RAFs Lakenheath and Feltwell complete 2012 Water Quality Reports Published July 1, 2013 Aerospace Medicine Squadron Bioenvironmental Engineering Flight ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England -- Introduction Air Force Instruction 48-144, Safe Drinking Water Surveillance Program, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency require all community water systems to provide their consumers an annual water quality report. This report will help you understand where your drinking water comes from and what is in it. It will also help you to make informed choices that affect your families' health and help you understand the importance of protecting our drinking water sources. Source Water The 48th Civil Engineer Squadron operates RAFs Lakenheath and Feltwell's potable water distribution system. At RAF Lakenheath, water comes from three boreholes (wells) that are recharged from groundwater obtained from the Chalk aquifer. Additionally, RAF Lakenheath purchases water from the local supplier Anglian Water that supplements the base water supply and is used as needed. RAF Feltwell also purchases water from Anglian Water. Treatment Process The water supply is chlorinated by 48th CES using a sodium hypochlorite solution. Chlorine is added to the water supply for disinfection purposes and prevents bacteriological growth in the distribution system. Additionally, water may run through a de-nitrification plant to control the level of nitrates. Finally, fluoride is added to the water supply to prevent tooth decay in children. Testing Bioenvironmental engineering technicians collect bacteriological samples from various locations in the water distribution system. These samples are analyzed in the BE water lab to ensure no bacteriological growth is present in the distribution system. Additionally, BE technicians collect water samples for chemical and radiological analysis, as well as further bacteriological testing from representative locations in the water system. They are sent to Northumbrian Water Laboratory for analysis. NWL is headquartered in Newcastle Upon Tyne, England. They have laboratories throughout England, but primarily analyze drinking water at their Horsley Laboratory in Newcastle. Additionally, since NWL is not capable of testing all pesticides from the U.S. EPA and U.S. Department of Defense Environmental Final Governing Standards - United Kingdom (FGS-UK) requirements with detection limits, several water samples are sent to the U.S. Army Public Health Command Laboratory in Germany. All lab results are reviewed and maintained by the BE flight at RAF Lakenheath to ensure compliance with both United States and United Kingdom safe drinking water standards. Water Analysis Results RAF Lakenheath's water supply is tested for 118 different substances, and RAF Feltwell is tested for 117 substances. Any contaminants detected that require reporting by the U.S. EPA and the September 2010 FGS-UK, are listed at www.lakenheath.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-130624-017.pdf for RAF Lakenheath and www.lakenheath.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-130628-054.pdf for RAF Feltwell. Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the U.S. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791 or going to their ground and drinking water website at www.epa.gov/safewater. The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity. The linked results documents list possible, generic sources for some detected contaminants; an identification of a possible source is not specific to RAF Lakenheath, but applies to all water in general. Contaminants that may be present in source water include: Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, which may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems and wildlife Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, which can be naturally occurring or result from urban storm runoff and industrial or domestic wastewater discharges Pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water runoff and residential use Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic or volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of industrial processes and can come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff and septic systems Radioactive contaminants, which can be naturally occurring or be the result of industrial activities In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, limits are established on the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. The limits listed are from the FGS-UK. These documents integrate United States and United Kingdom requirements by implementing the more stringent limit of any chemical regulated by either country. Results Discussion The results in the linked documents include all chemicals covered by the U.S. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Act for which analysis was performed and concentrations of the chemicals that were detected from Jan. 1, 2012, to Dec. 31, 2012. During the 2012 sampling year, RAF Lakenheath received three maximum contaminant limit exceedances for benzo-a-pyrene, nitrates, and entero-cocci. During the 2012 sampling year, RAF Feltwell received zero exceedances of maximum contaminant limit for any of the chemicals of health concern. The tap water at RAFs Lakenheath and Feltwell is safe and healthy. Additional health information Benzo(a)pyrene at levels well above 0.2 μg/L over many years may result in reproductive difficulties and a potential increased risk of getting cancer. However, there are no trends in past sample results that would indicate a risk of adverse health effects from benzo(a)pyrene in the drinking water. Enterococci is a bacteria that is measured as an indicator that human or animal fecal matter may have been introduced into the drinking water. This can be harmful to human health. The drinking water is tested regularly for several potential contaminants including multiple indicators of bacterial presence. One RAF Lakenheath sample result was elevated, but was suspected to be a lab error. We confirmed that there were no enterococci indicators in our water system. Nitrate in drinking water at levels above 10 mg/L is a health risk for infants of less than 6 months of age. High nitrate levels in drinking water can cause blue baby syndrome. Nitrate levels may rise quickly for short periods of time because of rainfall or agricultural activity. If you are caring for an infant, seek advice from your health care provider. If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. We strive to provide high quality drinking water, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components. When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes before using water for drinking or cooking. If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your water tested. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800) 426-4791 or at www.epa.gov/safewater/lead. Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons such as those with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, those who have undergone organ transplants, those with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk from infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. The U.S. EPA and Center for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline or on the U.S. EPA's website, www.epa.gov. Input and Information Copies of this report can be requested via mail by sending a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: 48 AMDS/SGPB ATTN: 2012 Water Quality Report Unit 5210 Box 230 APO, AE 09461 For more information, please contact Capt. Kenneth Kirk, 48th Aerospace Medicine Squadron Bioenvironmental Engineering Flight, at 01638 528047.