City of Ogallala

 

Annual Water Quality Report

For the period of January 1 to December 31, 2007

 

This report is intended to provide you with important information about your drinking water and the efforts made by the City of Ogallala water system to provide safe drinking water.

 

For more information regarding this report, contact:

 

CHRIS BATT

 308-284-3925

 

If you would like to observe the decision-making processes that affect drinking water quality, please attend the regularly scheduled meeting of the City Council.  If you would like to participate in the process, please contact the City Clerk to arrange to be placed on the agenda of the meeting of the City Council.

 

Este informe contiene información muy importante sobre el agua que usted bebe.  Tradúzcalo ó hable con alguien que lo entienda bien.

 

CROSS-CONNECTION QUESTION AND ANSWER:

 

Q:  What is a cross connection?

 

A:  A cross connection is a direct arrangement of a piping line which allows the potable water supply to be connected to a line which contains a contaminant.  An example is the common garden hose attached to a sill cock with the end of the hose lying in a cesspoll.  Other examples are a garden hose attached to a service sink with the end of the hose submerged in a tub full of detergent, supply lines connected to bottom-fed tanks, supply lines to boilers.

 

Source of Drinking Water

The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and groundwater wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally-occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity.

 

The source of drinking water used by the City of Ogallala is groundwater.  This water is pumped from wells maintained by the City of Ogallala.

 

 

Source Water Assessment Availability

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) has completed the Source Water Assessment.  Included in the assessment is a Wellhead Protection Area map, potential contaminant source inventory, vulnerability rating, and source water protection information. To view the Source Water Assessment or for more information please contact the person named on the cover of this report or NDEQ at (402) 471-6988.

 

In order to insure that tap water is safe to drink, EPA prescribes regulations which limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems.  FDA regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same protection for public health.

 

Contaminants that 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 storm water 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 agriculture, urban storm water runoff, and residential uses.

 

Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can also come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff, and septic systems.

 

Radioactive contaminants, which can be naturally-occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.

 

Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly and infants can be particularly at risk from infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers.  EPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791).

 

The City of Ogallala is required to test for the following contaminants:

Coliform Bacteria, Antimony, Arsenic, Asbestos, Barium, Beryllium, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Cyanide, Fluoride, Lead, Mercury, Nickel, Nitrate, Nitrite, Selenium, Sodium, Thallium, Alachlor, Atrazine, Benzo(a)pyrene, Carbofuran, Chlordane, Dalapon, Di(2-ethylhexyl)adipate, Dibromochloropropane, Dinoseb, Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, Diquat, 2,4-D, Endothall, Endrin, Ethylene dibromide, Glyphosate, Heptachlor, Heptachlor epoxide, Hexachlorobenzene, Hexachlorocyclopentadiene, Lindane, Methoxychlor, Oxamyl (Vydate), Pentachlorophenol, Picloram, Polychlorinated biphenyls, Simazine, Toxaphene, Dioxin, Silvex, Benzene, Carbon Tetrachloride, o-Dichlorobenzene, Para-Dichlorobenzene, 1,2-Dichlorethane, 1,1-Dichloroethylene, Cis-1,2,-Dichloroethylene, Trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene, Dichloromethane, 1,2-Dichloropropane, Ethylbenzene, Monochlorobenzene, 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene, 1,1,1-Trichloroethane, 1,1,2-Trichloroethane, Trichloroethylene, Vinyl Chloride, Styrene, Tetrachloroethylene, Toluene, Xylenes (total), Gross Alpha (minus Uranium & Radium 226), Radium 226 plus Radium 228, Sulfate, Chloroform, Bromodichloromethane, Chlorodibromomethane, Bromoform, Chlorobenzene, m-Dichlorobenzene, 1,1-Dichloropropene, 1,1-Dichloroethane, 1,1,2,2-Tetrachlorethane, 1,2-Dichloropropane, Chloromethane, Bromomethane, 1,2,3-Trichloropropane, 1,1,1,2-Tetrachloroethane, Chloroethane, 2,2-Dichloropropane, o-Chlorotoluene, p-Chlorotoluene, Bromobenzene, 1,3-Dichloropropene, Aldrin, Butachlor, Carbarryl, Dicamba, Dieldrin, 3-Hydroxycarbofuran, Methonyl, Metolachlor, Metribuzin, Propachlor, Uranium – If disinfecting test for DBP’s.

                                                                                       wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farm