Water Wellness

PFAS are everywhere and forever. Due to the long term use of thousands of PFAS compounds in hundreds of products, we are now facing a global contamination crisis with proven environmental and human health consequences. Children are more susceptible to risks and water and food are major routes of exposure. Knowing about your drinking water quality is important to know if treatment is recommended. The podcast discusses other ways individuals can become aware and reduce their exposure to PFAS.

Climate change is impacting our environment in many ways with events like hurricanes, drought, and floods, which affect our water quality in several ways. For example, hurricanes cause coastal flooding which can flood both public drinking water utilities and private wells subjecting them to bacterial, viral pathogens, but also surface related contaminants – fertilizers, sewage, industrial chemicals, etc. Similarly, larger and more frequent storms with increased rainfall can cause flooding impacts to water supplies and water quality.

Your septic system or drinking water well are important and valuable infrastructures for your home. Fortunately, there are programs that provide financial assistance to help with the cost of repairing or replacing a septic system or well. These can vary from county, state and even federal programs. 

The negative impacts of deicing salts on the environment, road infrastructure, cars, and home appliances, and drinking water quality can be significant. An overview of these impacts with emphasis on drinking water, and recommendations are discussed.

We are now facing a global issue with both PFAS and microplastics and learning more about them and risks to both environmental and human health. There is
indeed need for concern and we all should be aware of the pollution, so we can reduce or exposure and protect or health, and also how we can be better stewards. Knowing our drinking water is huge for good health and that is why we are raising public awareness of these contaminants.

Information on PFAS and why are they called the 'forever' chemicals. Dr. Andrew Lazur talks about where we find PFAS and what we can do about it to reduce the risk to our health.

University of Maryland Extension, Water Quality Specialist, Dr. Andrew Lazur talks about or drinking water...to filter or not filter. 

Ponds are very common in the US and used for lots of different purposes such as irrigation, recreation (fishing, swimming, and enjoying nature), livestock watering, soil erosion, urban stormwater management, and even water gardens. Think of a pond as a living aquatic ecosystem, and the health of that ecosystem, and the wide variety of organisms living in it or around it, is influenced by the health of the water or its water quality.  So, managing ponds to ensure good water quality is important to understand, and we want to touch on some basics today.

A septic system is the most expensive appliance or system in a home! It is important to know how a septic system works. Maintenance is essential for the system to effectively process and treat the wastewater and will help save you money.

Andrew Lazur, Maryland Water Quality Specialist, talks about common smells and stains of our drinking water, and what can be done to correct it.