Recycled Wastewater: Will People Accept It as Drinking Water?
I read an interesting article in the National Geographic Daily News about a push to make recycled wastewater, or reclaimed water, more appealing to people on municipal water systems. This could partially help to meet some of our current and future potable water needs in the U.S and worldwide. It could conceivably meet 6% of U.S. municipal water needs.
Treated wastewater is already being used in some countries, like Singapore, and some say that their model could be used to incentivize the use of reclaimed water. It looks to be a difficult sell to the American public, but it seems like it may be viable method to use water more efficiently. Much treated wastewater is currently being discharged into our oceans.
A big concern is that reclaimed water may contain contaminants that are not currently tested by the E.P.A. (see my previous post, Our Tap Water at Risk: E.P.A. not doing adequate job of protecting drinking water.). How will the public feel confident that the treated wastewater is actually safe?
Better regulation is needed for all our drinking water to ensure that our water is safe. If this method of recycling is to be used, people should demand that better testing is conducted before this water is used in our drinking supply.
And why isn't the E.P.A. testing for radiation in our water?
To be safe, a point of use home water filter is a great way to feel confident that you are doing the best you can to remove harmful contaminants from your drinking supply.
Check out our large variety of home water filters at Highwater Filter's webstore.
Thanks for reading!