How can I help protect drinking water?

Using the new information that is now available about drinking water, citizens can both be aware of the challenges of keeping drinking water safe and take an active role in protecting drinking water.  There are lots of ways that individuals can get involved.  Some people will help clean up the watershed that is the source of their community's water.  Other people might get involved in wellhead protection activities to prevent the contamination of the ground water source that provides water to their community.  These people will be able to make use of the information that states and water systems are gathering as they assess their sources of water. 

Other people will want to attend public meetings to ensure that the community's need for safe drinking water is considered in making decisions about land use.  You may wish to participate as your state and water system make funding decisions.  And all consumers can do their part to conserve water and to dispose properly of household chemicals. 

for more information... 

~ Read It's YOUR Drinking Water: Get to Know it and Protect it!: How the right-to-know provisions of the Safe Drinking Water Act can help you learn about and protect your drinking water. (EPA-810-K-99-002) or download a printable version in PDF  

~ learn about what source water protection can mean to your community 

~  The Farm*A*Syst/Home*A*Syst program can help you to keep your farm or home from being a source of drinkingwater contaminants, and help you prevent contamination of your own drinking water supply.   

~  Many communities have implemented successful programs to protect their ground water source.  Learn how do wellhead protection in your community from The Groundwater Foundation and the Ground Water Protection Council

~ find out what your state is doing about source water protection.  Visit your state's source water protection web site, which you can find through EPA's local drinking water info site 

~ to find out about source water protection and local watershed cleanup activities, check Adopt Your Watershed  

~ see what proposed EPA rules about drinking water are open for comment 

~ Be careful not to waste water. Read Using Water Efficiently: Ideas for Residences and other efficiency publications.

Return to Drinking Water & Health: what you need to know

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