Atrazine in Home Drinking Water

If you are on a well or are serviced by a municipal water supply which relies even partially on surface and ground water sources, then atrazine may be among the potential contaminants with which you must be concerned when looking at your home drinking water.

What is Atrazine?

Atrazine is a chemical which is commonly used as an herbicide. It is most often used to prevent the growth of grassy and broadleaf weeds and is frequently employed by farmers who are growing row crops, like wheat, corn, and soybeans, to name a few.

How does Atrazine Get into Home Water Supplies?

Run off from fields where atrazine is used as an herbicide is how this chemical gets into the surface water and ground water supplies. Both of these water sources feed personal wells and can be sources for municipal water supplies too. This makes atrazine a potential concern for any home water supply, though people who depend on wells and those who live in close proximity to farming communities may see a higher incidence of atrazine contamination.  Ground water contamination has a far reach though, which means that even if you don’t live near any farms at which atrazine may be used, it could still potentially make its way into your home water through the complex ground water systems on which we all depend.

What are the Dangers with Atrazine?

Prolonged consumption of atrazine contaminated water can lead to problems with the cardiovascular system and reproductive problems as well. Risks increase with highly elevated levels of atrazine contamination and with the length of exposure.

How to Determine if Atrazine is a Problem

The most conclusive method for determining if atrazine is present in your home water supply is to have a comprehensive water quality analysis performed. This will not only show the presence and level of atrazine in your water, but will also tell you any other quality concerns which should be addressed as well.

What Levels of Atrazine are Unsafe?

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asserts that certain, limited levels of atrazine in drinking water are expected and safe. Specifically, the EPA’s regulations indicate that levels measuring 0.003 milligrams per liter or 3 parts per billion and lower pose no significant health risks. Some individual consumers prefer not to take the risk of having any atrazine present in their home drinking water however, and as a result, decide to implement water filtration systems in their homes to fully eliminate this chemical from the drinking water supply.

Which Water Filter is Best for Removing Atrazine?

The most effective water filters for removing atrazine from drinking water are those that utilize granular activated carbon. There are whole house water filters which are specifically designed for addressing concerns with chemicals like atrazine and filters that address multiple concerns. Multi-stage filtration systems which include carbon filters can capture and remove a range of contaminants from water. A knowledgeable representative with a reputable water filtration company can help you determine which filters will work best for your specific needs, including which will eliminate the health risks associated with atrazine contamination.

It takes a strong woman to be a strong mother. Strong mothers protect their children against all comers. It seems these days in tougher than it used to be. Today's children are exposed to all sorts of dangers they never faced before and many are hidden or disguised. One of those dangers slips silently into the home under the cover of weak Federal Regulation from The Safe Water Act. In a recent investigation by the Environmental Working Group drinking water in 35 cities across the US was found to contained hexavalent chromium. The subject 2000 film Erin Brockovich was the fight on behalf of the residents of Hinkley, CA against Pacific Gas & Electric. PG&E was accused of leaking hexavlent chormium into the town's groundwater for 30 years. The company paid $333 million in damages. EWG rated Houston TX, the home to over 3 million people, the 5th worst water quality among the US largest cities. In a local news report Houston was shown to have 18 chemicals in unhealthy and dangerous levels in the drinking water. Several MUD's were shown to have been in violation of the law for years with no apparent consequences. None of this is should be surprising since Industry Groups are constantly lobbying government agencies and authorities at all levels.

Of the over 60,000 chemicals used in the US only 91 are regulated.

All this is bad news for us adults, but children it's horrific. Looking at our children, hopefully, they have many more years of life ahead than we adults. That's more time to be exposed to environmental toxins and with the long latency periods from early exposure more time for diseases to develop (including cancer). The incidence of childhood cancers has been steadily climbing, even though mortality rates for childhood cancers are decreasing. Not as many are dying, but more are having to endure the treatments. Because many of the crucial defense systems that help protect adults from disease are not fully developed in children‚ they are much more sensitive to carcinogens‚ lead and water-borne parasites than adults. We have very little knowledge about carcinogenesis in children and our current technology and tools for assessing the carcinogenic potential of various chemicals is lacking. Because they fail to capture the impacts of early exposures and later effects of that early exposure most of the results from animal studies do not apply to children. The use of long-term, high-dose exposures in most animal studies results in data that may have little relation to humans. We need to pay attention to our water. We need to protect our children from the long term health risk from years of consuming unfiltered water.

DISCLOSURE: I am in the business of providing water filtrations systems for the home. I am in this business to make a living but I chose it because I believe I am offer a needed service that can result in good outcomes for customers.

If you've ever lived in an area which had hard water, you know just how annoying it can be. Shampoo and soap don't lather as well in the shower, clothes aren't washed as thoroughly, and everything slowly becomes covered with a buildup of mineral scum or scale. Hard water simply refers to water with a high mineral concentration, usually calcium and sometimes magnesium or other. Often it's a combination of many minerals. These minerals don't allow water to act the way it normally does, and they deposit themselves on household surfaces. Not only is hard water irritating (sometimes literally irritating to the skin), but it can also be damaging to your home. We can clean the mineral deposits on coffee pots and shower walls, but the ones we can't see – the ones in the pipes themselves – can build over time until they literally burst a pipe or block it completely.
What Can Be Done There are many methods of “softening” water, or removing these minerals. However, for home use, a water softener is the most economical and popular choice. These devices can be found at any home center, and are usually installed by professional plumbers. You can hook them up to certain areas of the home in many cases, saving yourself money. For example, if you don't mind drinking your water but are fed up with stiff clothing and soap that won't create suds, your water softener might be hooked up to process only the water which goes to your bathroom and washing machine.
How It Works Home water softeners rely almost exclusively on the plastic bead method. These beads filter the water, replacing the most common “hard” minerals - calcium and magnesium – with sodium. This softens the water, eliminating or greatly reducing buildup and allowing soaps and detergents to work as they should. A home water softener is a rather simple device. The softener contains plastic beads. The beads are negatively charged. When water flows over and through the beads, the sodium which was attached to them is traded for the calcium and magnesium molecules in the water, since these molecules hold a higher positive charge and are attracted to the negatively charged beads. Over time, the charge on the plastic beads will wear down, and this is why you see big bags of water softener salt for sale in home centers. This salt allows the beads to refresh their charge and replenish all the sodium which has been traded for harder minerals. How the beads are recharged depends on which device you purchase. Recharging the beads uses up a lot of water, and so manufacturers are always searching for new ways to make the process gentler on the environment.
The most advanced water softeners feature a computer which electronically measures the sodium levels and recharges only as needed. Others use a mechanical meter which essentially does the same thing. Older models simply recharge on a regular basis (usually set by the owner) regardless of water use or sodium levels. These models waste the most water, and should be avoided in the spirit of living earth-friendly.

PureWaterHQ

4611 Bee Caves Rd

Austin TX 78746

877-595-8545

BREAKING NEWS: USDA GATE & DIMOCK FAMILIES VINDICATED

USDA GATE & DIMOCK FAMILIES VINDICATED

Dear Friends:

I want to call your attention to some critical news and ask you to quickly take action:

FIRST: USDA GATE!!!

BREAKING NEWS: USDA Reverses Itself and Exempts Rural Properties with Gas Drilling Leases from NEPA

ACTION: Call President Obama and tell him:

“Please do not allow the USDA to exempt housing loans from a full NEPA review.”

White House Phone numbers: 202-456-1111 and 202-456-1414

Here’s the background and the reasons why you should call:

In a move that has angered hydrofracking opponents, the USDA did an about-face and reneged on earlier statements that its popular rural housing loans on properties with gas drilling leases would have to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and today authorized an Administrative Notice stating that rural housing loans would be excluded from NEPA. On Monday, The New York Times had reported the USDA was planning on issuing an Administrative Notice to the opposite effect, telling staff that loans on properties with gas leases must undergo a full environmental review as required by NEPA before mortgage loans are made or guaranteed by the agency.

"The proposal by the Agriculture Department, which has signaled its intention in e-mails to Congress and landowners, reflects a growing concern that lending to owners of properties with drilling leases might violate the National Environmental Policy Act, known as NEPA, which requires environmental reviews before federal money is spent,” the Times wrote.   The article quoted the program director for rural loans in the Agriculture Department’s New York office saying that, “We will no longer be financing homes with gas leases.”   “Approval of such leases would allow for a number of potential impacts to possibly occur which would need to be analyzed in a NEPA document that would be reviewed by the public for sufficiency,” another USDA official was quoted as saying.

But in an email statement yesterday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack reversed those positions and said, “USDA will not make any policy changes related to rural housing loans…The information provided to Congressional offices on March 8, 2012 was premature and does not reflect past, current or future practices of the department.   Tomorrow, I will authorize an Administrative Notice reaffirming that rural housing loans are categorically excluded under the National Environmental Policy Act.”

Friends, this is a very important development and one that we need to speak up about. A full NEPA review, like the type the agency was talking about affirming, would have been more transparent, more rigorous and comprehensive. USDA staff experts in the NY office as well as in DC made clear in emails that the law and the science require that mortgages with drilling leases shouldn’t be exempt from NEPA.   This 180-degress turn by Secretary Vilsack contradicts both science and law.

Excluding NEPA review of fracking's environmental impacts is a significant move. It means that environmental review of rural housing loans would be limited to the EPA's far less comprehensive national study of fracking, which is focused exclusively on drinking water and does not admit public comment.   Doing a NEPA analysis would have ensured that federal agencies issuing loans are complying with the law. In fact, officials expressed concern the agency would be vulnerable to lawsuits if they didn’t conduct the NEPA reviews thoroughly enough. But exempting rural housing loans from NEPA means that gas drilling leases will also be exempt from legal recourse and other basic public interest protections the law was meant to provide. It also means that when property values drop precipitously due to contamination from gas drilling, sometimes to as low as 10% of their original value as we’ve seen in Pennsylvania, the American Taxpayer is going to be left holding the bag.

Not only is this is unlawful, it’s just not right.

Call President Obama and tell him:

“Please do not allow the USDA to exempt housing loans from a full NEPA review.”

White House Phone numbers: 202-456-1111 and 202-456-1414

SECOND: EPA VINDICATES DIMOCK FAMILIES!!!

BREAKING NEWS: EPA confirms Dimock water is unsafe. The Gasland team and I provided Pro-Publica with the unreleased water tests. The families in Dimock, PA have high to explosive levels of methane as well as chemicals known to cause cancer and heavy metals that exceed the agency's "trigger level" in their water wells. The families have been vindicated. Science triumphs over spin.

Please read the full Pro-Publica story HERE.

PureWaterHQ

4611 Bee Caves Rd Austin TX 78746 877-595-8545

While a long hot shower can be very relaxing evidence supports the idea of using a shower filter to remove the ch emicals such as chlorine from the water.

Taking long hot showers lead to a greater exposure to toxic chemicals contained in water supplies than does drinking the water. As chemicals evaporate out of the water they are inhaled into the lungs giving them the straight line to the blood stream. These chemicals can also spread through the house and be inhaled by others. House holders can receive 6 to 100 times more of the chemical by breathing the air around showers and bath than they would by drinking the water.

Studies indicate the chemicals are inhaled and absorbed through the skin during showering and bathing. Ironically, even the chlorine widely used to disinfect water produces carcinogenic traces. Though 7 out of 10 Americans drink chlorinated water, its safety over long term is uncertain. Drinking chlorinated water may as much as double the risk of Bladder Cancer, which strikes 40,000 people a year.

Showering is suspected as the primary cause of elevated levels of chloroform in nearly every home because of the chlorine in the water. Chloroform a known carcinogen levels increase up to 100 times during a ten-minute shower in unfiltered residential water. A Professor of Water Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh claims that exposure to vaporized chemicals in the water supplies through showering, bathing, and inhalation is 100 times greater than through drinking water.

PureWaterHQ

4611 Bee Caves Rd

Austin TX 78746 877-595-8545

If you want pure drinking water at home, you should install a reverse osmosis water filter. Many people spend money on bottled water, but what they don't realize is that many of the bottled water brands are simply filtered water from the municipal water supply where it was bottled. If you want the purest drinking water possible, a reverse osmosis water filter will remove 99.9% of undesirable contaminants and filter particles as small as 1/1000 of a micron. This unique filter is available as a permanently installed filter, or there are also countertop and portable versions which can be connected to any sink when you're ready to use it. You can then use your filter to fill pitchers or water bottles for storage in your refrigerator. Never waste money on bottled water again - use a reverse osmosis water filter to create the purest possible drinking water right from the tap.

If you are a bottled water drinker, you should be ashamed of yourself. I say that with the most serious face. Do you know how much waste bottled water bottles make each year? These days, there are far more efficient ways to get clean, pure drinking water. You should not be throwing around plastic every time you need a sip of water. You can also save yourself a ton of money by drinking the water that comes out of the tap instead of buying it at the store. One way is to get a reverse osmosis water filter for your home. Now, these cost a little more than the carbon filters that everyone has, but the cost is worth it. They do a much better job or removing impurities and they are highly recommended by a lot of food scientists. Look for them online and you may even find one on the cheap.

Whole House Iron and manganese water filters are engineered for maximum filtration and maximum performance with minimum maintenance. They deliver trouble free operation for many years. It is the most advanced and effective Iron and Manganese water filter in the market for the following reasons:

* First, water travels through a 20" sediment cartridge that removes sediment, silt, sand and dirt. Also this extends the life of water softeners, water filters, and prevents damage to control valves or pumps.

* Next, water travels through a 1.5 or 2.0 cubic foot media tank with an Automatic Microprocessor Control valve. (The longer amount of time that the water is in contact with the media, the more effective is the conditioning and filtering of the water.)

* Finally, water travels through a 20" solid carbon cartridge for a final conditioning of the water and removing any remaining contaminates and VOC's which may be in the water.

Once upon a time, "drinking water" meant "tap water" -- the stuff that comes from a well or, more commonly, a municipal source. It flows equally into homes, offices, hospitals and restaurants without regard for social standing or economic status. Drinking water was quick, it had no packaging and no manufacturer's instructions. Satisfying one's thirst was as easy as holding a glass under the kitchen tap. Those days are gone. If you want pure clean water to come from your tap you'll need to have a whole house water filter to remove all the impurities.

Beautiful and Strong

Don't let that smile and cute outfit fool you, you could end up with a sore nose. In the old days a guy could pretty miuch sat or do anything he thopught was cute, but today you might wind up on the seat of your pants with some knots on your head.

Most people usually only equip their homes with a filter in the kitchen for their drinking water. While not providing clean filtered water in the rest of the house. However clean filtered water has it's benefits throughout the whole house. Cleaner water would benefit while bathing, showering, brushing your teeth, washing your face, cleaning up, or even washing your laundry.

By installing about a whole house water filter, you will always have healthy clean filtered water at hand when ever you need it. When you take a shower or a bath the object is to clean yourself, well how clean are you really when your not cleaning with filtered water? Filtered water for your shower is especially beneficial if you have hard water, hard water will dry your skin and leave a film on everything. By providing filtered water, you will have less film to clean up after and softer skin. In the laundry room your clothes will come out cleaner, and you won't have any worries of yellow spotting left behind when you use bleach if you have a lot of iron in your water. Also hard water can wear down your appliances alot sooner, then they would normally fail. So you would also be saving yourself a great deal of money later.

The benefits out weigh the cost, the benefits of living a healthier cleaner life. That will benefit everyone that lives or comes into your home. Your appliances, family, and pets will thank you!