City of Port Orange

Water sources for both tap and bottled water include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells. As water moves across land or through ground layers, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and sometimes radioactive materials, and can pick up substances from animal or human activities.

Potential contaminants in water supplies may include:

• Microbial contaminants: Viruses and bacteria from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural operations, and wildlife.
• Inorganic contaminants: Naturally-occurring or human-activity related salts and metals from urban runoff, industrial/domestic wastewater, oil/gas production, mining, or farming.
• Pesticides and herbicides: From agriculture, urban stormwater runoff, and residential usage.
• Organic chemical contaminants: Synthetic and volatile organic chemicals from industrial processes, petroleum production, gas stations, runoff, and septic systems.
• Radioactive contaminants: Naturally occurring or resulting from oil/gas production and mining activities.

The EPA establishes regulations limiting contaminant levels in public water systems to ensure safety, while the FDA sets similar standards for bottled water. All drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably contain at least small amounts of some contaminants, which doesn't necessarily indicate a health risk.

Certain individuals may be more vulnerable to water contaminants than the general population. Those with compromised immune systems—cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, organ transplant recipients, people with HIV/AIDS, elderly individuals, and infants—should seek advice from healthcare providers about their drinking water. EPA/CDC guidelines on reducing Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminant risks are available through the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791).

.. ...