Water quality month reminds us to take a long, hard look at what our households, communities, and places of employment are doing to protect sources of water. But what does water quality mean? Is it the water in our lakes? Is it the water coming out of our faucet? Is it the authorities that distribute our water? Is it the wells that provide water to homes? Actually, it’s all of those things, and then some more! How much do you know about water quality? Maybe it’s easier to answer how much you don’t know about water quality. The first step in advocating for keeping our water clean is learning the facts. So this month, we’re talking all things water in celebration of #WaterQualityMonth.

IN THIS ISSUE:

Featured

Safe Drinking Water Begins at the Source

Providing protection for water supplies. Source Water Protection has been a growing concern for many municipalities and community water systems. To help protect Pennsylvania’s drinking water, the Department of Environmental Protection created the Source Water Protection Technical Assistance Program (SWPTAP).

Clean Drinking Water: It’s not as simple as turning on the faucet.

Where does drinking water come from? The quick and easy answer to this question is - either a body of water or an underground water source. What does that mean? An underground source, like a well, fills with groundwater (that’s what we call water in the ground). When groundwater like rain or snow soaks into the ground, it creates an “aquifer”- allowing the well to fill. Bodies of water, on the other hand, include streams, rivers, and lakes. Unlike underground sources that rely on groundwater, these water body sources are reliant on air, rain, and water that flows down to the source.

What’s the To-Do with Dog Poo?

When you leave your pet waste on the grass or sidewalk, or when you improperly dispose of pet waste through storm or street drains - you could be contributing to low water quality and water pollution.

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