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Although all our drinking water is initially derived from rain, it is stored in nature either as surface water (in ponds, lakes, streams and rivers) or as ground water (in wells that tap into underground reservoirs called aquifers). Much of this water cannot be safely consumed by people because it has been polluted with toxic inorganic contaminants or organic pollutants or pathogenic microorganisms or radioactive materials. In general, ground water is less likely to be polluted than surface water, because ground water is filtered as it percolates through the soil on its way into aquifers, and this purifies it to a certain extent. However, water from both of these sources is likely to contain some contaminants, especially minerals.
The City of Oxford obtains its drinking water from two sets of wells (called well fields) in well fields east of town. One well field is located near Leonard Howell Park (left-hand side of map) and the other is further east, in Wayne Township near Collinsville (right-hand side of map). Because our water source is ground water, less purification is needed that if it were surface water. However, our water does contain minerals that may cause it to be less tasty than one would wish, and this is an agricultural area, so our water may also contain some pesticides or fertilizer components. As a result, it does require some treatment to render it drinkable (or potable).
The goal of drinking water treatment systems, then, is to reduce the concentrations of toxic inorganic and organic pollutants as well as microorganisms in water to a level that is safe to drink. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates the amounts of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. (The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) similarly regulates the contaminants in bottled water.)
Several stages of purification may be utilized in treating drinking water:
The first six steps is optional because they are usually needed only when treating surface water or ground water that contains excess minerals and/or is derived from heavily-polluted agricultural areas. However, neither chlorination nor fluoridation is currently considered optional because chlorination prevents microbial growth in stored water and fluoridation prevents tooth decay, especially in growing children.
Each day the City of Oxford Drinking Water Treatment Plant treats about three million gallons of water. making it drinkable by virtue of removing materials that would make the water either unsafe or unpalatable. In our water treatment plant,
To ensure its continued safety, the EPA mandates regular testing of drinking water in public water systems. The City of Oxford samples for bacteria, inorganic, radioactive, synthetic organic, volatile organic and disinfection by-product contaminants in our drinking water.
You may obtain more information about drinking water safety from the EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800.426.4791). Similar information about bottled water or home drinking water treatment devices may be obtained from the FDA (800.332.4010) between 12 and 4 on weekdays.
