| We're pretty lucky in the U.S. to awake every | | | | You may find it interesting to know there's a |
| morning and turn on the kitchen tap to make tea or | | | | regulation - the National Primary Drinking Water |
| coffee. We don't think twice about where the water | | | | Regulation - that is part of the Safe Drinking Water |
| came from, and we are confident that it is safe to | | | | Act that embodies laws ensuring you have safe |
| drink, not contaminated, and won't do us any harm. | | | | drinking water. This regulation actually has some |
| What if you didn't have that luxury or certainty? | | | | teeth to it as well, as it's not just an "on paper" |
| If you had to drink contaminated water from places | | | | regulation. Anyone who ignores these regulations is |
| you didn't know existed, would you drink it? Chances | | | | faced with stiff fines and jail time. |
| are the answer is no. The fact that you do have | | | | The unbelievable part is that the second section of |
| decent drinking water is largely due to the | | | | the Safe Drinking Water Act is NOT enforceable. So |
| Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its laws. | | | | that means as long as the water looks good, it |
| Even with those laws in place, you need to | | | | doesn't matter how it tastes or smells. This isn't to |
| remember that all water contains trace elements of | | | | say there aren't recommendations about quality, or |
| various kinds. | | | | that most people don't take it as seriously as the |
| This is the downfall of the bottled water industry. | | | | first part, BUT, you have to ask yourself why it's not |
| Sure the water is purified by some method (and | | | | enforceable. This is something, perhaps, to address |
| there are a lot of them), but you should know that | | | | with your local state representative. |
| does not remove many of the contaminants. | | | | |