin, S. (2014, November 17). Residents of East Porterville, California, Running Out of Drinking Water.

Retrieved November 20 from

http://www.weather.com/climate-weather/drought/news/east-porterville-california-water-woes-20140825

People living in East Porterville, California are beginning to run out of drinking water due to the current drought in California. 182 homes have already reported no water or at least some kind of water issue. The main reason is that these homes rely on wells for their water but these wells have completely dried up.

The drought in California is devastating. People are running out of water and there is not much our state can do. We need to help people who do not have access to drinking water but it will be expensive. The drought is turning out to be not only an environmental problem but also an economic one as well.

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San Diego converting wastewater to drinking water

Alfonso, M. (2014, November 19). San Diego to Make Wastewater into Drinking Water. La Jolla: Patch.             Retrieved November 20 from

http://patch.com/california/lajolla/san-diego-make-wastewater-drinking-water

San Diego plans to recycle purified water for its residents. San Diego cannot afford to use water just once, especially in the current drought. The 20-year plan is supposedly environmentally sustainable and uses proven technology. The project is expensive however and will be paid for through “a mix of state and federal grants, and rate increases on consumers.”

The current California drought is affecting cities through out the state. This plan for San Diego seems to be a solution to drinking water problems. The recycled water could account for 30 percent of the cities drinking water needs.

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San Francisco wants to use groundwater for tap water

Alexander, K. (2014, November 23).  California drought: SF wants to add groundwater to tap. Bay Area and State: San Francisco Chronicle.

Retrieved November 23 from

http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/California-drought-S-F-wants-to-add-this-to-5913205.php#/0

 

Multiple spigots in San Francisco “will start delivering the Sierra supply blended with a splash of local groundwater — by many measures, a far inferior source.” This local groundwater is not as clean as the Sierra runoff. However, city officials ensure that “the underground reserves are sufficiently clean and palatable.” Jeff Gilman who is the project manager says that he doesn’t think people will notice a difference in their tap water. He states, “It tastes the same. Color is the same. Odor is the same.”

 

This article reminded me how serious this drought is. We now have to dig into the groundwater to drink. Although it is groundwater, it is treated and is completely safe and tastes normal. The Sierra snowmelt is in decline and this plan seems to make sense. David Sedlak, a professor at UC Berkeley, stated, “Already, many water agencies across California incorporate groundwater into their supplies, he noted, with about 80 percent of Californians relying on some amount of groundwater for their daily needs.” Now the concern is how much groundwater can we use until it’s gone?