2023 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report

Upper Southampton Municipal Authority
PWSID# 1090063

We are very pleased to provide you with this year's Annual Drinking Water Quality Report. We want to keep you informed about the excellent water and services we have delivered to you over the past year. Our goal is, and always has been, to provide to you a dependable supply of drinking water. Our water source is 80% Delaware River water, purchased from the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority, and 20% from wells that draw from the Stockton Aquifer and are located off Street Road and Willopenn Drive. Since July 2015, our Delaware River water source has been treated by North Wales/North Penn at the Forest Park Water Treatment Plant.

Este informe contiene información importante acerca de su agua potable. Haga que alguien lo traduzca para usted, ó hable con alguien que lo entienda. (This report contains very important information about your drinking water. Have someone translate it for you, or speak with someone who understands it.)

A Source Water Assessment of our source(s) was completed in 2005 by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (Pa. DEP). The Assessment found that overall, our sources have little risk of significant contamination. A summary report of the Assessment is available on the Source Water Assessment & Protection Web page at (http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/deputate/watermgt/wc/Subjects/SrceProt/SourceAssessment/default.htm).

If you have any questions about this report or concerning your water utility, please contact Herbert Schoell at 215-364-1390. We want our valued customers to be informed about their water utility. If you want to learn more, please attend any of our regularly scheduled meetings. They are held on the fourth Monday of each month at 6:30 P.M. at the Authority Building, 945 Street Road, Southampton, PA.

The Upper Southampton Municipal Authority routinely monitors for contaminants in your drinking water according to Federal and State laws. The following table shows the results of our monitoring for the period of January 1st to December 31st, 2022. All drinking water, including bottled drinking water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. It's important to remember that the presence of these contaminants does not necessarily pose a health risk.

In this table, 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 contaminant is not present at a detectable level.

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.

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.

Pico curies per liter (pCi/L) - pico curies per liter is a measure of radioactivity in water.

Nephelometric Turbidity Unit (NTU) - nephelometric turbidity unit is a measure of the clarity of water. Turbidity in excess of 5NTU is just noticeable to the average person.

Maximum Contaminant Level - The “Maximum Allowed” (MCL) is the highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set as close to the MCLGs as feasible using the best available treatment technology.

Maximum Contaminant Level Goal - The “Goal” (MCLG) is the level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of safety.

Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level (MRDL) - The highest level of a disinfectant that is allowed in drinking water. There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of microbial contaminants.

Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level Goal (MRDLG) - The level of drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRDLGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectants to control microbial contaminants.

Action Level – The concentration of a contaminant, if exceeded, triggers treatment, or other requirements which a water system must follow.

Treatment Technique (TT) – A required process intended to reduce the level of the contaminant in drinking water.

Hardness - Hardness defines the quantity of minerals as calcium and magnesium in a gallon of water. These minerals react with soap to form insoluble precipitates and can affect common household chores such as cooking and washing. Southampton water is considered "medium" hard, annual average (as calcium carbonate) 108 ppm, or 6 grains per gallon. Hardness also affects other qualities such as its corrosiveness, with soft water being more corrosive.

Nitrates - As a precaution, we always notify physicians and health care providers in this area if there is ever a higher than normal level of nitrates in the water supply.

All sources of drinking water are subject to contaminants that are naturally occurring or manmade. Those contaminants can be microbes, organic or inorganic chemicals, or radioactive materials. 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 Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.

MCL’s are set at very stringent levels for health effects. 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.

Thank you for allowing us to continue providing your family with clean, quality water this year. In order to maintain a dependable water supply, we sometimes need to make improvements that will benefit all of our customers. These improvements are sometimes reflected as rate structure adjustments. Thank you for understanding.

Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immune-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 (800-426-4791).

Interesting facts about Upper Southampton Water:

Arsenic: Is an inorganic contaminant that is found in water supplies primarily as a result of natural geologic formations and has been associated with adverse health effects. The United States Environmental Protection Agency regulates it. The Upper Southampton Municipal Authority has not had an arsenic detection in our system.

Fluoride: The Forsest Park Water Treatment Plant does not add any fluoride.

Please call our office if you have any questions.

We, at the Upper Southampton Municipal Authority, work around the clock to provide 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.