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June 4, 2008
Opinion
How safe is Stafford's water?
Not that long ago we would find it hard to believe that people go to a grocery store to buy water, when clean water was available from the tap at home. So why are we willing to purchase bottled water at such a price? Is it because it is safer or healthier to drink, is it more closely regulated, or do we feel it is better for us than the water in our homes?
Americans consumed more than eight billion gallons of bottled water in 2006, and the numbers keep increasing each year. But is the water and the bottles it comes in safe, or at least safer than our tap water? And, is convenience worth the environmental impact?
One of the most common questions I am asked by people who move into Stafford is "How safe is it to drink the water here?"
Many people are so concerned about tap water that they buy cases of bottled water to keep in their homes, and sometimes even install a water cooler in their home.
Preserving, protecting and supplying clean water requires knowing how to best protect our groundwater and groundwater recharge areas. It is the reason we have Wellhead Protection Overlay Zones in Stafford Township that restrict what can be built within a 1,000-foot radius of each municipal well.
To assure we have clean water, we make it a priority to protect the trees and forests that clean and filter our water. Our open-space preservation plan that will set aside 61 percent of our town for conservation is critical in establishing recharge areas that protect water quality and guarantee an ample supply.
Our ordinances controlling impervious surfaces, storm water management, trees and landscaping and bio-retention standards, are all just a part of the numerous efforts we have in place to help protect our drinking water.
Most recently the township implemented "Smart Growth" policies when updating its Master Plan. The Master Plan includes numerous zoning, environmental and water management policies and ordinances that assure future growth will not impact water supply or quality.
Because all of our drinking water in Stafford comes from our groundwater, or aquifer, we have made it a priority to assure our groundwater is protected and will remain safe.
Stafford continues to be recognized as a national leader for its water policies and for establishing standards and ordinances for groundwater recharge of storm water, which will also assure we avoid the risk of saltwater intrusion in our wells.
All of this and much more have helped assure the drinking water in Stafford is clean and safe.
No other community in New Jersey has received the National Groundwater Guardian Award as many times as Stafford — for 15 consecutive years.
Other recognition Stafford has received for water quality and water protection policies include, in 1992, the Quality New Jersey Award for water quality; in 2000, the International Environmental Excellence Award for overall water quality and for our policies to protect our water supply; also in 2000, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) award for water quality. In 2007, Stafford received the NJDEP Clean Water Award. We know it is not the awards that are important, it is what the awards represent.
Our municipal wells are tested on a daily basis (365 days a year) to some of the strictest standards in the United States by licensed independent laboratories. The results of those tests are published on the Stafford Web site. We have maintained the test data for our wells each year since the 1950s and utilize this historical information to identify any trends in water quality.
The NJDEP and EPA are responsible to regulate our Township's tap water and set specific standards that our water must meet, while only the FDA oversees bottled water. Yet FDA oversight does not apply to water packaged and sold within the same state, leaving some 60 to 70 percent of bottled water, including the contents of water cooler jugs, free from FDA regulations.
No one should think that bottled water is better regulated, better protected or safer to drink than our tap water.
In one notorious case, water coming from a well located near a hazardous waste site was sold to many bottlers. At least one of these companies labeled its product "spring water." In another case, water sold as "pure glacier water" came from a public water supply in Alaska. There is no requirement for these bottlers to list the actual source of the water on the labels.
Also, the container may be made of polycarbonate. This plastic has the potential to leach BPA, a chemical that can cause neurological problems, among other things.
Fewer than 20 percent of those convenient single serving bottles are recycled, according to estimates by the Container Recycling Institute. The rest are tossed onto our beaches, roadsides and into landfills, where they can be around for 1,000 years.
There currently is a slick of plastic garbage floating in the Pacific Ocean that is bigger than the state of Texas and still growing.
As for me and my family, we are very comfortable drinking the water from our tap. I am confident in the knowledge that the water quality in Stafford meets or exceeds every parameter set by the NRDC, NJDEP and EPA.
I find it difficult to understand that people would rather purchase and consume bottled water that has the potential to not meet the standards we test for on a daily basis in Stafford Township.
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