Welcome to our October Newsletter |
|
The October chill is in the air, the crispy leaves are beginning to fall and just like that summer is over in New England. This is the month that we celebrate Halloween with sweet treats and kick off the busy holiday season.
|
|
In this Edition
Brownfield Redevelopment
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS)
Gross Alpha
Industry News
|
|
We care what you think! Please take our survey and lets us know how we are doing. Click the link below for the office you use most frequently.
|
|
Brownfields are areas of land that have been abandoned, closed or underused which are typically from industrial, commercial or military sites. They can be former industrial factories, commercial buildings or warehouses no longer in use, closed gas stations, railroads, dry cleaners as well as vacant lots, etc. They are sites that at one time produced contaminants during their operation, a vacant lot containing contaminated fill or the site of the illegal dumping of pollutants. The EPA suggests that there are nearly ½ million brownfield sites around the U.S. though that number only includes sites that have had an environmental site assessment (ESA) completed; the actual number might be several times greater than that.
Environmental cleanup of brownfields is governed by complex and often overlapping federal, state, local, and tribal laws. It can be quite costly and complicated. There are two laws that have the most influence over the redevelopment of brownfields; Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). These laws help hold the responsible parties accountable for the costs associated with cleaning up these sites. There are also state programs which help to alleviate the risks of liability for potential developers and investors of brownfield sites.
There are many benefits of redeveloping a brownfield; this includes protecting human health and the environment, adding to the tax base of the community, creating new jobs, preservation of greenspace, decrease of blight and crime, reduction in urban sprawl and using the existing infrastructure.
|
|
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) |
|
Total dissolved solids (TDS) represent the total concentration of dissolved substances in water. These substances are made up of organic matter (anions, negatively charged ions) and inorganic salts (cations, positively charged ions) such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, nitrates, bicarbonates, chlorides, carbonates, and sulfates. The total dissolved solids concentration is the sum of the anions and cations in the water.
TDS gets into our drinking water in several different ways; naturally depending on the region, agricultural and urban run-off, chemicals used in water treatment, industrial wastewater and discharge, and salts used to treat icy roads. It is important to monitor TDS because it can be an early indicator in determining if something is happening to the water quality. The United States guideline for TDS is 500 parts per million and is a secondary drinking water standard; this means that there are no health risks associated with elevated levels of TDS rather a measure of aesthetics; for example, taste, color, odor, etc
|
|
Gross alpha is a colorless, odorless and tasteless radioactive energy that is released from the decay and breakdown of other radioactive elements that are found in the granite bedrock in New England. The naturally occurring radioactive element, uranium, changes form and creates decay products such as gross alpha energy. Since this occurs naturally in the bedrock where wells are drilled, it can be found in drinking water.
Gross alpha can cause health effects over a period of time if ingested or inhaled. Since it loses energy rapidly, absorption through the skin is not a concern as it cannot pass through. Since gross alpha interacts with genetic material within cells it can cause cancer if someone is exposed over a long period of time. The common types of cancer associated with gross alpha and other radionuclides are bone, head and nasal passage tumors. There are no immediate health effects of gross alpha.
Treatment is available for gross alpha and the current maximum contaminant level in New Hampshire and Maine is 15 pCi/L. If you have high levels of gross alpha in your well, it is recommended to also test for Radium 226/228 which are positive ions that can be released by gross alpha radiation. Gross alpha can be treated with a reverse osmosis system. If radium is present, cation exchange (also known as a conventional water softener) can reduce the level of ions with a positive charge. Another treatment, recommended if uranium is present, is a mixed cation/anion exchange with a calcite neutralizer.
For more information about gross alpha in Maine's Drinking Water visit Maine DWP:
|
|
NEWS THROUGHOUT OUR INDUSTRY |
|
|
|
|
|
|
