Report of Pharmaceuticals

The public water supply industry in Wisconsin takes this issue very seriously and is in the process of reviewing the report. It appears the report primarily focuses on large metropolitan areas that obtain their water from surface water sources. The majority of systems in Wisconsin, more than 90%, serve populations of less than 10,000 and more than 60% of those serve populations of 1,000 or less. These systems primarily use ground water sources and are affected at a much lesser degree. We are fortunate that in this country we have the technology to detect these types of products at very small levels – sometimes at parts per trillion, or the equivalent of one second in 32,000 years. Being able to detect these types of compounds at the onset will allow for the development of water and wastewater treatment processes for the future.

Meeting these future demands will require major infrastructure funding. The Rural Utilities Service which funds the majority of water and wastewater treatment plants for small communities and rural areas has a backlog of applications totaling $2.5 billion and another $1.5 billion of pre-applications on file.

The public should rest assured that their drinking water is the safest in the world and is continually tested to meet the quality control parameters of the Safe Drinking Water Act. If those parameters are exceeded the consumer is notified and corrective action is taken.

For additional information, contact Ken M. Blomberg at 715-344-7778 or ken@wrwa.org.

The Wisconsin Rural Water Association (WRWA) is a non-profit organization of rural and small water and wastewater systems. Its mission: To assist water/wastewater systems improve and preserve the quality and quantity of water resources in the State of Wisconsin”. WRWA is the largest utility member association in Wisconsin.