RAF Mildenhall 2008 Water Quality Report Published June 26, 2009 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affiairs RAF MILDENHALL, England -- Introduction Air Force Instruction 48-144, Safe Drinking Water Surveillance Program, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) require all community water systems provide to their consumers an annual water quality report. This report will help you understand where your drinking water comes from and what is in it. It will help you to make informed choices that affect your families' health and help you understand the importance of protecting our drinking water sources. Source Water The 100th Civil Engineering Squadron operates RAF Mildenhall's potable water distribution system. Water comes from one borehole (well) that is recharged from groundwater obtained from a limestone (chalk) aquifer situated directly under the base. Additionally, in 2008, RAF Mildenhall had the ability to purchase water from the local water supplier, Anglian Water. Water from Anglian supplemented the base water supply and was available for use if needed. Treatment Process RAF Mildenhall's water supply is treated to remove volatile organic compounds and pesticides using aeration and granular activated charcoal before being chlorinated using a sodium hypochlorite solution. Chlorine is added to the water supply for disinfection purposes and prevents bacteriological growth in the distribution system. Testing Bioenvironmental Engineering (BE) technicians collect bacteriological samples from various locations in the water distribution system. These samples are analyzed in the BE water lab to ensure no bacteriological growth is present in the distribution system. Also, BE technicians collect water samples for chemical analysis from representative locations in the water system and send them to Northumbrian Water Laboratory (NWL) for analysis. NWL is headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. They have laboratories throughout England, but primarily analyzing drinking water at their Horsley laboratory in Newcastle. The results are reviewed and maintained by the Bioenvironmental Engineering Flight at RAF Lakenheath to ensure compliance with the safe drinking water standards. Water Analysis Results RAF Mildenhall's water supply is tested for 99 substances. The table below lists the contaminants detected that require reporting by the US EPA. 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 water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791 or by going to their ground and drinking water website at http://www.epa.gov/safewater. The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity. The table of analysis results below lists possible, generic sources for some detected contaminants; an identification of a possible source is not specific to RAF Mildenhall but applies to all water in general. Contaminants that may be present in source water include: · Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, which may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems and wildlife · Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, which can be naturally occurring or result from urban storm runoff and industrial or domestic wastewater discharges · Pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water runoff and residential use · Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic or volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of industrial processes and can come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff and septic systems · Radioactive contaminants, which can be naturally occurring or be the result of industrial activities In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, limits are established on the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. The limits below are from the January 2005 US Department of Defense Environmental Final Governing Standards (FGS) - United Kingdom. This document integrates US and UK requirements by implementing the more stringent limit of any chemical regulated by either country. Results Discussion The results in the table below include all chemicals covered by the US EPA's Safe Drinking Water Act for which analysis was performed and concentrations of the chemicals that were detected from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2008. The lab did not detect the remaining substances. Di-(2ethylhexyl) pthalate (DEHP) is reported below as having exceeded its FGS maximum contaminant limit (MCL) on one sample out of the six collected in 2008. No DEHP was detected in the other five samples. DEHP is most commonly used of a group of related chemicals called phthalates or phthalic acid esters. The greatest use of DEHP is as a plasticizer for polyvinylchloride (PVC) and other polymers including rubber, cellulose and styrene. A blank control sample (de-ionized water) was analyzed and returned a result 14 g/l above the MCL. Based on the elevated result for the blank sample and history of possible false positives at most RAF installations, BE does not believe the laboratory analysis was accurate or that this one elevated sample result reflected a health hazard. However, since the laboratory result exceeded the MCL, it should be reported. Further information regarding DEHP in drinking water and its health effects can be obtained by contacting Bioenvironmental Engineering at 01638-528047 or DSN 226-8047. Additional Health Information Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons such as those with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, those who have undergone organ transplants, those with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, and some elderly and infants can be particularly at risk from infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. The US EPA and US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800) 426-4791 or on the US EPA's Web site, http://www.epa.gov. Input and Information This report is available on RAF Mildenhall's website: http://www.mildenhall.af.mil/. Hard copies of this report are available at the Public Affairs Office, Building 239, room 304. If you have questions, please contact Maj. William Hurtle or TSgt Tia McGehee in Bioenvironmental Engineering at 01638 528047 or DSN 226-8047.