Water Quality Reports

Kezia Snipe  |  Hydroviv Research Analyst

**Updated 2/22/2022 to include the most current Water Quality Data

For Hydroviv’s assessment of Baltimore's tap water, we aggregated water quality test data from City of Baltimore Department of Public Works, the city’s water provider and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as well as from samples that we collect and analyze. We cross reference these data with toxicity studies in the scientific and medical literature, and look at upcoming regulatory changes. The water filters that we build for our neighbors in Baltimore (Hydroviv is a DC-based company) are optimized with this research in mind.

Source Of Baltimore's Drinking Water

Baltimore's tap water originates as surface water collected from rainfall and snowmelt as the source of its water. This water, approximately 75-billion gallons of storage volume at maximum capacity, is collected and stored in the City-owned and operated watersheds: Liberty, Loch Raven, and Prettyboy.

Lead In Baltimore Drinking Water

Lead enters Baltimore's tap water through older lead service pipes and lead-containing plumbing. When corrosion control measures put in place by the municipality fail (like what recently happened in Flint, Michigan), lead leaches into the drinking water, and can reach dangerous levels. Currently, 10% of samples analyzed for lead in Baltimore are over 3.06 parts per billion. Though Baltimore's water quality is currently in compliance with federal regulations, EPA and CDC both acknowledge that there is no safe level of lead, and federal regulations do not take into account levels measured at an individual tap. Homes built before 1986 are most susceptible to lead contamination. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that any taps used to serve children have lead levels no higher than 1 part per billion.

Arsenic Concentrations In Baltimore Drinking Water

Arsenic is a toxic heavy metal that is known to cause cancer and other health issues. Unlike lead, which distributes into water from plumbing, arsenic comes from the source water itself. While the average of less than 3 parts per billion is within EPA's regulated threshold, Hydroviv strongly recommends that anyone that lives in an area with more than 1 part per billion take steps to remove arsenic from their water, especially families with children.

Chromium 6 In Baltimore Drinking Water

Chromium 6 is a hazardous metal not regulated by the EPA in drinking water. Baltimore’s tap water recently averaged 39 parts per trillion for chromium 6. These levels are nearly twice the concentration determined to have a negligible impact on cancer risk.

Disinfection Byproducts (DBPs) In Baltimore Drinking Water

DBPs (including Haloacetic Acids-- HAA5s, and Trihalomethanes--TTHMs), are a category of emerging contaminants that are created when chlorine-based disinfectants added to the water supply combine with naturally-occurring organic matter. Although these chemicals are not fully regulated, the EPA has explicitly stated that they are linked to an increased risk of bladder cancer, as well as kidney, liver, and central nervous system problems. In 2020 the level of trihalomethanes (TTHM) ranged from 32 -122 ppb, exceeding the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) of 80 ppb. The level of Haloacetic Acids ranged between 7 - 72.5 ppb, which also exceeds the MCL of 60 ppb. 

Radium in Baltimore Drinking Water

Radium is a naturally occurring radioactive metal. Radium in drinking water is of primary concern because exposure through drinking water may cause cancer, kidney damage and birth defects. Radium levels in 2020 were reported to be as high as 1.6 ppb with the EPA Maximum Contaminant Level Goal 5 ppb. 

Still Have Questions About Baltimore Drinking Water?

Hydroviv is a water filtration company that uses water quality data to optimize water filters for each customer's water. The contaminants that we list above are what we consider to be major “points of emphasis” that we use to build water filters that are built specifically for Baltimore, but all of our our filters provide broad protection against a wide range of contaminants (including lead).

If you’re interested in learning more about water filters that have been optimized for Baltimore tap water, or just have questions about water quality in general, feel free to visit www.hydroviv.com, reach out by email (hello@hydroviv.com) or through our live chat. We also frequently post water-related news onTwitter or Facebook. We pride ourselves in being a reputable source of information on water quality, and your questions will be answered by scientists, not salespeople (we don't have any salespeople).

Please Share This City of Baltimore Water Quality Article On Social Media With Anyone You Think Would Benefit From The Information!

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To assess Orlando drinking water quality, we aggregated water quality test data from the Orlando Utilities Commission, Orange County Utilities Department, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the US Geological Survey. We cross referenced these data with toxicity studies in scientific and medical literature, as well as regulatory guidelines. The water filters that our Orlando-area customers use are optimized with these drinking water quality issues in mind. Contaminants of concern in Orlando’s drinking water include Lead, Disinfection Byproducts, Arsenic, and PFAS. 

Analies Dyjak, M.A.  |  Hydroviv Research Analyst
**Updated May 14, 2021 to include most current data

Our Water Nerds have updated our assessment of Bakersfield, California drinking water. To do this, our teams looks at water quality test data from California Water Service, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as well as from samples that we collect and analyze. Our Water Nerds then compare these data with toxicity studies in the scientific and medical literature. Hydroviv's custom water filters are built to remove contaminants in Bakersfield drinking water.

Source Of Bakersfield Drinking Water

California Water uses a combination of local groundwater produced by 77 active wells, surface water from the Kern River (treated with municipal scale membrane filtration), and treated water purchased from the Kern County Water Agency.

Arsenic Detected In Bakersfield Drinking Water

Arsenic is a toxic metal that is known to cause cancer and other health issues. Unlike lead, which distributes into water from plumbing, arsenic comes from the source water itself. The most recent Bakersfield water quality report reported an average arsenic concentration at non-detectable amounts while some taps reached as high as 16 parts per billion. Because Bakersfield's water contains arsenic, EPA requires the municipality to make the following disclosure in the Consumer Confidence Report (CCR):

"... drinking water meets the federal and state standards for arsenic, it does contain low levels of arsenic. The arsenic standards balance the current understanding of arsenic’s possible health effects against the costs of removing arsenic from drinking water. The EPA continues to research the health effects of low levels of arsenic, which is a mineral known to cause cancer in humans at high concentrations and is linked to other health effects, such as skin damage and circulatory problems."

We highly recommend that anyone with more than 1 part per billion take steps to remove arsenic from their water, especially homes with children.

High Levels Of Chromium 6 In Bakersfield Drinking Water

Chromium 6 (also known as hexavalent chromium) is a highly toxic metal that is not regulated by the EPA. In recent years, tap water in Bakersfield has averaged 587 parts per trillion for chromium 6. For the sake of perspective, these levels are 30 times higher than the concentration determined to have negligible impact on cancer risk. 

Volatile Organic Compounds Detected In Bakersfield Tap Water

Volatile Organic Comounds (VOCs) are a class of chemicals that can enter the water supply from runoff and industrial discharge. Bakersfield's drinking water tested positive for low levels of Dibromochloropropane, 1,2-Dichloroethylene, 1,2-Dichloropropane, Tetrachloroethylene, and Trichloroethylene.

Disinfection Byproducts (DBPs) In Bakersfield Drinking Water

DBPs are a category of emerging contaminants that form when chlorine-based disinfectants react with naturally-occurring organic matter. Although these chemicals are not currently regulated very well, the EPA has admitted that they are associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer, as well as kidney, liver, and central nervous system problems. Bakersfield's water quality has relatively high levels of the two regulated classes of disinfection byproducts (trihalomethanes & haloacetic acids).

Chlorine In Bakersfield Drinking Water

Like many other municipalities in the United States, Bakersfield's drinking water is injected with chlorine, which is typically used to protect against waterborne illness. Chlorine is not typically considered to be harmful on its own but many find that removing chlorine from drinking water greatly enhances its taste and odor.

Still Have Questions About Bakersfield Tap Water?

Hydroviv is a water filtration company that uses water quality data to optimize water filters for each customer's water. The contaminants that we list above are what we consider to be major “points of emphasis” that we use to build water filters that are built specifically for Bakersfield, but our filters provide broad protection against a wide range of contaminants.

If you’re interested in learning more about water filters that have been optimized for Bakersfield tap water, or just have questions about water quality in general, feel free to visit www.hydroviv.com, reach out by email (hello@hydroviv.com) or through our live chat. We also frequently post water-related news on Twitter or Facebook. We pride ourselves in being a reputable source of information on water quality, and your questions will be answered by scientists, not salespeople (we don't have any salespeople).

Please Share This Bakersfield Drinking Water Article On Social Media With Anyone You Think Would Benefit From The Information!

Analies Dyjak  |  Policy Nerd
**Updated July 7, 2022 to include current data

For Hydroviv’s assessment of New York City’s drinking water quality issues, we collected water quality test data from the New York City Water Supply System, the Environmental Working Group, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. We cross referenced the city’s water quality data with toxicity studies in scientific and medical literature. The water filters that we sell at Hydroviv are optimized to filter out contaminants that are found in New York City’s drinking water.

Where Does New York City Source Its Drinking Water?

New York City drinking water comes from 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes, located throughout the Hudson Valley and Catskill Mountain watershed. The New York City Water Supply System delivers 1 billion gallons of drinking water to over 10 million people on a daily basis. New York City’s water supply system is composed of two primary surface water supplies called the Catskill/Delaware and Croton. In 2021, New York City received a blend of drinking water from the Catskill/Delaware and Croton supplies. The Catskill/Delaware provided approximately 88 percent of the water, and approximately 12 percent was supplied by Croton. New York City is known as the gold standard for drinking water treatment, and rightfully so because they are able to serve the largest metropolitan area in the United States. However, none of the pretreatment procedures matter once water hits aging infrastructure.

Lead In New York City’s Drinking Water

Lead enters tap water through old lead service pipes and lead-containing plumbing. Currently, 10% of the water quality samples analyzed by New York City Environmental Protection had lead concentrations over 12 parts per billion (ppb). The highest lead concentration detected from a residential tap was 152 ppb. Environmental Protection Agency, Center for Disease Control, and American Academy of Pediatrics all recognize that there is no safe level of lead for children. To make matters worse, in a city of 8 million people only 375 residential homes were sampled for lead. 24 of those samples exceeded the federal Action Level. The small number of sampling sites is not representative of the actual scope of the lead problem in NYC drinking water. Hydroviv strongly encourages New York City residents to take advantage of the free lead testing program. Under this program, residents can request a free kit to test for lead in their drinking water by calling 311 or visiting www.nyc.gov/apps/311.

Chromium 6 In New York City's Drinking Water 

Chromium 6 is a highly toxic metal that is currently unregulated by the EPA. Chromium 6 pollution is associated with metal processing, tannery facilities, chromate production, stainless steel welding, and pigment production. The Environmental Working Group tested Chromium 6 levels of water systems nationwide, and New York City's system tested with an average of 41 parts per trillion (ppt), with a maximum level of 57 ppt. The State of California set their own health advisory level of 20 ppt because Chromium 6 is not regulated by the federal government. EPA has acknowledged that Chromium 6 is a known human carcinogen through inhalation. There is strong evidence that chromium 6 is a human carcinogen when ingested as well. Chromium 6 exposure is also known to cause multiorgan toxicity such as kidney damage, allergy, and asthma, and is also an endocrine disrupter.

Disinfection Byproducts In New York City's Drinking Water 

New York City Environmental Protection detected significant concentrations of Disinfection Byproducts or DBPs. DBPs are a category of emerging contaminants which means they have been detected in drinking water but the risk to human health is unknown. DBPs are formed when chlorine based disinfectants are routinely added to the water supply to kill bacteria. DBPs are split into two categories: Total Trihalomethanes (TTHMs) and Haloacetic Acids-5 (HAA5). Concentrations for TTHMs were as high as 93 ppb and averaged 56 ppb for HAA5. The EPA standard for TTHMs is 80 ppb.  Concentrations for HAA5 were detected as high as 93 ppb and averaged 65 ppb. The EPA standard for HAA5 is 60 ppb. Regulatory agencies have very little knowledge about the adverse health effects of DBPs and their toxicity. EPA has stated that they have been linked to an increased risk of bladder cancer, as well as kidney, liver, and central nervous system problems. Some disinfection byproducts have almost no toxicity, but others have been associated with cancer, reproductive problems, and developmental issues in laboratory animals. 200 million people in the United States use chlorinated tap water as their primary drinking source, so we take understanding their full health effects very seriously, even if federal agencies fail to regulate all categories.

If you’re interested in learning more about water filters that have been optimized for NYC’s drinking water, feel free to visit www.hydroviv.com to talk to a Water Nerd on our live chat feature or send us an email at hello@hydroviv.com.

Other Articles We Think You Might Enjoy:
Lead In Drinking Water
5 Things To Know About Chromium 6 In Drinking Water
Disinfection Byproducts: What You Need To Know 

**Updated May 3, 2021 to include EWG map
Emma Schultz, M.S.  |  Scientific Contributor

For our Lubbock water quality assessment, we aggregated water quality test data from the Lubbock Water Department, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as well as from samples that we collect and analyze. We cross reference these data with toxicity studies in the scientific and medical literature, and look at upcoming regulatory changes.The water filters that we sell in Lubbock are optimized with these issues in mind.

Source Of Lubbock Drinking Water

Lubbock’s drinking water is a mixture of surface and groundwater. 58% of Lubbock drinking water comes from the Robert County Well Field, 19% from Lake Alan Henry, 13% from Bailey County Well Field, and 10% from Lake Meredith. Water from the Roberts County and Bailey County well fields is supplied from the Ogallala Aquifer. These four sources of water travel 65-160 miles to reach Lubbock.

PFAS In Lubbock Drinking Water

Per and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances or PFAS are a category of chemicals found in various non-stick/stain resistant products, as well as fire fighting foam. PFAS are considered to be "emerging contaminants" because they are not currently regulated by EPA, but are known to be toxic, carcinogenic, and persistent in the environment. PFAS have been detected in at the former Reese Air Force Base. Most municipalities, including Lubbock, don't test for or remove PFAS from tap water, and most water filters are not designed to remove PFAS. If you'd like to find a water filter that removes PFAS from tap water, check out this Duke/NC State PFAS study.

Arsenic In Lubbock Drinking Water

Arsenic is a dangerous heavy metal known to cause cancer, among other health problems. Unlike lead which accumulates in distribution pipes, Arsenic originates in source water itself. While Lubbock's is in compliance with EPA standards, consumers should take note that the EPA standards for arsenic balances toxicity against the costs of removing it from drinking water. That being said, the standard is much higher than health experts would advise. According to the most recent report, the highest detected arsenic concentration in Lubbock drinking water is 2 parts per billion. We strongly encourage that tap water with more than 1 part per billion be treated to remove arsenic, especially if there are children in the home.

Lead In Lubbock Drinking Water

Lead enters consumer tap water through old lead service pipes and lead-containing plumbing. When corrosion control measures fail (such as recently happened in Flint, Michigan), lead leaches into the drinking water and can reach toxic levels. Recent analysis for lead in Lubbock found a 90th percentile concentration of less than 14 parts per billion, with an upper range detection of 41 parts per billion. While the Action Level is 15 parts per billion, both the EPA and CDC recognize that there is no such thing as a safe level of lead for children. In addition, federal regulations cannot possibly take into account levels measured at an individual tap. Hydroviv Undersink filters are NSF/ANSI 53 certified to remove lead from drinking water.

Chromium 6 In Lubbock Drinking Water

Chromium 6 is a highly toxic metal that, while monitored, is not regulated by the EPA. Lubbock’s tap water quality recently averaged 932 parts per trillion for chromium 6. Average levels are 46 times higher than the concentration determined to have a negligible impact on cancer risk.

Disinfection Byproducts (DBPs) In Lubbock Drinking Water

DBPs are a category of emerging contaminants that form when chlorine-based disinfectants react with naturally-occurring organic matter. Although these chemicals are not well regulated, the EPA has concluded that they are associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer, as well as kidney, liver, and central nervous system problems. DBPs in Lubbock’s tap water had a 2016 average of 49.4 parts per billion.

Use Of Chloramine In Lubbock Tap Water

While most cities use chlorine as the primary disinfectant, Lubbock's Drinking Water is disinfected with chloramine, which is produced by mixing chlorine and ammonia. Chloramine is primarily responsible for what many customers report as the “bad taste” of tap water, and unlike chlorine this bad taste will not fade if a container of water is left in the fridge overnight. Most one-size-fits-all water filters use filtration media that doesn’t adequately remove chloramine, but the filters that Hydroviv builds for Lubbock uses special filtration media that is purpose-built to remove chloramine as well.

In 2016, while the running annual average for chloramines was 2.9 ppm, the upper detected range was 4.4 ppm, which is over the Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level of 4.0 ppm. It is important to note that this is not a violation.

Still Have Questions About Lubbock’s Tap Water?

Hydroviv is a water filtration company that uses water quality data to optimize water filters for each city’s water. The chemicals that we list above are what we consider to be “points of emphasis” so we can build the best water filter for Lubbock tap water, but all of our home water filtration systems provide broad protection against other contaminants commonly found in drinking water (e.g. VOCs, heavy metals [including lead], pharmaceuticals, solvents, pesticides, mercury).

If you’re interested in learning more about water filters that have been optimized for Lubbock tap water quality, feel free to visit www.hydroviv.com, reach out by email (hello@hydroviv.com) or through our live chat. We also frequently post water-related news on Twitter or Facebook.

Please Share This City of Lubbock Tap Water Quality Article On Social Media With Anyone You Think Would Benefit From The Information!

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