Nutrient Pollution in Public Drinking Water

The Iowa DNR rates less than 20% of Iowa waterways safe for recreation and fishing. Iowa continues to be the #1 toxic contributor to the Dead Zone in the Gulf. This is primarily a result of our agricultural practices that are not environmentally friendly.

1. First, it's the use of chemicals on the fields.
2. Second, it's the fecal run-off from the commercial animal farms.
3. Third, it's the tiling of the fields to quickly drain water off the fields and into the waterways and prevents natural filtration before chemicals enter the creeks and rivers.
4. Fourth, it's the over-production of the same crops that depletes the soil of nutrients ​

My middle daughter was dared to drink the runoff water from our neighborhood creek by an older girl...and she did. Gasp!!! She caught a virus and tested positive for E-coli. It ran the course, but it was messy and painful for a week. I share this as a real-life recount. This happened two weeks ago.

Around Central Iowa, I am a certified Rainsoft water purification technician and water quality consultant. You can start here if you're interested in testing your home's H20.

FREE in-home analysis of your h2o

Nitrogen and phosphorus are essential nutrients for plant growth. Farmers supplement these naturally occurring nutrients in their soils with both chemical and animal fertilizer to increase crop production. When these nutrient levels exceed plant needs, water carries the nitrogen (as nitrate) and phosphorus away, leading to water pollution.

Infographic provided by The Iowa Environmental Council 2019

Municipalities try to protect us, but there are over 80,000 contaminants in our environment. And the EPA requires water companies to REDUCE only two hundred (200) of those. We're entering the season of trihalomethanes. I can't say it often enough...don't drink their water.

HEALTH EFFECTS OF NITRATE IN DRINKING WATER

1. Acute consumption of nitrate can lead to blue baby syndrome.1 This fatal condition is caused when red blood cells become unable to bind with oxygen, an issue that impacts infants at a higher rate. 
2. Long-term consumption of nitrate is associated with increased risks of bladder, ovarian, and thyroid cancers in women; as well as increased risks of birth defects with prenatal exposure.5
3. Harmful blue green algae blooms caused by excess nutrients release toxins that can pass through standard drinking water treatment practices.6 The toxins can affect the nervous system, liver, digestive system, and form tumor promoting compounds.7 Algae blooms also impair the taste and odor of drinking water.8
4. Disinfectants used to treat drinking water can react with the algae to form byproducts, such as trihalomethanes, that harm public health. The byproducts have been linked to rectal, bladder, and colon cancers; reproductive health risks; and liver, kidney, and central nervous system problems.9

READ UP ON THIS SERIOUS ISSUE WITH THE IOWA ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL HERE.

At The Detox Artist by RainSoft, I offer a complimentary in-home water quality test to all prospective customers.

I am trained in how to analyze water for the presence of various impurities, everything from elevated levels of water hardness to biological contaminants. Having your water professionally tested will shed light on any water-quality issues you are experiencing, such as “rotten egg” tastes or smells, visible floating particles, stained plumbing fixtures, or the formation of scaly residue on kitchen and bathroom surfaces.

The results of your water quality test will also help me make a determination as to whether your water problems can be alleviated by any or all of the following:

• Water softener – Our water softener systems use a process called ion exchange to make “hard” water “soft.” We offer the EC4, which replenishes itself automatically, and the TC Series, which softens water via a programmable timer. Both produce a limitless supply of soft water that noticeably improves a variety of household activities, such as bathing, washing dishes, and doing laundry.
• Drinking water purification system – RainSoft drinking water purifiers produce better than bottle-quality water that is perfect for drinking and preparing meals. In doing so, we completely eliminate the need to buy, transport, store, and recycle countless plastic water bottles every year.
• Problem-solving filter – If necessary, RainSoft can install a whole-house filter capable of addressing a specific water issue, such as the presence of iron, sulfur, or chlorine in your local water supply.

Whatever type of RainSoft product you decide to invest in, you will own the very best residential water-treatment equipment available in the world. All RainSoft products are assembled in the U.S.A. and guaranteed to last a lifetime.

SCHEDULE H2O TEST

• 1 Tang, Chuan, et al. Economic Benefi ts of Nitrogen Reductions in Iowa. Center for Agricultural and Rural Development, Iowa State University. February 2018.
• 2 Safe Drinking Water Information System, Federal Reporting Services. 1980-2017.
• 3 Weir Schechinger, Anne, and Cox, Craig. America’s Nitrate Habit is Costly and Dangerous. Environmental Working Group. September 2018.
• 4 Calculated from Iowa Department of Natural Resources public water system drinking water compliance data: includes Iowans served by PWS that treat for nitrate (by blending, ion exchange, or reverse osmosis) and Iowans served by a PWS that had a violation between 2012-2016.
• 5 Weyer, Peter, et al. (2001). Municipal Drinking Water Nitrate Level and Cancer Risk in Older Women: The Iowa Women’s Health Study. Epidemiology. 12. 327-338.
• 6 Proposed Water Quality Standards for the State of Missouri’s Lakes and Reservoirs, 82 FR 61213 at 61216 (December 27, 2017), citing Carmichael, W.W. (2000). Assessment of Blue-Green Algal Toxins in Raw and Finished Drinking Water. AWWA Research Foundation, Denver, CO.
• 7 Proposed Water Quality Standards for the State of Missouri’s Lakes and Reservoirs, 82 FR 61213 at 61216 (December 27, 2017), citing CDC. (2017). Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB)-Associated Illness, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/habs/. Accessed December 2017.
• 8 Dodds, Walter K., et al. (2009). Eutrophication of U.S. Freshwaters: Analysis of Potential Economic Damages, Environmental Science & Technology. 43 (1). 12-19.
• 9 Proposed Water Quality Standards for the State of Missouri’s Lakes and Reservoirs, 82 FR 61213 at 61216 (December 27, 2017), citing USEPA. (2017). Drinking water Requirements for States and Public Water Systems, Public Water Systems, Disinfection Byproducts, and the Use of Monochloramine. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed https://www.epa.gov/dwreginfo/public-water-systems-disinfectionbyproducts-anduse-monochloramine.