eMDE – Drinking Water Week
THE LATEST FROM THE MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT
FEATURED ARTICLE
DRINKING WATER WEEK 2014
More than 70 percent of our planet is covered with water, but only about 1 percent of Earth’s water is usable for consumption. And while many of us might see water as a perpetual gift that nature has bestowed upon us – always just a twist of the faucet away – our water resources are under increasing pressures and must be protected.
To mark Drinking Water Week, the Maryland Department of the Environment is renewing its commitment to ensuring that all Marylanders have safe and adequate drinking water.
“Water is our most essential natural resource,” said MDE Secretary Robert M. Summers. “I encourage all citizens and businesses to do their part to protect our waterways and groundwater from pollution and conserve water so that future generations have access to the same high-quality drinking water that we enjoy today.”
Drinking water is vital to our public health and to the economy in Maryland. MDE is responsible for ensuring that public drinking water systems provide safe and adequate water to all existing and future users in Maryland and that appropriate usage, planning and conservation policies are implemented for our water resources. This is accomplished through proper planning for water withdrawal, protection of water sources that are used for public water supplies, oversight and enforcement of routine water quality monitoring at public water systems, regular onsite inspections of water systems and prompt responses to water supply emergencies.
MDE’s activities help to ensure safe drinking water for more than 5.4 million Marylanders. You can help. Inside the home, you can save reduce water use by fixing leaks, installing low-flow showerheads and running the washing machine with full loads of laundry instead of many small loads. Outside, you can limit grass areas and landscape with trees, shrubs and native plants, which require less watering, and you can use a broom rather than a hose to clean decks, sidewalks and other paved areas. These are just some of the many ways that you can help to conserve water.
IN THE NEWS
New York Times: Climate Change Study Finds U.S. Is Already Widely Affected
The effects of human-induced climate change are being felt in every corner of the United States, scientists reported Tuesday, with water growing scarcer in dry regions, torrential rains increasing in wet regions, heat waves becoming more common and more severe, wildfires growing worse, and forests dying under assault from heat-loving insects. Read more
Washington Post: The Supreme Court makes the right call on a Clean Air Act provision
The Supreme Court considered two cases this term in which somewhat unclear wording in the federal Clean Air Act left sensible environmental rules open to challenge. On Tuesday, in the first case, the justices rightly sided with the sensible rules. Read more
AIR, LAND, WATER – DID YOU KNOW?
Water Supply Program
The Water Supply Program is part of the Water Management Administration within MDE. The mission of the Water Supply Program is to ensure that public drinking water systems provide safe and adequate water to all present and future users in Maryland, and that appropriate usage, planning and conservation policies are implemented for Maryland’s water resources.
THE STAT
About this STAT
Maryland evaluates and regulates public drinking water systems from a broad perspective that includes an evaluation of the resource for both quantity and quality. Public water systems are required to conduct routine sampling of their water quality. MDE’s website provides information for consumers served by public drinking water systems.
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MDE’s MISSION
Our mission is to protect and restore the quality of Maryland’s air, water, and land resources, while fostering smart growth, a thriving and sustainable economy and healthy communities.