2008 Woodie Awards
Hudson is source of Marist's water supply
Kristen Alldredge
Issue date: 9/23/04 Section: Health
- Page 1 of 1
Do you know where your water comes from? Many members of the Marist community are unaware that their water comes from the Hudson River and is purified by a plant on campus. Common knowledge of the Hudson's polluted waters creates shocked and disturbed reactions.
Contamination from polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) was recognized in 1974, primarily at the fault of General Electric Company. They were dumping PCB's into the river and ground between plants, and when the dam was removed the pollutants washed downstream and collected in basins, called hot spots. The organization, Essential Information founded by Ralph Nader, reports that PCB's can damage the immune, reproductive, nervous and endocrine systems, and can impair children's physical and intellectual development. Research by the International Agency For Research on Cancer shows that PCB's cause cancer in animals and are strongly linked to human cancer. PCB's won't naturally disappear because they are persistent organic pollutants that cannot decompose.
It is no surprise that newcomers to the Marist community raise health concerns upon realizing Marist's water source.
"I'm very surprised to hear that," freshman Danielle Morrison said. "I'm a little nervous, actually. Is it well purified?"
Hold on to your Britas. Although Marist's water supply originates in the Hudson River, it undergoes purification through the Poughkeepsie Water Treatment Facility (PWTF) located between campus and the river. Despite its location, many students and staff members are unaware of the connection this plant has with the river and the water we drink.
"I never connected the water treatment center on campus with filtering water from the Hudson," said sophomore Alyssa Hanley.
PWTF's mission statement declares, "We consistently, professionally and economically produce a high quality drinking water that meets the needs of our customers." They install additional chemical treatments to reduce lead from plumbing fixtures and chlorine to disinfect disease-causing organisms. A detailed process of water purification can be found at their website, Pokwater.com. In addition to the purification process, they monitor PCB content of the water and report to have found no detectable levels in the water supply. Other techniques have also found only traces of contaminants in the river sediment. The health department of Duchess County agrees that the water does not have a threatening level of PCB contamination.
Steve Schwartz, sailing instructor, told his class that the section of the river by Marist is the cleanest part. "I've been swimming in it for years and have never had any medical problems," Schwartz said.
Currently, Poughkeepsie is recognized as the national leader in water filtration. The only water quality issues that arise are when the salt front from the Atlantic ocean pushes up the Hudson during periods of drought. PWTF reports that the last time customers were affected by this was in 2002. Their Web site contains a link to the Annual Drinking Water Quality Report for the city of Poughkeepsie.
So, who wants a glass of tap water? How about a swim?
Contamination from polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) was recognized in 1974, primarily at the fault of General Electric Company. They were dumping PCB's into the river and ground between plants, and when the dam was removed the pollutants washed downstream and collected in basins, called hot spots. The organization, Essential Information founded by Ralph Nader, reports that PCB's can damage the immune, reproductive, nervous and endocrine systems, and can impair children's physical and intellectual development. Research by the International Agency For Research on Cancer shows that PCB's cause cancer in animals and are strongly linked to human cancer. PCB's won't naturally disappear because they are persistent organic pollutants that cannot decompose.
It is no surprise that newcomers to the Marist community raise health concerns upon realizing Marist's water source.
"I'm very surprised to hear that," freshman Danielle Morrison said. "I'm a little nervous, actually. Is it well purified?"
Hold on to your Britas. Although Marist's water supply originates in the Hudson River, it undergoes purification through the Poughkeepsie Water Treatment Facility (PWTF) located between campus and the river. Despite its location, many students and staff members are unaware of the connection this plant has with the river and the water we drink.
"I never connected the water treatment center on campus with filtering water from the Hudson," said sophomore Alyssa Hanley.
PWTF's mission statement declares, "We consistently, professionally and economically produce a high quality drinking water that meets the needs of our customers." They install additional chemical treatments to reduce lead from plumbing fixtures and chlorine to disinfect disease-causing organisms. A detailed process of water purification can be found at their website, Pokwater.com. In addition to the purification process, they monitor PCB content of the water and report to have found no detectable levels in the water supply. Other techniques have also found only traces of contaminants in the river sediment. The health department of Duchess County agrees that the water does not have a threatening level of PCB contamination.
Steve Schwartz, sailing instructor, told his class that the section of the river by Marist is the cleanest part. "I've been swimming in it for years and have never had any medical problems," Schwartz said.
Currently, Poughkeepsie is recognized as the national leader in water filtration. The only water quality issues that arise are when the salt front from the Atlantic ocean pushes up the Hudson during periods of drought. PWTF reports that the last time customers were affected by this was in 2002. Their Web site contains a link to the Annual Drinking Water Quality Report for the city of Poughkeepsie.
So, who wants a glass of tap water? How about a swim?