The Honolulu Board of Water Supply prepares an annual report to homeowners with test results for the water in their area.  The report for my neighborhood, Palolo Valley, arrived in the mail last month.

Results for Palolo Valley showed three contaminants:

Barium   .005 parts per million

Chromium  2.5 parts per billion

Nitrate .4 parts per million

All three of these contaminants are naturally occurring in ground water.  The levels above are fractions of the maximum allowed levels in the U.S.

Chromium has been mentioned as a concern because it has the potential to cause cancer.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sets a level of 100 parts per billion as the maximum allowable level and we are far below that.

Some portions of Oahu have been known to have higher levels of man-made contaminants due to agricultural practices from many years ago.  Sugar and Pineapple plantations in particular used pesticides that were legal decades ago and were banned later.  The Board of Water monitors the contaminants and keeps them within tolerable levels through treatment when necessary.

The Honolulu Board of Water Supply has a great too where we can lookup the water report for a particular neighborhood here.

Drinking bottled water maybe convenient, however it's also a huge waste of resources.  Imagine how much energy it takes to import oil to make a plastic bottle, take water from its source to a bottling plant, then export the water to distributors and retail stores.  Or, you can take a clean glass, turn on the tap in the kitchen and get water that's nearly as clean for a much lower price!

I believe bottled water should be used only as a substitute for sugary beverages when we're on the road and need hydration.  Save some money and the environment, by drinking Hawaii's tap water.

 

Michael Bates (RA)

i Properties Hawaii

Hawaii Realtor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Posted by Hawaii homes on 07/01/2012 03:51 PM   Comments (0)   in the ActiveRain Channel   honolulu water quality  
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