Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
October 29, 2007
4. Water Quality
Water concerns persist; Residents told not to drink from tap; system will take about four days for all-clear -
FLUORIDE IN DRINKING WATER:
Water district to start fluoridating water - Associated Press
MWD To Add Fluoride To SoCal Drinking Water - CBS Channel 2 (
Water concerns persist; Residents told not to drink from tap; system will take about four days for all-clear
By Jose Luis Jiménez and Leonel Sanchez, staff writers
RAMONA – Residents will have to wait a little longer to safely drink, shower or wash dishes with Ramona municipal water.
Officials estimate that it will take about four days for the Ramona Municipal Water District's system to refill, re-pressurize and be cleared of contaminants after a fire-related power failure drained the water supply.
The town remains under a “no drink” order, which discourages human contact with the water. The restriction probably will be upgraded to a boil-water order before the all-clear is given.
Water systems in
“They shouldn't drink it or use it for making food unless they boiled the water first,” Mark McPherson, a director at the county Department of Environmental Health, said of those areas. “And I wouldn't brush my teeth with it.”
Ramona's system was drained Tuesday after a pumping station in
The station lacks a backup generator, a fact county Supervisor Dianne Jacob called “appalling, irresponsible and unacceptable” yesterday. She also criticized the district's staffing during this week's ordeal.
“The management failed to recognize that they didn't have enough employees to shut off all the meters, nor the expertise to restart the system,” Jacob said.
Ramona's water operations manager, Ron Mulick, did not return messages seeking comment.
By the time emergency generators supplied by San Diego Gas & Electric Co. were online, the system could not be re-pressurized, said Dennis Cushman, assistant general manager at the San Diego County Water Authority, which is helping the district.
The situation grew ugly Thursday when the water problems helped keep thousands from returning home. A handful of frustrated residents drove through a roadblock on state Route 67.
After Ramona water district leaders – under heavy pressure from officials throughout the county – asked for help Thursday afternoon, residents returned that evening and found electronic signs warning them not to use running water at all.
Instead, portable toilets and water sinks were placed throughout the community yesterday. Tankers at the fire station near
Many residents headed for the Ramona Rodeo Grounds, where volunteers passed out thousands of gallons of bottled water. At the nearby senior center, some ate meals and showered in water deemed safe.
“It's just good to be home. I could cope without (running) water,” a tired-looking Sheila Levine said as she drove away from the rodeo grounds with several gallons of water.
To restart the water system, about three dozen employees from neighboring water agencies worked through the morning yesterday to shut off each of the district's approximately 10,000 meters.
Water has been reintroduced into the system, and the pressure was to be re-established last night. Some essential customers, such as supermarkets and medical offices, were first in line for restored connections.
About 100 workers planned to begin the slow process of reopening meters one by one to avoid straining the system and rupturing pipes. The process, which they planned to begin at 6 a.m. today, is expected to take about 48 hours.
In the meantime, customers need to be patient and should not unlock the meters on their own, officials said. Once the water begins flowing, residents will remain under the no-drink order, which could then switch to a boil-water order, Cushman said.
Restrictions will remain while the system is flushed with water, decontaminated with chlorine and then tested to determine that no harmful bacteria remain, McPherson said.
The process typically takes two days, but damage to so many water systems could prolong the process, he said.
Kees De-Ru, 56, said he was mad at the local water district and planned to send a check for only $5 with his next water bill in protest.
Other residents worked hard to get their lives back to normal without the precious resource.
“I haven't taken a bath since Sunday,” Jose Humberto Gorza, 25, said with a nervous laugh, standing outside his home on
“I have no water, no food and no job,” Gorza said, pointing to the nearby ranch where he worked, which the Witch Creek fire consumed. #
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20071027-9999-1m27ramona.html
FLUORIDE IN DRINKING WATER:
Water district to start fluoridating water
Associated Press – 10/29/073
LOS ANGELES—The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is set to begin adding fluoride to the drinking water of 18 million
The water district says starting today, it will boost fluoride levels from the current range of about 0.4 parts per million to about 0.8 parts per million. Fluoride will be added to water imported from the Colorado River and from
District spokesman Rob Hallwachs says the fluoridation, aimed at fighting tooth cavities, will not alter the taste of the region's tap water.
Fluoridation will start at the district's plant in
Water will eventually be fluoridated across an area spanning
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_7311642?nclick_check=1
MWD To Add Fluoride To SoCal Drinking Water
CBS Channel 2 (
(CBS) LOS ANGELES The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California will begin adding the cavity-fighting agent fluoride to the drinking water of 18 million residents starting Monday.
The MWD said it will supplement trace amounts of naturally occurring fluoride in the water it imports from the Colorado River and
According to MWD, a cooperative of 26 cities and water agencies serving 18 million people in six counties, as well as 43 of the 50 largest cities in the
The level of fluoride will rise from the current range of 0.1 to 0.4 parts per million to the recommended range of 0.7 to 0.8 part per million, according to the MWD.
Some of the cities and water agencies may blend Metropolitan water with their own supply, so the level of fluoride may differ from area to area, according to officials. They noted that fluoride levels in drinking water are limited under
The water will taste the same, according to the MWD.
"It will not be discernable," said MWD spokesman Rob Hallwachs.
The fluoridation will begin Monday at the district's Henry J. Mills Water Treatment Plant in
The remaining schedule is as follows:
- Nov. 12 at the F.E. Weymouth plant in
- Nov. 19, at the Robert B. Diemer plant in
- Nov. 26 at the Joseph P. Jensen plant it Granada Hills, serving
- Dec. 3 at the Robert A. Skinner plant, which serves southwest
http://cbs2.com/topstories/local_story_302055816.html
By Brianna Bailey, staff writer
Plans to add fluoride the
“The argument against fluoride in the ’50s was that fluoridation was a communist plot,” said Jon Roth, executive director of the California Dental Assn. Foundation. “It’s strange how the scare tactics have changed over the past 50 years. Of course, the overwhelming evidence says that it’s safe and effective.”
Metropolitan Water District of Southern
“‘Warning: Keep out of reach of children under six years of age,’” Porter read aloud. “That’s the fluoride Why would we want to put it in our water?”
Opposed community members say hydrofluosilicic acid, the chemical to be added at treatment facilities, is toxic and little data exists that shows its effects on animals and people.
A safety data sheet citizens submitted to the City Council Tuesday claims no data is available on the chemical’s potential to be toxic to animals when inhaled or otherwise ingested.
The fact sheet, provided by a chemical company, also shows the chemical is corrosive to the skin and eyes and that it may cause irritation or burns.
“I would have never had made this up because I didn’t know about any of this before,”
Fluoridation is effective at preventing tooth decay, according to the American Dental Assn. Agencies that officially recognize the health benefits of fluoridation range from the World Health Organization to the U.S. Department of Defense.
“The benefits far outweigh any sort of risk,” said Denis Wolcott, spokesman for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. “
For most cities, every $1 invested in water fluoridation saves $38 in dental treatment costs, according to the association. Of the largest 50 cities in the
“They’re trying to say one-size-fits-all, but just read the toothpaste. One size does not fit all,” Porter told council members Tuesday.
Based on data for 2000 from the American Dental Assn., about 162 million people, or two-thirds of the population, in the
“It works across the community; if you’re rich or poor, you get the same benefit, so it’s a very socially just way to treat tooth decay,” Roth said. “If you’re indigent, it could be a problem for you to spend $4 on something like fluoridated mouthwash.”
That simply isn’t true, Roth said.
“That’s one of the many urban myths surrounding fluoridation. There is an industrial process that it goes through, but it’s not industrial waste or some kind of bi-product at all,” he said.
Fluoridation additives are regulated for safety by the Environmental Protective Agency and other federal agencies, Roth said.
The Internet has given rise to many sources on water fluoridation that aren’t credible, Wolcott said.
“Science has been pretty clear on the benefits of fluoridation,” Wolcott said. “In the age of the Internet, stuff gets posted online, and there’s no way to evaluate if its credible. It’s not peer-reviewed science.” #
http://www.dailypilot.com/articles/2007/10/27/politics/dpt-fluoride28.txt
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