Question: I’ve tested my tap water in Kaimuki several times over the past three months using a water quality test kit and get highly elevated readings for nitrates (over 50 parts per million). I called the Board of Water Supply and was told that their water tests are normal and posted online. However, these results are from 2009. I was told that they no longer have the staff to spot-check water quality. After everything I’ve read about nitrates, I don’t want to drink my water even after boiling. Our family is buying reverse osmosis water. We pay high water bills and our rates are going up. What can I do to assure that my water is safe?
Answer: The Board of Water Supply insists that the drinking water on Oahu, including Kaimuki, is safe, based on tests done yearly that meet federal and state requirements.
Asked about your readings, the BWS said it could not comment on the test kit without more information. But, it said it has no data showing any of its water sources ever having nitrate levels of 50 parts per million or higher.
"All of our water sources meet the EPA maximum contaminant level for nitrates, which is 10 ppm," said BWS spokeswoman Tracy Burgo. "There is no need to boil or use reverse osmosis treated water due to concerns about nitrates."
Nitrate levels in BWS water sources range from 0.5 ppm to 5 ppm based on test methods approved by the federal Environmental Protection Agency and laboratories certified by the state Department of Health to analyze drinking water, she said.
Specifically, she said BWS tests for nitrates once a year: "Our staff collects samples in accordance with sampling schedules reviewed, approved and monitored by" the Health Department.
The BWS Annual Consumer Confidence Report shows the results of tests performed the previous calendar year. So, the 2011 report will show the results of nitrate tests done in 2010, while the 2010 report shows 2009 results.
BWS staff reviewed a number of 2011 reports for the Kaimuki area and found all had nitrate samples collected in 2010, she said. However, it’s likely you saw the 2009 results before the 2010 results were posted.
Burgo said the Consumer Confidence Report webpage — www.hbws.org/cssweb/display.cfm?sid=1081 — is updated every July after the annual reports are mailed to customers. Mailings are done before July 1, and the updates usually are made the second week of July.
If you checked the webpage before this year’s update, it’s possible you saw a 2010 report, "giving the appearance that the sample was done two years ago," Burgo said.
However, when we looked at the online reports recently, the nitrates reading for the Manoa Tunnel still showed a 2009 result. After checking, Burgo explained that the BWS took over regulatory compliance testing from the Health Department’s Safe Drinking Water Branch in January.
Burgo said 2010 was "a transitional year for nitrate testing," resulting in "coordination issues" between the two agencies over access to the Manoa Tunnel. So, nitrates sampling was not conducted during this period.
Burgo said the agencies "did meet to resolve this issue and determined that the quality of the water … was not compromised. Subsequent test results indicate that water samples collected from the Manoa Tunnel meets all drinking water standards, including nitrates, and is safe for consumption."
MAHALO
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