2021 Water Quality Report

Letter to Our Customers

Dear Customer:

We are pleased to present you with this year's Water Quality Report. Despite the unique challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the First Taxing District Water Department has again achieved the goal of meeting the very stringent water quality standards set by federal and state regulatory agencies. This report covers water testing performed throughout 2021.

Our top priority is to provide a safe and reliable supply of drinking water to all of our customers. Each year the water department's laboratory processes thousands of water quality analyses for compliance purposes. This testing includes the source water, the treated water as it leaves the filtration plant and well field, and the water as it travels through the distribution system pipes and into your homes and businesses.

Water quality and water usage have continued to be topics of interest in Norwalk and throughout our region. This report contains important information on water quality issues like lead, PFAS, and other contaminants. The drought experienced in 2020 has brought renewed attention to water usage. As a result, the District enacted Mandatory Sprinkler Landscape Irrigation Conservation Measures to ensure the long-term sustainability of our water resources.

You are always welcome to attend our monthly Board of Commissioners meetings, either remotely via Zoom, or at our main office, 12 New Canaan Avenue, Norwalk 06851. The times and dates of meetings are posted on our website at firstdistrictwater.org/2022-boc-meetings. Please also feel free to call or write to us and to visit our website at firstdistrictwater.org for additional information.

Sincerely,

Elsa Peterson Obuchowski, Chairman

Commissioners, First Taxing District

2021 Water Sampling

During 2021 the FTDWD staff has taken thousands of water samples in order to determine the presence of biological, inorganic, volatile organic and synthetic organic contaminants. These samples were taken at the reservoirs, the treatment plant, and the well field, and also at representative sample sites around the distribution system. The table below shows only those regulated substances that were detected in the treated water. All of the substances found meet all state and federal standards. The most recent year sampled is noted in the table.

Footnotes

1 - Amount detected; ranges are monthly averages.

2 - There is no federal MCL for sodium but Connecticut has established a notification level of 28 mg/L. If you have been placed on a sodium-restricted diet please inform your physician of the sodium content in our water. For people on a regular diet this level of sodium is very low.

3 - Turbidity is a measure of the clarity of the water. It is monitored because it is a good indicator of the effectiveness of the filtration system. 95% of the samples need to be less than 0.3 NTU. The District met the regulation requirements 100% of the time. Amount is an average of the highest monthly readings.

4 - The District’s water met the required removal rate 100% of the time.

5 – Amount is the running annual average of quarterly measurements in the distribution system. The range represents the results of the individual monitoring sites.

6 - Tap water samples were collected for lead and copper analyses from over 60 homes throughout the service area. The lead and copper results at the 90th percentile did not exceed the AL.

7 – Unregulated Contaminated Monitoring Rule (UCMR) 4 monitoring was completed in 2018 and 2019. EPA uses the UCMR to collect data for contaminants that are suspected to be present in drinking water and do not have health-based standards set under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).

Acronyms and Definitions

AL (Action Level): The concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water system must follow.

CNL: State of CT Customer Notification level.

HAL (Health Advisory Level): An estimate of acceptable drinking water levels for a chemical substance based on health effects information. This is not a legally enforceable Federal standard, but serves as technical guidance.

MCL (Maximum Contaminant Level): 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.

MCLG (Maximum Contaminant Level Goal): 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.

NA: Not Applicable.

ND (Non Detect): Results below the method detection limit.

NTU (Nephelometric Turbidity Units): Measurement of the clarity, or turbidity, of water. Turbidity in excess of 5 NTU is just noticeable to the average person.

ppm (parts per million): One part substance per million parts water (or milligrams per liter).

ppb (parts per billion): One part substance per billion parts water (or micrograms per liter).

ppt (parts per trillion): One part substance per trillion parts water (or nanograms per liter).

TOC: Total Organic Carbon.

TT (Treatment Technique): A required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.

Compound Sources

Barium: Erosion of natural deposits

Chlorine: Water additive used to control microbes

Copper: Corrosion of household plumbing systems

Fluoride: Additive for strong teeth; erosion of natural deposits

Lead: Corrosion of household plumbing systems

Nitrate: Fertilizer runoff; leaching from septic tanks and sewage; erosion of natural deposits

Sodium: Water treatment processes; road salt runoff; naturally present in the environment

Turbidity: Sediment particles; naturally occurring iron and manganese; soil runoff

Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of man-made chemicals that have been manufactured and used in a variety of industries around the globe, including in the United States since the 1940s. PFOA and PFOS have been the most extensively produced and studied of these chemicals. Both chemicals are very persistent in the environment and in the human body – meaning they don’t break down and they can accumulate over time. There is evidence that exposure to PFAS can lead to adverse human health effects. There is currently no Federal or State regulatory level for these compounds, however, both the EPA and State of Connecticut Department of Public Health (CT DPH) have established Drinking Water Health Advisory Levels (HAL) and PFAS Action Plans and are working to determine MCLs for PFAS. The EPA HAL is 70 ppt combined for PFOA and PFOS. The CT DPH HAL is 70 ppt combined for PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, PFHxA and PFHpA. The FTDWD has adopted operational measures to minimize PFAS levels in the finished water and we have started the process to design and build a treatment plant that will remove PFAS from groundwater sources. The FTDWD’s treated water has tested below the HALs, and will continue to be monitored.

*EPA Health Advisory Level (HAL) is 70ppt combined or greater for PFOS + PFOA

**CT DPH Health Advisory Level (HAL) is 70ppt combined or greater for PFOS + PFOA + PFNA + PFHxA + PFHpA

***Currently, no criteria for HAL has been determined at the state or federal level

Request

More Information

For more information or questions about this report, please contact our Manager of Water Quality at waterquality@firstdistrictwater.org or 203-229-7273.

About Our Water

How FTDWD Water Is Treated

The reservoir water is filtered at our treatment plant in New Canaan. The filtered water is then disinfected with chlorine to protect against any bacteria. We carefully monitor the amount of chlorine, adding the lowest quantity necessary to ensure the safety of your water without compromising the taste. Finally, chemicals are added to adjust the acidity, reduce the corrosivity and coat the pipes. This protects the pipes and keeps leaching of minerals such as lead and iron to a minimum. Fluoride is also added to prevent tooth decay. At the well field, the groundwater is filtered naturally by sand and gravel. The water is then treated in a similar manner as the surface water with the addition of aeration which removes contaminants and raises the pH.

Water Quality & Sustainability

Conserve Water & Save Money

Fix leaks.

This one step alone could cut your water usage by almost 20 percent.

Indoors:

Trim a minute off the length of your showers. You’ll save on your water-heating bills, too.

Turn off the water while lathering up, shaving, or brushing teeth.

Use a bucket to capture shower and bath water while you wait for it to warm up. Then use it in your toilet tank or to water plants.

Only wash full loads in your dishwasher and your washing machine.

Outdoors:

Water outdoors only when and where needed.

Water on cloudy days, at night, or in the evening.

Follow the mandatory twice-weekly schedule for automatic irrigation systems, effective 4/1/21 – 10/31/21:

If last digit of your address number is an even number, the letters A – M or you have no address number: Water only on Sunday & Wednesday, 12:01 AM – 10:00 AM, or 6:00 PM – Midnight

If last digit of your address number is an odd number or the letters N – Z: Water only on Saturday and Tuesday, 12:01 AM – 10:00 AM, or 6:00 PM – Midnight

For more information visit www.firstidstrictwater.ort/irrigation-2022

More ways to conserve water

Water Sources and How We Protect Them

Protecting the water supply at its source is the first step in achieving the water department’s goal of providing safe drinking water to its customers. The District’s reservoirs, located in Lewisboro, NY and New Canaan, CT, hold approximately one billion gallons of water. The source of the water is the watershed land covering 10 square miles in New Canaan, Ridgefield and Wilton, CT and Lewisboro, NY. Rainfall and snowmelt from this land are channeled into soils, groundwater, creeks and streams and then into our reservoirs. Disturbance or pollution on watershed land can directly affect the drinking water reservoirs.

Measures to protect the watershed land and reservoirs include frequent patrolling of the area. Open communications with both the local police and fire departments in our watershed towns is essential. We also work closely with local governments focusing attention on new land development in our watershed. When necessary we actively oppose unsuitable development and, where appropriate, work to get modifications to reduce the impacts of development. Each year our water treatment operators visit the properties on the watershed as part of our sanitary survey requirement.

Procedures to protect our groundwater sources in the Kellogg-Deering Well Field continue through the Aquifer Protection Area Regulations. The Norwalk Zoning Commission has used its authority to register and regulate businesses that pose a potential risk to our drinking water. The commission continues to provide updates to the registrants and work closely with the water department to protect our well field.

Customer Inquiries

Hardness

Many customers have asked about the hardness level of our water because dishwasher and hot water heater manuals may ask for this information. Hardness in water is determined by the calcium and magnesium (both nontoxic minerals) content in the water. Our water has a moderate hardness level, ranging from 48 – 114 mg/L, or 2.8 – 6.7 grains per gallon, over the last year.

Lead

Lead in water remains in the news as communities try to reduce the chances that lead from plumbing components will end up in the drinking water. The First District’s water is lead-free when it leaves our treatment plant but lead can enter the water as it travels through a lead service pipe, lead solder or household plumbing containing lead. Please contact us if you are interested in testing your drinking water for lead. Please read more about lead under “Lead and Drinking Water” at the end of this report.

Learn more about lead and drinking water

Source Water Assessment

A source water assessment performed by the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health indicated that the surface water source has a moderate susceptibility and the groundwater source a high susceptibility to potential sources of contamination. This does not imply poor water quality but does indicate the need for protection. The completed assessment report can be found on the Department of Public Health website:

http://www.dir.ct.gov/dph/Water/SWAP/Community/CT1030011.pdf

Additional source water assessment information can be found at the Environmental Protection Agency website at:

www.epa.gov/sourcewaterprotection

Learn more at EPA

Health Information

From the EPA

This statement is prescribed by the US Environmental Protection Agency for your information.

Sources of lead in drinking water include corrosion of household plumbing system and erosion of natural deposits.

Substances That Might Be in Drinking Water

To ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the U.S. EPA prescribes regulations limiting the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems.

Lead and Drinking Water

If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children.