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May 31, 2005
Extra water flows down San Joaquin, allowing groundwater recharge
For the first time in five years, San Joaquin River water is gushing out of Friant Dam's (pictured) four big turbines, sending a rushing, chilly flow down the riverbed, and letting irrigation districts around the Central Valley recharge water banks depleted by a long dry spell.
The river's generous flow is allowing agencies like the Lower Tule River Irrigation District, which sends San Joaquin River water to 200,000 acres of farmland in Tulare County, to meet their farmers' irrigation needs, and still allow most of the water they're getting to sink into the ground, where it can be stored and used in dry years.
South of Bakersfield, the Arvin Edison Water Storage District is pouring San Joaquin River water into 150 little lakes spread out over 1,500 acres to bring underground water levels back up.
This winter's powerful storms left an unusually deep snowbank high up on the Sierra Nevada's craggy peaks. As temperatures warm up, the melting snow is pouring down the mountains. Together with the water dropped by late spring storms, the flow is pushing through Friant Dam at about 16,000 acre feet per day — a level last reached in 1998, as reported by the Associated Press, and published in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 09:39 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 27, 2005
More Proof Spring Water Comes from a Tap
Gov. Jennifer Granholm, of Michigan, slapped a moratorium Friday on new or expanded bottled water operations in Michigan until the Legislature enacts a water withdrawal law.
This is a follow up to my April 18th blog.
The order followed approval by the Department of Environmental Quality of a permit for Nestle Waters North America Inc. to buy water from the city of Evart's municipal system for bottling at its Ice Mountain Spring Water plant in Mecosta County.
But the permit requires that the water from Evart be sold only within the Great Lakes basin, which the company labeled unprecedented and unfair.
Spokesman Liz Boyd said. "Today she's(the Governor)is again asking them (the Legistlature)to do something to protect Michigan's water."
Federal law allows the governor of any Great Lakes state to veto out-of-basin diversions, but some believe the provision is vulnerable to a court challenge. The Council of Great Lakes Governors is drafting a plan to regulate diversions as well as large withdrawals for in-basin use, as reported in the Detroit Free Press.
"The permit issued to Nestle allows the company to use our state's resources, but ensures that they will be used responsibly," said Steve Chester, DEQ director.
More "spring water" water from a municipalities tap, and consumers are never told.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 08:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 26, 2005
Escondido, CA raises water rates.
The City Council of Escondido, CA yesterday unanimously approved an 8 percent increase in water rates and fees despite one of the rainiest seasons on record.
Mary Ann Mann, the city's utilities manager, said that several seasons of drought forced the city to rely more heavily on expensive water imported from the San Diego County Water Authority.
Councilman Ron Newman said it's difficult to raise prices but called it necessary to keep the infrastructure sound. "We're just trying to do the responsible thing. This isn't a money-making venture," he
said, as reported by The Union-Tribune, and published on SanDiego.com.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 05:50 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 25, 2005
The Brita Rip-Off
Brita water filters claim to be the leading supplier of water filters in the world. What they don't tell the consumer is that there is a better and more efficient way to filter tap water.
In my previous blog, I wrote about a Brita Executive in Denial concerning the existence of KDF; with it major advantage the extension of filter life. Here I would like to tell you of an example of why Brita disdains the use of KDF.
A replacement filter for a $34.99 cost Brita faucet mount water filter costs $29.99 for two, the most cost effective way to buy them.
The filter will last for four months, according to Brita.
On this website, we sell a model 2400 for $39.95 and it lasts for a minimum of five years of clear, filtered water because half of it is filled with KDF. The Brita faucet mount water filter would cost in that same five years, a whapping $244.92!
Now I will admit, the Brita filter is more attractive and takes up less space than our model 2400, but I thought the purpose of water filtration is simply clear potable water.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 24, 2005
Public backlash over private water deals
Dar es Salaam is one of the fastest growing cities in the world and its water system has utterly failed to provide for the roughly three million people who now live there.
Due to privatisation, most residents must pay water sellers. As in every poor country, the poorer you are, the more you pay for water.
Water privatisation was meant to solve a world crisis that has left more than two billion people without clean water or sanitation.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the private sector was seen by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and governments like Britain and France as the only way of raising the money needed, and international companies such as Suez, Thames and Biwater, encouraged by the IMF, rushed to privatise the water of the poor.
Companies were frequently accused of not delivering on their contracts. Prices shot up, people lost jobs, the poor often did not get the water promised, and discontent grew.
In the past decade there have been riots in Bolivia, after which western water companies were thrown out. There has also been discontent in Trinidad, Argentina, Ghana, South Africa and the Philippines.
Water privatisation has become a subject of political debate in most developing countries - fiercely opposed by unions but widely backed by most governments.
The role of the IMF, World Bank and governments lobbying for their own companies is being questioned widely.
The UN estimates that 2.7 billion people will face water scarcity by 2025. Some 40% of the world's population now live in countries with water shortages, and tens of millions of children die because of water-borne diseases that could largely be eliminated with improved sanitation, as reported by the Guardian Unlimited.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 10:12 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 23, 2005
Activists fear back-pedalling on water protection in Canada
Fearful that the Liberal government is dragging its feet when it comes to protecting Ontario's drinking-water sources, more than a dozen groups are urging Premier Dalton McGuinty to move forward with legislation promised this spring.
In letters obtained by The Canadian Press, conservation authorities, environmental and municipal groups tell Mr. McGuinty that they fear the water issue is slipping from the government's agenda.
Environment Minister Leona Dombrowsky said she is committed to introducing the legislation, which she called a “defining” component of the government's environmental agenda, in the fall, as reported by The Canadian Press, and published by The Globe and Mail.
Activists, however, want to see action now. “Our fear is if it gets to the fall and gets further postponed, it eventually drops off the radar screen completely,” said Dick Hunter, general manager of Conservation Ontario.
Others urging Mr. McGuinty to act include groups such as Environmental Defence, Ducks Unlimited Canada, the Ontario Municipal Water Association and the Ontario Water Works Association.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 05:52 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
May 20, 2005
System changes hog waste into clean water
Don Lloyd,of Ayden, NC, has developed a system that purports to purify the kind of putrid, waste-filled water currently dumped into so-called hog lagoons across North Carolina.
The pilot system developed by Lloyd at Little Creek Hog Farms cleans out three hog houses four times a day, churning out potable water within six hours that is recycled again to water the hogs. The solid waste strained from the water is mixed with high-carbon cotton plant remnants to make compost.
The $150,000 system developed with help from a state environmental grant is completely closed, with pipes running from flushing tanks through the houses and into purifying tanks.
Environmentalists with Sustainable North Carolina partnered with hog farmers on the project an unlikely coalition, and cheered the notion of an inexpensive way of eradicating the hog waste lagoons.
The system has met the program's environmental requirement, and may cost 40 percent less to operate than a hog lagoon, as reported by the Associated Press, and published by Business Week Online.
I always said, there is no bad water, just unfiltered water.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:56 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 19, 2005
Australian PM Weighs in on Water Shortage
The Federal Government of Australia has joined forces with Queensland to combat water shortage problems, announcing three new water projects for the state in a follow up to my previous blog.
Prime Minister John Howard today launched the projects, costing almost $100 million, at the Hinze Dam (pictured) on the Gold Coast. He said it was important all levels of government work together to address what he describes as the greatest conservation challenge of the age, as reported by the APP, and published by News.com.au.
"Water is an issue of national importance and that is why we support the National Water Initiative," Queensland Premier Peter Beattie said.
The projects will be funded from the Federal Government's $2 billion Australia Water Fund.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 05:12 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 18, 2005
Australian Government Wants to Fast-track Water Reform
Water has been badly managed in Australia and the Federal Government wants to fast-track reform, Treasurer Peter Costello said.
"Water, I think, has not been managed well in this country, it's traditionally been an area of state responsibility and the results are there for everybody to see," Mr Costello told Macquarie Radio.
"The Federal Government is prepared to give national leadership and I think we can make a big improvement."
"Our biggest problem to date, is that in order to do this you have to get agreement from eight states and territories," as reported by the AAP and published by News.com.au.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:10 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 17, 2005
Health units to oversee public water
Public health units in Ontario,Canada will take over responsibility for monitoring drinking-water safety at places such as churches, campgrounds, gas stations and community halls under legislative changes announced Tuesday.
Current testing requirements, which many smaller operators of non-residential systems complained were too expensive and unnecessary, are also being changed to ease the burden.
The existing rules were implemented in the aftermath of the tainted-water tragedy in Walkerton, Ont., five years ago that killed seven people and sickened 2,500 others.
The aim is to ensure water safety "without requiring unnecessary tests and treatment systems," the government said in a release.
The Environment Ministry will continue to regulate the systems until oversight responsibilities are transferred to public health officials, expected in the fall of 2006, as reported by the National Post.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 05:58 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 16, 2005
Super-oxygenated Water is Disinfectant
Microcyn, a form of super-oxygenated water is claimed to be as effective a disinfectant as chlorine bleach, but is harmless to people, animals and plants. If accidentally ingested by a child, the likely impact is a bad case of clean teeth.
Developed by Oculus Innovative Sciences in Petaluma,CA ,they figured out how to use two simple materials -- water and salt -- to create a solution that wipes out single-celled organisms, and which appears to speed healing of burns, wounds and diabetic ulcers.
The solution looks, smells and tastes like water, but carries an ion imbalance that makes short work of bacteria, viruses and even hard-to-kill spores, as reported on wired.com
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:47 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 11, 2005
D.C. Water Lead Levels Below Federal Limits
Lead levels in the District's drinking water have fallen substantially in recent months and dropped below the federal action limit for the first time in four years, the general manager of the Washington, D.C. Water and Sewer Authority said yesterday.
The authority urged consumers to continue to take precautions, including using water filters.
The declining lead levels are proof that orthophosphate, a chemical added to the city's water system since last summer, is working, Jerry N. Johnson, the utility's general manager, said in an interview, as reported in the Washington Post.
Johnson said test results from 102 homes received since January will be sent to the Environmental Protection Agency, which regulates the utility, by the end of the month. If the next six months of test results are also low -- and Johnson said he is confident they would be -- the utility would drop its warning to consumers to flush their taps and to filter water if their households include children younger than 6, pregnant women or nursing mothers.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:01 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 10, 2005
Unsafe water found in wells in Dakota County, MN
Test results from 66 private drinking-water wells in Dakota County, MN have revealed contaminants that are potential human health threats, such as nitrates and pesticides.
Although the combination of pesticides and nitrates seems to point to agricultural sources the farming community in Dakota County has been conscientious and willing to reduce pesticide and fertilizer use, when possible, according to David Swenson, supervisor of Dakota County's groundwater protection section.
Public wells in the county, which also draw from groundwater supplies, are tested by the Minnesota Department of Health and have not shown similar problems, as reported by the Star Tribune.
Daniel Huff, watershed project manager for Friends of the Mississippi River, said that Dakota County deserves credit for its leadership. "There really needs to be a lot more study of these sensitive areas throughout the state," he said.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 05:33 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 09, 2005
Mapleton, UT residents urged to boil water
Reports of E. coli in Mapleton, UT's water supply from recent heavy rains and snow melt runoff prompted city officials to urge residents in the southwestern part of the town to boil their drinking water for a 72-hour period.
Mapleton's Mayor Dean S. Allan said traces of E. coli were found Friday or Saturday in one of the three springs that supplies water to the city's 7,000 residents. He added that the contamination was viewed by most as an inconvenience and there was no panic or major concern, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
The presence of E. coli indicates that the water may be contaminated with human or animal waste. Under normal conditions, the ground soaks up the water which is then naturally filtered as it seeps into springs, many of which are several hundred feet deep.
"High flood water overwhelms the natural treatment process," said David Ovard, general manager for the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 05:38 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 06, 2005
Water reclamation holds big potential
The new water reclamation facility that began operating this week at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico presents just one example of how such efforts are increasing nationwide, though the technology's full potential remains untapped, experts told United Press International.
Only a "tiny fraction" of the wastewater effluent produced every day in the United States is reclaimed, said G. Wade Miller, executive director of the WateReuse Association in Alexandria, Va.
The Sanitary Effluent Reclamation Facility, the laboratory said in a news release, will use treated wastewater in cooling towers to remove heat from equipment and computers, saving 21 million gallons of freshwater a year that normally would be drawn from aquifers, as published in Science Daily.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 04, 2005
Sabotage suspected at Kaikoura, NZ reservoir
A Kaikoura reservoir had to be urgently drained yesterday and some residents warned not to drink town supply water after a contamination scare.
The Kaikoura District Council's emergency management officer, Mike Kennedy, said council engineers and contractors had discovered anti-1080 graffiti and two poison pellets next to a broken manhole cover on the Kaikoura peninsula reservoir.
Mr Kennedy said it was impossible to tell if any 1080 pesticide was in the water, but samples were taken for testing in Christchurch last night and the reservoir was drained.
The reservoir, on the southern edge of the township between Kaikoura and South Bay, was always fenced off and under surveillance, as reported in The New Zealand Herald.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:08 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 03, 2005
Warning issued for polluted water for Pakistani city
Over 40 people died in May last year in Hyderabad from water-borne diseases. The prediction is that it will be worse this year, as reported by the BBC News.
The warning comes as local irrigation authorities say they need to release toxic water from a local lake into the main river that supplies the city with drinking water.
Residents of Hyderabad say that over the years, neglect and ill-designed drainage projects have turned Manchhar lake into a "vast body of pure poison".
Of course,local irrigation authorities disagree, arguing that polluted water can cause no harm to humans if it is sufficiently diluted.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 05:24 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 02, 2005
Stephen Betheil has accepted a position as an IT reseller
In addition to running this website and business, I have accepted a position as a licensed reseller of Smart Talk Pro/Virtual Office Meeting. This new technology greatly improves and simplifies web casting. Moreover, through the integration of VOIP, or voice over internet protocol, the cost of web casting is now reduced by over 300 percent to a starting point less than the ownership of a business copy machine. This opens web casting up to all small businesses and even consumers.
Those interested in learning more about this may contact me through this site, orderwaterfilters.com.
Posted by Stephen Betheil at 06:36 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack