City of Cordele Water Quality Excels - February 25, 2008
The City of Cordele Utilities Control & Treatment Department is pleased to report that your community’s drinking water met or exceeded all safety and quality standards set by the State of Georgia and the Environmental Protection Agency during the previous year. This year 2007 Water Quality Report provides our customers with detailed accounts of all the monitoring and testing results gathered from water quality testing during the previous year. Our employees are committed to providing you with safe, dependable tap water on a year round basis, and are proud to provide the enclosed information.

Your water comes from six municipal groundwater wells, approximately 500 - 600 ft. deep. The wells are located on property owned by the City, and are protected from activities which could potentially cause contamination of water sources. Water is drawn from the Ocala, Tallahatta, and Wilcox Aquifers. Treatment is performed at each well, which includes chlorine disinfection and the addition of fluoride.

Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to include at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.

Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV / AIDS or other immune systems disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk from infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. EPA / CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791).

The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity.

Contaminants that my be present in source water include:

In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, EPA prescribes regulations which limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. We treat our water according to EPA’s regulations. Food and Drug Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water, which must provide the same protection for public health.

Water Quality Data
The table below lists all the drinking water contaminants that we detected during the 2007 calendar year. The presence of these contaminants does not necessarily indicate that the water poses a health risk. Analyses are performed daily for chlorine and fluoride. More than 212 bacteriological samples were performed during 2007, and all tests passed. Unless otherwise noted, the data presented in the table is from testing done January 1 - December 31, 2007. The state requires us to monitor for certain contaminants less than once per year because the concentrations of these contaminants are not expected to vary significantly from year to year. Some of the data, though representative of the water quality, may be more than one year old.

Terms and Abbreviaitons used in the table below:

If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily form materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. The City of Cordele is responsible for providing high quality drinking water, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components. When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes before using water for drinking or cooking. If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your water tested. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline or at www.epa.gov/safe water/lead.

The City of Cordele has been issued a monitoring waiver through December 31, 2010 for SOC's (synthetic organic compounds). A monitoring waiver has been issued of Arsenic, Asbestos, and Cyanide through December 31, 2010. This means these contaminants were not detected and are not expected to be found in the future.

The City of Cordele Utilities Control & Treatment Department is committed to delivering the highest quality drinking water possible to consumers. For more information about your water or this report, please call Debbie Wright at 229-273-2829, 8am-4pm. The Cordele City Commission meets on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month at 6:30 pm. These meetings are open to the public. The City of Cordele urges all customers to use water wisely.