Public Water System ID#AK
2340010
Nome Joint Utility System is pleased to
present to you this year’s Annual Water Quality Report. It is designed to inform you about the
quality water and services we deliver to you every day. Our constant goal is to provide you with a
safe and dependable supply of drinking water.
We want you to understand the efforts we make to continually improve the
water treatment process and protect our water resources. We are committed to ensuring the quality of
your water.
NJUS Water Treatment Operators Jay
Wieler and Carl Merchant are proud to announce that
Nome Joint Utility System
received no water quality or monitoring violations
in 2008.
NJUS
was issued one reporting violation for not distributing our 2007
Consumer Confidence Report (CCR)
by
the June 30, 2008 deadline. Compliance
was achieved on July 11, 2008.
Our water source is the Moonlight
Springs aquifer which is classified as a ground water source. Water to the community is provided by three
artesian wells located north of the Nome-Beltz High School at the base of Anvil
Mountain. These wells are capable of adequately supplying Nome’s year-round
water needs. The infiltration gallery
previously used is no longer connected to our distribution system; however,
this could be reactivated in the event of an emergency and is available to
provide an additional source of fire fighting water to the facilities in the
vicinity of the high school.
This report shows our water quality and what it
means.
Nome Joint Utility System routinely
monitors for constituents in your drinking water according to Federal and State
laws. This table shows the results of our
monitoring for the period January 1 to December 31, 2008. As water travels over the land or
underground, it can pick up substances or contaminants such as microbes,
inorganic and organic chemicals, and radioactive substances. All drinking water, including bottled
drinking water, may be reasonably expected to contain at least small amounts of
some constituents. It is important to
remember that the presence of these constituents does not necessarily pose a
health risk.
TEST RESULTS |
|||||||
Contaminant |
Violation Y/N |
Level Detected |
Unit
of Measurement |
MCLG |
MCL |
Year
Tested |
Likely
source of contamination |
Inorganic
Chemicals |
|||||||
Arsenic |
N |
0.4300 |
ppb |
0 |
10 |
2008 |
Erosion
of natural deposits; runoff from production wastes |
Copper |
N |
0.0832 |
ppm |
1.3 |
AL=1.3 |
2008 |
Corrosion
of household plumbing systems; erosion
of natural deposits |
Lead |
N |
3.2 |
ppb |
0 |
AL=15 |
2008 |
Corrosion
of household plumbing systems; erosion
of natural deposits |
Radionuclides |
|||||||
Alpha
Particles |
N |
1.7 |
pCi/1 |
0 |
15 |
2007 |
Erosion
of natural deposits |
Nitrate [measured
as Nitrogen] |
N |
.147 |
ppm |
10 |
10 |
2008 |
Runoff from fertilizer use; Leaching
from septic tanks, sewage; Erosion of natural deposits |
In this table you will find many terms
and abbreviations you might not be familiar with. To help you better understand these terms we
have provided the following definitions:
DEFINITIONS:
Non-Detects (ND) - laboratory analysis indicates that
the constituent is not present.
Parts per million
(ppm)
or Milligrams per liter (mg/l) - one part per million corresponds to one minute
in two years or a single penny in $10,000.
Parts per billion
(ppb)
or Micrograms per liter - one part per billion corresponds to one minute in
2,000 years, or a single penny in $10,000,000.
Picocuries per liter
(pCi/L)
- picocuries per liter is a measure of the radioactivity in water.
Action Level - the concentration of a contaminant
which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water
system must follow.
Treatment Technique
(TT) -
A treatment technique is a required process intended to reduce the level of a
contaminant in drinking water.
Maximum Contaminant
Level (MCL) -
The `Maximum Allowed` (MCL) is the highest level of a contaminant that is
allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set as close to the MCLGs as feasible using
the best available treatment technology.
Maximum Contaminant
Level Goal (MCLG)
- The `Goal`(MCLG) is the level of a contaminant in drinking water below which
there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of
safety.
Maximum Residual
Disinfectant Level (MRDL)
- The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is
convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of
microbial contaminants.
Maximum Residual
Disinfectant Level Goal (MRDLG)
- The level of a drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or
expected risk to health. MRDLGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of
disinfectants to control microbial contaminants.
Source water assessment and its availability:
Source water
assessments have been completed by the ADEC as a first step toward voluntary
local source water protection efforts.
Vulnerability rankings are assigned based on the susceptibility of the
drinking water source, recent sampling results and the presence of potential
contaminant sources –– they do not necessarily indicate these contaminants will
reach your source of water. Nome Water
System has received the following vulnerability rankings: "low" and
the aquifer received a susceptibility rating of "medium". Combining these scores produces a natural
susceptibility of "low" for the source. In addition, this water system has received a
vulnerability rating of "low" for bacteria/viruses,
"medium" for nitrates/nitrites, "medium" for volatile
organic chemicals, "low" for heavy metals, "low" for other
organic chemicals, and "low" for synthetic organic chemicals. Completed source water assessments are
available at ADEC's Drinking Water Protection Program, 555 Cordova St,
Anchorage, AK; or the Alaska Resources Library and Information Services, 3150 C
St, Anchorage, AK. For more information,
call the Drinking Water Protection Program at 907-269-7521.
HEALTH
EFFECTS:
****NONE****
Some people may be more vulnerable to
contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons such as persons
with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ
transplants, people 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. EPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to
lessen the risk of infection by cryptosporidium and other microbiological
contaminants are available from the EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791). The Hotline can also provide more information
about contaminants and potential health effects.
QUESTIONS:
Please call our office if you have
questions. We at Nome Joint Utility System work around the clock to provide top
quality water to every tap. We ask that all our customers help us protect our
water source, which is the heart of our community, our way of life and our
children’s future.
CONTACT
INFORMATION:
If you have any questions about this report
or concerning your water utility, please contact Toby Schield, Superintendent
of Field Operations (907-443-6330) or NJUS General Manager, John Handeland
(907-443-6587).
We want our valued
customers to be informed about their water utility. If you want to learn more, you may also
attend any of our regularly scheduled Nome Joint Utility System Board meetings.
Meeting
Location:
Nome City Council Chambers
Meeting
Time: Third
Tuesday of every month
Providing reliable utility
services to system rate payers efficiently and economically by
prudently operating and maintaining system
assets in a fiscally responsible manner