Report Indicates Dangerously Antiquated Wastewater System

By James Rubel

A report released recently by the nonprofit Heal the Ocean organization signals California is wasting over a billion gallons of water a day by flushing waste into the Pacific Ocean. We are not reclaiming enough water.
The report, which has taken over 5 years to prepare, highlights water wasted and the fact this water contains chemical contaminants not removed by current filtering methods. The system is no longer efficient in dealing with the two major concerns, which are stopping ocean pollution and making up for a shortage of potable water.

Out of the 1.35 billion gallons misused for wastewater removal each day, only 312 million gallons is reclaimed. The study shows this to be an antiquated practice that needs serious upgrading. The water used by roughly 2 million California homes in a year is roughly equal to water wasted each day by this outdated practice.

On top of this are the health hazards caused to the ocean and us because many chemical contaminants contained in the water do not filter out effectively. This causes an unknown level of damage. We do know it hurts sea life and eventually ends up tainting our ocean food supply. So while reclaiming water is key, our current filtering methods must be improved to filter out the dangerous contaminants.

The contaminants, known as CECs (Contaminants of Emerging Concern), are found in everything we consume. You have to read the labels and anything that you cannot pronounce is probably not good for you or the oceans. Normal products we use for shampoos, soaps, toothpaste, and pharmaceuticals have questionable ingredients. There is too much trust in corporate America at the expense of our oceans and our bodies (rent the movies The Corporation and Food, Inc. to form your own opinion).

Wastewater plants need to refocus on reclaiming and be upgraded to meet our present-day filtering concerns with new waste and chemical removal technologies. Using reclaimed water for toilets and irrigation would make a strong decrease in the wasted potable water problem California faces.

People are not aware of this and this is a problem. More publicity and news coverage can be presented so people can get behind making changes. This report that Heal the Ocean is sharing is an excellent example. Inspiring financial, political and more public support is critical to change. You can read the report at http://www.healtheocean.org

James Rubel has been dealing with health issues for the last year. He writes about what he has learned in dealing with those issues. Lately, he has been working on http://www.wholehousewaterfilternow.com which is a website on water filters and knowing what to look for in the best shower filters.

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