March Review: Tips to Save Water All Year Long

March was a busy time for the water industry. The Clean Water Act turned 40-years-old, the U.S. EPA hunted down loose faucets and leaks for a week, and March 22nd was World Water Day.

The Safe Drinking Water Act, established in 1974, helped to establish a set of national standards and regulations for all public water suppliers. The federal government provided leadership and funding to help states nationwide to help meet these standards. These nationwide standards help regulate states by meeting federal standards. Minnesota has always had strict water standards even before the federal mandate was issued. This act ensures safety procedures carried out by water suppliers and water treatment facilities. The water has been tested, it is safe to drink, and it has met the standards of the SWDA. 

Walter Mondale, who was U.S. Vice President when the act was passed, said, “Safe drinking water is almost the first requirement of a prosperous community.”

More than 97% of Minnesota water supplies meet all Safe Water Drinking Act standards.

The U.S. EPA, partnering with Water Sense, chased household water-wasters down for a week to reduce annual household waste in its “Fix a Leak Week”. The focus was to reduce household leaks that annually contribute to over one trillion gallons of water wasted nationwide. By fixing or repairing simple maintenances, for instance, a dripping faucet, a running toilet and other leaky valves, it will reduce the cost of water consumption while promoting sustainability.

Tips to Help Save Water Year-round 
· Take a look at your water usage during a colder month, such as January or February. If a family of four exceeds 12,000 gallons per month, there are serious leaks.
· Check your water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter changes at all, you probably have a leak.
· Identify toilet leaks by placing a drop of food coloring in the toilet tank. If any color shows up in the bowl after 15 minutes, you have a leak. (Be sure to flush immediately after the experiment to avoid staining the tank.)
· Examine faucet gaskets and pipe fittings for any water on the outside of the pipe to check for surface leaks.

The UN System raised awareness of the inter-dependency between water and energy on March 22, titled World Water Day. This awareness event reached over 700 million worldwide, highlighting the importance and necessity of clean sources of drinking water in areas that need it most. 

Without water, there would be no life. That is why it is essential for our industry to keep growing, thriving from new innovations, to provide a healthy and dependable resource to those who matter most: you.

Cheers!

Minnesota's Most Established Water Systems

Major cities began developing around major water systems before today’s easy methods of transportation were ever even invented. Water systems provided a trade route, mode of travel, and provided small cities and farms with an abundance of fresh water for agricultural usage and consumption. Humans never strayed too far from fresh water sources, because it was integral to their survival. Here’s a look at five of the most established water systems in Minnesota.

Minneapolis, MN

Established as the Minneapolis Water Treatment & Distribution Services in 1867, it wasn’t until 1872 when the city of Minneapolis utilized the Mississippi as a primary resource outside of providing water to firefighters. It is currently the largest water system in the upper Midwest.

Quick Facts:
· The average annual withdrawal is 21 billion gallons.
· The Minneapolis Water Treatment & Distribution Services averages 57 million gallons per day.
· Filtration, disinfection and sedimentation are all processes undergone to purify drinking water.
· It’s one of few cities to soften water at a centralized softening plant-removing 65k pounds of hardness a day.
· The network of water mains responsible for providing tap water approximates at 1,000 miles.

St. Paul, MN

Water distributed through a system consisting of 1.1k miles of water mains provides fresh tap water to the City of St. Paul and surrounding communities. Due to the topography of the city, nicknamed ‘The City of Seven Hills’, water in the distribution requires to be pumped twice to maintain sufficient pressure to high-lying areas.

Quick Facts:
· The original piping was made out of lead, which have since been converted to copper pipes.
· ‘Reduced pressure’ service areas require pressure-reducing valves to reduce dangerously high pressures cause by downhill flow.

St. Cloud, MN

The St. Cloud Water Treatment Facility was established in 1907, when nineteen wells were sunk in Hester Park using a pump house and filtration plant to provide for the City Water Works. Proving to supply an inadequate service, the wells were capped. In 1954, the city constructed a new water works system by refurbishing the previous building, which was expanded and completed in 1994.

Mississippi River, St. Cloud, MN

Quick Facts:
· The expansion in 1994 increased water treatment from nine to 16 million gallons per day.
· A well that sunk in 1907 flowed until the early 1990’s until it was capped.


Duluth, MN

Lake Superior serves as the primary source of drinking water via the City Water Treatment Plant. The Plant sends the water through a filter, disinfects it with chlorine, which is then pumped to reservoirs throughout the city. The Public Works and Utilities Department was formed out of a 1999 merger, designed to increase operational efficiency while decreasing overall costs.

Quick Facts:
· The Department is responsible for water, natural gas, sanitary sewage and storm water services; infrastructure is also a responsibility.


Rochester, MN

Candice and Hemlock lakes have supplied the town with drinking water since 1876. Lake Ontario water is purchased from the Monroe County Water Authority (MCWA) as a supply supplement, where it is treated at MCWA’s Shoremont Treatment Plant. Both Hemlock and Shoremont treatment plants use similar processes including coagulation, filtration, and disinfection. 

Hemlock Lake, Rochester, MN

Quick Facts:
· Three 100-year-old pipelines provide the city with water treated from the Hemlock Filtration Plant via gravity.