Biddeford and Saco Water Company

Biddeford and Saco Water Company is proud to present to you our second annual Water Quality Report. We are pleased to announce that our record for meeting all State and Federal drinking water laws remains exemplary. The reason is simple; all of our staff and associates are dedicated toward one clear goal - Quality First. With a focus on customer service and efficiency in operations, we continue to strive for excellence through new water quality programs that will ensure a reliable drinking water supply for years to come.

Preserving the health and well being of all our customers is an enormous task that we eagerly assume with dedication and determination. If you have any health concerns relating to the information in this report, we encourage you to contact your health care provider. For more information about this report, or for any questions relating to your drinking water, please call either Norm Lavigne, our Treatment Manager, at (207) 282-9141 or Jerry Mansfield, President of our Company, at (207) 282-1543.

What's Inside?

This report outlines the processes involved in delivering to you the highest quality drinking water available. In it, we will answer three important questions:

• Where does my water come from?
• How is my water treated and purified?
• What's in my drinking water?

Under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for setting national limits for hundreds of substances in drinking water and also specifies various treatments that water systems must use to remove these substances. Similarly, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water, which must provide the same protection for public health. Each system continually monitors for these substances and reports directly to their state regulatory agency, which in turn reports to the EPA, if any are detected in the drinking water. EPA uses this data to ensure that consumers are receiving clean water and verify that states are enforcing the laws that regulate drinking water.

Our 1999 Water Quality Report conforms to the federal regulation under the SDWA requiring water utilities to provide detailed water quality information to each of their customers annually. We are committed to providing you with this information to each of their customers annually. We are committed to providing you with this information about your water supply, because customers who are well informed are our best allies in supporting improvements necessary to maintain our ability to provide the highest quality drinking water.

Customers are invited to contact our utility at any time with questions or concerns. Individual and group tours of our Saco River treatment facility can be arranged by calling (207) 282-9141. Also, please join us at our annual Open House during National Drinking Water Week in early May.

Where Does My Water Come From?

The Saco River is our sole source of water. It begins as a small stream high in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and flows through about 124 miles of New Hampshire and Maine forest and farmland before reaching our treatment plant. The Saco River Watershed actually covers an area of roughly 1,700 square miles in central New Hampshire and southwestern Maine. We are fortunate that the Saco River is one of the cleanest major rivers in Maine and New England due in part to the lack of any substantial industrial development along the Saco River shoreline. In fact, the majority of the Saco River in Maine has been given the cleanest rating possible for water. Demand is great for high quality drinking water: we provide about 5.4 million gallons of water every day to a population of between 45,000 and 200,000 people (depending on the time of year). To learn more about our watershed on the Internet, go to U.S. EPA's Locate Your Watershed ( www.epa.gov/surf2/hucs/01060002). Additional information on the Saco River watershed and land use regulations in place for the watershed can also be obtained through the Saco River Corridor Commission's Internet site ( www.srcc-maine.org), or by visiting our office.

The Maine Drinking Water Program will be evaluating all public water supplies statewide by the year 2003 as part of the Source Water Assessment Program. The evaluation will consider geology and hydrology, land uses, water testing information, and the extent of land ownership or protection by local ordinance to determine how likely our drinking water source is to being contaminated in the future. When this work is completed by the state, it will be made available to the public and will be discussed in upcoming editions of this report. For more information, contact the Drinking Water Program at (207) 287-2070.

How is My Water Treated And Purified?

The treatment process consists of a series of steps. First, raw water is drawn from the Saco River and pumped directly to a mixing tank at our treatment facility where alum, lime and polymer are added. The addition of these chemicles causes small particles to adhere to one another making them heavy enough to settle into a basin from which sediment is removed. After settling, chlorine and polymer are added for disinfection ard turbidity removal, respectively (turbidity is a common measure of the clarity of water). The water is then filtered through layers of fine coal and silicate sand. As smaller, suspended particles are removed, turbidity disappears and clear water emerges. Chlorine is added again at this point as a precaution against any bacteria that may still be present. (We carefully monitor the amount of chlorine, adding the lowest quantity necessary to protect the safety of your water without compromising taste.) Finally, lime (used to adjust the final pH of the water), fluoride (used to prevent tooth decay), a corrosion inhibitor (used to protect distribution system pipes) and ammonia (used to reduce the formation of THMs, a common by-product of disinfection) are added before the water is pumped to sanitized resevoirs and watertowers, and into your home or business.

What's In My Water?

We are pleased to report that during the past year, the water delivered to your home or business complied with, or did better than, all state and federal drinking water requirements. Each year we analyze over 70,000 water samples for bacteria, turbidity, inorganic contaminants, lead and copper, nitrate volatile organic contaminants, total trihalomethanes, and synthetic organic contaminants. For your information, we have compiled a list in the table below showing what substances were detected in our drinking water during 1999. Although all of the substances listed below are under the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) set by the U.S. EPA, we feel it is important that you know exactly what was detected and how much of the substance was present in the water. None of the 120 other substances regulated by EPA were even detected in our water.

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, possibly including radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from human or animal activity.

Substances that may be present in source water include microbes such as viruses and bacteria, inorganic salts and metals, pesticides and herbicides, and radioactive contaminants. Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain small amounts of some of these substances. The presence of these substances does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk.

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 USEPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791).

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. USEPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the USEPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791).

Lead in Drinking Water

Lead is unusual among drinking water contaminants in that it seldom occurs naturally in water supplies like rivers and lakes. Instead, lead enters drinking water primarily as a result of the corrosion or wearing away of the plumbing and fixtures in your own home.

Lead in drinking water is a concern because young children, infants, and fetuses are particularly vulnerable to lead poisoning. Lead exposures that would have little effect on an adult can slow down normal mental and physical development of growing bodies. To compound matters, a child at play often comes in contact with sources of lead (like dirt and dust) that rarely affect an adult.

On average, it is estimated that lead in drinking water contributes between 10 and 20 percent of total lead exposure in young children. EPA estimates that more than 40 million U.S. residents use water that can contain lead in excess of EPA's Action Level of 15 ppb.

To help prevent corrosion in your home's pipes, we maintain our drinking water supply at an optimum pH and mineral content level. However, there are also some simple things you can do to reduce lead levels in your drinking water. First, use only water from the cold-water tap for drinking, cooking, and especially for making baby formula because hot water is likely to contain higher levels of lead. Also, you should flush your cold-water pipes before drawing water for any such purposes by running the water until it becomes noticeably colder to the touch, a process which my require anywhere from 5 seconds to 2 minutes or longer.

For more information, please contact Mary Ann Amrich at the Main Childhood Lead Prevention Program (207) 287-4711. Additional information is also available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800) 426-4791 and the National Lead Information Center (800) LEAD FYI (532-3394).

Partership for Safe Water

Biddeford and Saco Water Company is proud to be one of the first members of the Partnership for Safe Water in the State of Maine. The Partnership for Safe Water is a voluntary program sponsored by EPA and the American Water Works Association. Our Saco River treatment facility was among the first nationwide to be awarded a Director's Certificate by the Partnership in recognition of our exceptional water quality and facility operations.

Water Conservation Tips

Water conservation measures are an important first step in protecting our water supply. Such measures not only save the supply of our source water, but can also save you money by reducing your water and sewer bills. Here are a few suggestions:

Conservation measures you can use inside your home include:

• Fix leaking faucets, pipes, toilets, etc.
• Install water-saving devices in faucets, toilets and appliances.
• Replace old fixtures (could reduce water consumption by nearly one-half!)
• Wash only full loads of laundry.
• Do not use the toilet for trash disposal.
• Take shorter showers.
• Do not let the water run while shaving, washing, brushing teeth, or cleaning fruits and vegetables.
• Soak dishes before washing.
• Run the dishwasher only when full.

• Water the lawn and garden in the early morning or evening.
• Use mulch around plants and shrubs.
• Repair leaks in faucets and hoses. Use water-saving nozzles.
• Use water from a bucket to wash your car, and save the hose for rinsing.

In order to provide exceptional service to our customers, we must maintain our existing facilities, and upgrade them when necessary - a continually ongoing process for us. Some of the more significant projects completed during 1999 include:

• Installation of new equipment at our treatment plant to provide more efficient mixing over a wider range in flow rates.
• Upgrades to various components of our pumping systems to increase peak capacity and thereby enable us to better meet peak summer demand requirements.
• Evaluation and upgrade of all electronic components of our system which provided for uninterrupted operations throughout the turnover to the year 2000.

For information about possible health effects relating to substances that might be found in drinking water, visit Gemini Group's site ( www.gemgrp.com) and click on the Health Effects Directory. The EPA Office of Water (www.epa.gov/watrhome) has a web site that provides a substantial amount of information on many issues relating to water resources, water conservation and public health. Also, the Maine Drinking Water Program hosts a web site ( janus.state.me.us/dhs/eng/water/index.htm) that has complete and current information on water issues in our own state.