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1 2023 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report PWSID# MT0000136 91 East Central Avenue Belgrade, MT 59714 The City of Belgrade Public Works Department is very pleased to provide you with this year's Annual Quality Water Report. We want to keep our customers 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 a safe and dependable supply of drinking water. Belgrade’s water is groundwater from seven wells located throughout the City. We have completed a source water protection plan that provides more information such as potential sources of contamination to our drinking water supply. This plan can be found online at 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 water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-[PHONE REDACTED]). The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity. Contaminants that may be present include: Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria that may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife; Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, which can be naturally occurring or result from urban storm water runoff, industrial, or domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farming; Pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water runoff, and residential uses; Organic chemical contaminants, including and volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can also come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff, and septic systems; Radioactive contaminants, which can be naturally occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities. To ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the EPA prescribes regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same protection for public health. ---PAGE BREAK--- 2 We’re pleased to report that our drinking water is safe and meets federal and state requirements. If you have any questions about this report or concerning your water, please contact Belgrade Public Works at (406) 388-3566. You may also attend our regular City Council meetings. They are held on the first and third Monday of each month at 7:00 pm in the City Council Chambers at Belgrade City Hall. We want our valued customers to be informed about their drinking water. Belgrade routinely monitors for constituents in your drinking water according to Federal and State laws. The following table shows the results of any detects in our monitoring for the period of January 1st to December 31st, 2023. For constituents that are not monitored yearly, we have reviewed our records back to the last five years. We are required to monitor your drinking water for specific contaminants on a regular basis. Results of regular monitoring are an indicator of that the drinking water has or has not met health standards. We conducted monitoring for asbestos in November of 2021 and based on our analytical result, we have been granted a waiver by Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). This waiver is in effect from January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2028. Belgrade has also been issued a waiver for certain inorganic contaminants for Wells 1, 2, 3 and 4. This waiver allows our water system to sample only once every nine years for these regulated contaminants: barium, cadmium, chromium, mercury, selenium, fluoride. Past sampling for these contaminants has shown that they are not present in our water supply or occur in such small amounts that they are not considered a health hazard. This waiver is in effect from January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2028. We have monitored for lead and copper, and all our samples are in compliance with the Lead and Copper Rule. If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. Belgrade is responsible for providing high quality drinking water but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components. When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 30 seconds to two minutes before using water for drinking or cooking. If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your water tested. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline or at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/lead. Parameter Date 90th % value Units Action level Source of Contamination Lead 2022 1.03 ppb 15 Household plumbing Copper 2022 0.17 ppm 1.3 Household plumbing In the tables above and below 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: Parts per billion (ppb) or Micrograms per liter (ug/l) - one part per billion corresponds to one minute in 2000 years or a single penny in $10,000,000. 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. Action Level - the concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water system must follow. ---PAGE BREAK--- 3 Treatment Technique (TT) - (mandatory language) a treatment technique is a required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water. Maximum Contaminant Level - (mandatory language) The “Maximum Allowed” (MCL) is the highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set as close to the as feasible using the best available treatment technology. Maximum Contaminant Level Goal - (mandatory language) The “Goal” (MCLG) is the level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. allow for a margin of safety. Picocuries per liter (pCi/L)-Picocuries per liter is a measure of the radioactivity in water. MCL’s are set at very stringent levels. To understand the possible health effects described for many regulated constituents, a person would have to drink two 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. Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons, such as those with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, who have undergone organ transplants, 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 and other microbiological contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426- 4791). We’re proud that your drinking water meets or exceeds all Federal and State requirements. We have learned through our monitoring and testing that some constituents have been detected. The EPA has determined that your water IS SAFE at these levels. TEST RESULTS Contaminant Violation Y/N Sample Date Highest Level Detected Range Unit Measure ment MCLG MCL Likely Source of Contamination Inorganic Contaminants Nitrate + Nitrite as N N 2023 2.33 0.838 - 2.33 ppm 10 10 Runoff from fertilizer use; leaching from septic tanks, sewage; erosion of natural deposits Arsenic N 2023 1.08 0.47 - 1.08 ppb 0 10 Erosion of natural deposits Barium N 2020 0.15 0.06 - 0.15 ppm 2 2 Erosion of natural deposits Microbial Contaminants Total Coliform N 2023 1 positive sample na Absent/ present 0 0 Naturally present in the environment Radioactive Contaminants Uranium N 2020 4.3 2.2-4.5 ppb 0 30 Erosion of natural deposits ---PAGE BREAK--- 4 Our system had no violations. Thank you for allowing us to continue providing your family with clean, quality water this year. We at the City of Belgrade are committed to ensuring the quality of your water, and 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. Paper copies of this report are available at Belgrade City Hall, 91 East Central Avenue, and can be viewed on the online at Copies will be posted at the Belgrade Community Library, Belgrade Post Office, and Belgrade Senior Center, and will appear in the Belgrade News.