RAF Feltwell 2007 water quality report Published June 25, 2008 By 48th Aerospace Medicine Squadron Bioenvironmental Engineering Flight ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England -- Introduction Air Force Instruction 48-144, Safe Drinking Water Surveillance Program, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) require all community water systems provide to 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 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 RAF Feltwell's potable water distribution system. Water comes exclusively from the local area water purveyor, Anglian Water Services, and originates from a single off base well. Treatment Process RAF Feltwell's water supply arrives on the installation with chlorine residual; however, the water utilities section provides supplemental disinfection with sodium hypochlorite solution. Chlorine is added to the water supply for disinfection purposes and prevents bacteriological growth in the distribution system. Testing Bioenvironmental Engineering (BE) 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. Also, BE technicians collect water samples for chemical analysis from representative locations in the water system and send them to Analytical and Environmental Services (AES) laboratory for analysis. AES is headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, with laboratories throughout England, but primarily analyzing drinking water at their Horsley, Newcastle upon Tyne lab. The results are reviewed and maintained by the Bioenvironmental Engineering Flight at RAF Lakenheath to ensure compliance with the safe drinking water standards. Water Analysis Results RAF Feltwell's water supply is tested for 116 substances. The table below lists the contaminants detected that require reporting by the US EPA. In 2007, none of the potential contaminants exceeded the MCL (Maximum Contaminant Level). 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 Environmental Protection Agency's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791 or going to their ground and drinking water website at http://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 table of analysis results below lists possible, generic sources for some detected contaminants; an identification of a possible source is not specific to RAF Feltwell 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 byproducts 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 below are from the U.S. Department of Defense Environmental Final Governing Standards (FGS) - United Kingdom (Jan 2005). This document integrates U.S. and U.K. requirements by implementing the more stringent limit of any chemical regulated by either country. Results Discussion The results in the table below include all chemicals covered by the US EPA's Safe Drinking Act for which analysis was performed and concentrations of the chemicals that were detected from 1 Jan 2007 to 31 Dec 2007. Additional Health Information 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, and 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 US EPA and Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800) 426-4791 or on the US EPA's website, www.epa.gov. Input and Information This report is available at https://48fw.lakenheath.af.mil/default.aspx (under Medical) and http://www.lakenheath.af.mil/news/jet48online/index.asp. Hard copies are also available at the Public Affairs Office, Bldg 1063. If you have questions, please contact Capt Sean Estrada or TSgt Vincente Navejas in Bioenvironmental Engineering, RAF Lakenheath at 226-8047. For further details on the water survey, click here.