Pilot Rock, Oregon

The City of Pilot Rock is pleased to provide you with this summary of 2006 drinking water quality information.    This report is designed to inform you about the quality water and services we deliver to you everyday.  Our constant goal is to provide you with a safe and dependable supply of drinking water.  Our water source is two deep basalt wells located on Delwood Street on the west side of town.

We are pleased to report that our drinking water is safe and meets Federal and State requirements without any kind of treatment.

This report shows our water quality and what it means.  If you have any questions about this report or concerning your water utility, please contact Steve Draper at City Hall at 443-2811.  We want our water users to be informed about their water utility.  If you want to learn more, please attend any of our regularly scheduled City Council meetings.  They are held on the first and third Tuesdays of every month in the Public Library at 7:00 PM.

Health Information

The City of Pilot Rock routinely monitors for constituents in your drinking water according to Federal and State laws.  The tables included in this report show the results of our monitoring for the period of January 1 to December 31, 2006.  Or in some cases, the results of the most recent sampling completed in accordance with State and Federal regulations. 

All drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants.  The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that the water poses a health risk.  More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Hot Line (1-800-426-4791).

Definitions

In this report you will find many terms and abbreviations you might not be familiar with.  To help you better understand these terms we’ve provided the following definitions:

• Non-Detects (ND) – Laboratory analysis indicates that the constituent is not present.
• Parts Per Million (ppm) or Milligrams per Liter (mg/l) – One part per million corresponds to one minute in two years or a single penny in $10,000.00.
• Parts Per Billion (ppb) or Micrograms per Liter – One part per billion corresponds to one minute in 2,000 years or a single penny in $10,000,000.00.
• Parts Per Trillion (ppt) or Nanograms per Liter (nanograms/L) – One part per trillion corresponds to one minute in 2,000,000 years or a single penny in $10,000,000,000.00.
• Parts per Quadrillion (ppq) or Picograms per Liter (picograms/L) – One part per quadrillion corresponds to one minute in 2,000,000,000 years or a single penny in $10,000,000,000,000.
• Picocuries per Liter (pci/L) – Picocuries per Liter is a measure of the radioactivity in water.
• Millirens per year (mrem/yr) – Measure of radiation absorbed by the body.
• Million Fibers per Liter (MFL) – Million Fibers per Liter is a measure of the presence of asbestos fibers that are longer than 10 micrometers.
• Action Level – The concentration of a contaminant, which, if exceeded, triggers treatment, or other requirements that a water system must follow.
• Treatment Techniques (TT) (mandatory Language) - A treatment technique is a required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.
• Maximum Contaminant Level – (mandatory language) – The “maximum allowed” (MCL) is the highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water.  MCL’s are set as close to the MCLG’s as feasible using the best available treatment technology.
• Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (mandatory Language) – the Goal (MCLG) is the level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health.  MCLG'’ allow for a margin of safety.

Additional Water Quality Sampling Information

Unregulated contaminants - Although some contaminants are not yet regulated they may be of interest to some of our customers.  Sulfate, which has a proposed MCL of 250 PPM, was monitored in 1996 at a level of 23 PPM.  Not listed in the tables above were 9 inorganic compounds, 41 volatile organic compounds, and 45 synthetic organic compounds for which we continually test for that were not detected.  We have a pH of 7.6.

MCL’s are set at very stringent levels.  To understand the possible health effects described for many regulated constituents, a person would have to drink 2 liters of water every day at the MCL level for a lifetime to have a one- in-a million chance of having the described health effect.

In our continuing efforts to maintain a safe and dependable water supply it is necessary to make improvements in your water system.  The cost of these improvements will be reflected in the rate structure.  Rate adjustments are necessary in order to address these continuing improvements and the growing list of state and federal regulations and monitoring requirements.

Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population.  Immuno-compromised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk from infections.  These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers.  EPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by cryptosporidium and other microbiological contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791).

Please call our office at 443-2811, if you have any questions.  We at the City of Pilot Rock work around the clock to provide you top quality water to every tap.  We ask that all our customers help us protect our water sources, which are the heart of our community, our way of life and our children’s future.

Thank you,
Steve Draper
Public Works Supervisor
City of Pilot Rock