Annual Water Quality Reports Water Quality Report-2019

View the PDF version Google Docs PDF Viewer

System                        Dear Customer,                    Our state certified laboratory     Cryptosporidium
Overview                                                        runs over 8,000 tests a year and
                              We are pleased to report that     include collecting water           Cryptosporidium is a
The Muskegon Water            the water we treat has never      samples at various stages of the   microscopic organism that,
Filtration Plant is a         had a violation of a              treatment process as well as       when ingested, can result in
conventional water            contaminant level or of any       throughout the distribution        diarrhea, fever and other
treatment plant with a        other water quality standard.     system. These samples are          gastrointestinal symptoms. The
capacity of 40 million                                          analyzed for many different        Muskegon Water Filtration
gallons per day. Our          This report contains a            chemical and microbiological       Plant has tested for
customers include not         summary of the quality of the     parameters.                        Cryptosporidium in both Lake
only the City of              water provided to you during                                         Michigan and in the water we
Muskegon, but also            2019 and details where our        Our sophisticated laboratory       treat. We have never detected it
North Muskegon,               water comes from, what it         equipment can detect               in our treated water. The
Muskegon Township,            contains, and the risks our       substances at very minute          organism is present in Lake
Roosevelt Park, County        water testing and treatment are   levels. Drinking water,            Michigan and comes from
Northside, Fruitport and      designed to prevent.              including bottled water, may       animal wastes in the watershed.
Norton Shores.                Muskegon Water Filtration         reasonably be expected to          Cryptosporidium is eliminated
                              Plant personnel are committed     contain at least small amounts     by an effective treatment
Our water comes from          to providing you with the         of some contaminants. The          combination including
Lake Michigan. The state      safest and most reliable water    presence of contaminants does      filtration, sedimentation and
performed an assessment       supply. Informed customers are    not necessarily indicate our       disinfection.
of our source water in        our best allies in maintaining    water poses a health risk. For
2003 to determine the         safe drinking water.              more information about             Water Quality
susceptibility or the                                           contaminants and potential
                                                                                                   Concerns
relative potential of                                           health effects, call the U.S.
contamination. The              Muskegon Water Plant            EPA’s Safe Drinking Water          Some people may be more
susceptibility rating is on     treated over 3.9 billion        Hotline at (800) 426-4791.         vulnerable to contaminants in
a six-tiered scale from        gallons of water in 2019.                                           the drinking water than the
very low to high based                                                                             general population.
primarily on geologic                                                                              Immunocompromised persons,
sensitivity, water                                                                                 such as persons with cancer
chemistry and                                                                                      undergoing chemotherapy,
contaminant sources. The                                                                           persons who have undergone
susceptibility of our                                                                              organ transplants, people with
source water is                                                                                    HIV/AIDS or other immune
moderately high.                                                                                   system disorders, some elderly
                                    Get Involved!                                                  persons and infants can be
                                                                                                   particularly at risk for
                                    CUSTOMER VIEWS WELCOME!
      DID YOU KNOW?                                                                                infections. These people should
                                    Meetings that deal with decisions about our source             seek advice about drinking
        Four gallons of                water are conducted through the Muskegon
       water costs less                                                                            water from their health care
                                       Conservation District at (231) 773-0008.                    providers. Environmental
       than one penny,
                                    Consult our web site at www.shorelinecity.com or               Protection Agency and Centers
      delivered to you 24
                                       contact the plant at (231) 724-4106.                        for Disease Control guidelines
      hours a day, seven
         days a week!               For further information, see U.S. Environmental                on appropriate means to lessen
                                       Protection Agency (EPA) water information at                the risk of infection by
                                       www.epa.gov/safewater.                                      Cryptosporidium are available
                                                                                                   from the EPA’s safe drinking
                                                                                                   Water Hotline at
                                                                                                   (800) 426-4791.
      C I TY OF MUSKE GON TREATE D W ATE R QU AL I TY C HART
Listed below are the water quality parameters for the City of Muskegon drinking water during the reporting period of 2019. All parameters
shown are BELOW allowed levels. Not listed are the hundreds of other contaminants for which we tested that were NOT detected.
        Substance                                 Highest Level             Highest Level            MCLG         Source of                                          Violation
                                              Allowed (EPA’s MCLs)            Detected                            Contaminant                                        Yes / No
 Regulated at the Treatment Plant
        BARIUM                                  2.0 PPM                 0.02 PPM            2.0 PPM         Discharge from Drilling Wastes                           NO
        TOC (Total Organic Carbon)                  TT                  1.94 PPM                 N/A        Naturally Present                                        NO
        TURBIDITY*                                  TT                  0.07 NTU                 N/A        Lake Sediment                                            NO
        FLUORIDE                                4.0 PPM                 0.80 PPM            4.0 PPM         Additive                                                 NO
        * Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness of the water and is a good indicator of water quality. 100% of our samples are below 0.3 NTU
 Regulated in the Distribution System
        MAXIMUM RESIDUAL                    4 PPM              1.23 PPM, RAA         N/A        Disinfectant (Chlorine)                                              NO
        DISINFECTANT LEVEL (MRDL)
        TOTAL TRIHALOMETHANES              80 PPB (AVG)       39.70 PPB, LRAA        N/A        Disinfection byproduct                                               NO
        HALOACETIC ACIDS                   60 PPB             24.00 PPB, LRAA        N/A        Disinfection byproduct                                               NO
        Detection range: MRDL 0.12 PPM to 1.71 PPM, Total Trihalomethanes 15.2 PPB to 47.0 PPB, and Haloacetic Acids 9 PPB to 35 PPB
 Unregulated Contaminants
        SODIUM                                       Not Regulated          12 PPM                   N/A
                                                                                                       Naturally Occurring Mineral
        PFAS (PFOA + PFOS)**                         Not Regulated           3 PPT                   N/A
                                                                                                       Chemical Used in Industrial Processes,
                                                                                                       Not naturally present in environment
        ** Five of the six samples collected in 2019 showed “No Detect” and only one sample showed 3 PPT. EPA’s lifetime health advisory level is 70 PPT
        Unregulated contaminants are those for which EPA has not established standards. The purpose of monitoring is to assist the EPA in determining occurrence
        and whether future regulation is warranted. Other unregulated trace contaminants measured in micrograms per Liter (PPB) in
            Tap Water: Chlorate=225, Total Strontium=122, Total Vanadium=0.25, Total Molybdenum=1.1, Chromium=0.35, Hexavalent Chromium=No Detect
            Distribution: Chlorate=222, Total Strontium=124, Total Vanadium=0.28, Total Molybdenum=1.0, Chromium=0.35, Hexavalent Chromium=0.15
 Regulated at Customer’s Tap
        Substance       Action Level 90th Percentile Ideal Goal (EPA’s MCLGs )                                             Typical Source
       LEAD***           15 PPB         3.0 PPB                0 PPB               Corrosion of household Plumbing systems, Erosion of Natural Deposits
       COPPER***         1.3 PPM        0.1 PPM              1.3 PPM               Corrosion of household Plumbing systems, Erosion of Natural Deposits
  ***Samples were collected in July 2017. Only 1 of the 65 sites tested exceeded the action level for lead. None of the 65 sites exceeded the action level for copper.

Total number of service lines are 13,001 and out of which 11,898 are estimated to be lead service lines.
If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking
water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. The Muskegon Water Filtration Plant is
responsible for providing high quality drinking water, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components.
When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 30 seconds to 2
minutes before using water for drinking or cooking. If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your water tested.
Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water
Hotline at 1-800-426-4791 or at https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water Infants and children who drink water containing lead in
excess of the action level could experience delays in their physical or mental development. Children could show slight deficits in attention span
and learning abilities. Adults who drink this water over many years could develop kidney problems or high blood pressure.

 DEFINITIONS
         MAXIMUM CONTAMINANT             = 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
                      LEVEL (MCL)          available treatment technology.
         MAXIMUM CONTAMINANT             = The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs are set by the
               LEVEL GOAL (MCLG)           U.S. EPA and allow for a margin of safety.
              MAXIMUM RESIDUAL           = The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is
       DISINFECTANT LEVEL (MRDL)           necessary for control of microbial contaminants.
              MAXIMUM RESIDUAL           = The level of a drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRDLGs do not reflect the
DISINFECTANT LEVEL GOAL (MRDLG)            benefits of the use of disinfectants to control microbial contaminants.
                       PPM (mg/L)        = One part per million (milligram per Liter).
                        PPB (ug/L)       = One part per billion (microgram per Liter).
                        PPT (ng/L)       = One part per trillion (nanogram per Liter).
                ACTION LEVEL (AL)        = The concentration of a contaminant that triggers treatment or other requirement that a water system must follow. Action Levels are
                                           reported at the 90th percentile for homes at greatest risk.
                                   NTU   = Nephelometric Turbidity Units.
                                    TT   = Treatment Technique- a required process intended to reduce the levels of a contaminant.
                                   RAA   = Running Annual Average.
                                  LRAA   = Locational Running Annual Average.
                                  MRDL   = The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water.
The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, ponds, reservoirs, springs and wells. Our water comes from
Lake Michigan. As water travels over the surface of the land and through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and, in some cases,
radioactive material and can pick up substances from the presence of animals or from human activity.
Contaminants which may be present in source water include:
   Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria which may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock
     operations and wildlife.
   Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals which can be naturally occurring or result from urban stormwater runoff, industrial or
     domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining or farming.
   Pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agricultural and residential usage.
   Radioactive contaminants, which are naturally occurring or the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.
   Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals which are byproducts of industrial processes and
     petroleum production and can also come from gas stations, urban runoff and septic systems. In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink,
     EPA prescribes regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Food and Drug
     Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which provide the same protection for public health.

Go to the top of the page.


Sign up for City of Muskegon Emails