Safe Drinking Water - A Basic Human Right

The Environmental Protection Agency was formed to protect the environment. This includes the water which ensures life. You should know that there really is no such thing as pure water. All water contains trace elements such as minerals. It is one of the huge selling points of the bottled water industry. Water purifiers do take out a lot of impurities but you should know how safe your drinking water is and about the laws that regulate drinking water standards.

The National Primary Drinking Water Regulation, part of the Safe Drinking Water Act set forth by the Environmental Protection Agency, includes laws to ensure the American public that their drinking water is safe from pollutants and other contaminants that might compromise their source water. This act is punishable by stiff fines and even jail time for areas that refuse to take the necessary steps to provide safe water.

The second part of the SDWA is called the National Secondary Drinking Water Regulation, NSDWR, and is non-enforceable. It is primarily concerned with how the water looks, tastes and how it smells. But as long as the water is safe to drink it does not matter how horrible it tastes. Thankfully, they do make recommendations as to the quality of the water and most people take it as seriously as the Primary Regulation.

Safe drinking water is a serious issue and the SDWA is a valuable resource to have when it comes to getting the safe water that you need. If you have any questions as to the laws that govern your public water system, then you can visit the Environmental Protection Agency's website for more information on how the laws regulate water supplies.