5.4 CCR

• What is the source of your drinking water? Where does your water ORIGINATE? (It is treated at a water treatment plant, but what watershed or aquifer is the sources of the water?)

I live in Oakland and my water is treated at the Orinda water treatment plant but it also served as needed by upper San Leandro water treatment plant. The water comes from the Mokelumne River on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. 

• What chemicals were found in your water that were higher than expected?

Chromium and Total Trihalomethanes (TTHMs) both are linked to cancer. One comes as a result of Industry and the other as a treatment by-product. The lead was also pretty high, but the quality report suggests that the source of lead in the water is a result of corrosion from household plumbing. 

• What chemicals did you NOT expect to find in your water?

I did not expect to find trihalomethanes, and I had to google what chromium was. 

• Are there associated health risks with the chemicals found in your water? (sources for this last question include the EPA, CDC, ATSDR and the National Library of Medicine's ToxNet program).

Lead can have serious health problems, and TTHMs are linked to an increased risk of bladder and colorectal cancers and also linked to heart, lung, kidney, liver, and central nervous system damage. the most interesting thing I found, however, is that some studies have linked TTHMs with reproductive problems including miscarriage. 

I don't usually drink tap water, mostly for aesthetic reasons I suppose. I can be slightly picky about the smell and taste of the water I drink, but to be completely honest I never would have guessed that tap water could be contaminated with so many chemicals that are linked to serious health effects.