Drinking Water

The following are the gold medal winners of each category at the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting competition. Municipal water: Desert Hot Springs, Calif. Non-carbonated bottled water: Ice Mist, Morarp, Sweden Purified drinking water: Pure StoneClear Springs Water, Vanleer, Tenn. Carbonated bottled water: Bosec, Harghita County, Romania People's Choice for package design: One Liter, Northumberland County, Markham, Canada

tarar@herald-mail.com Washington County Health Department official Laurie Bucher said Wednesday the drinking water for several homes and businesses near Boonsboro is generally safe to drink, even though she and a state agency described the water as posing a "serious health threat to consumers" a day earlier. "The drinking water for some of the wells may be contaminated, but with proper disinfection, (that may) provide safe drinking water - generally," Bucher said. Bucher, director of the health department's environmental health division, on Tuesday told the Washington County Commissioners that some wells along Old National Pike from Lappans Road (Md. 68)

trishr@herald-mail.com BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. - The Morgan County Rural Water Committee was honored Thursday for its efforts to protect local drinking water sources. Rick Rogers, chief of the Drinking Water Branch of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Philadelphia office, presented a source water protection award to local resident Abby Chapple at the Morgan County Commission office on Fairfax Street. Chapple said she has been a SWAP (Source Water Area Protection)

HAGERSTOWN - None of the drinking water in Washington County is tested for the presence of prescription or over-the-counter drugs, although it's possible for such substances to work their way into the water supply. An Associated Press survey of 62 major water providers and data the wire service obtained from independent researchers found that at least one pharmaceutical or byproduct was detected in testing within the watersheds of 28 major metropolitan areas. And, AP reported, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has identified 287 pharmaceuticals that could be in drinking water.

Antrim area wells contaminated By RICHARD F. BELISLE / Staff Writer, Waynesboro GREENCASTLE, Pa. - Nitrates and bacteria are found in much of the groundwater under Antrim Township, water that moves freely and quickly through the porous limestone terrain common to the area, said the man who is responsible for checking the quality of the township's underground drinking water. Jon Piper, the sewage enforcement officer for Antrim and several surrounding townships, said the first line of defense in protecting the area's drinking water is the proper installation and operation of private septic systems.

martinsburg@herald-mail.com MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The Environmental Protection Agency has honored a Berkeley County task force for its interest and effort in protecting drinking water sources. "Along with the air we breathe, drinking water is the most precious resource we have," Richard Rogers, chief of the Drinking Water Branch for the EPA's Mid-Atlantic region, told the Berkeley County Commission during an award presentation Thursday. One water conservation award was given for each of the region's five states and the District of Columbia.

Testing of discolored water seeping from the ground in the area of Washington County's Old City/County Landfill into Conococheague Creek revealed an arsenic level almost double that of the Environmental Protection Agency's standard for drinking water, a Maryland Department of the Environment spokesman said. At MDE's request, Washington County has hired a contractor to investigate the issue and develop a remedial action plan, MDE spokesman Jay Apperson said. An Aug. 3 sample of the seep area was found to have 17 parts per billion of arsenic, Apperson said.

tarar@herald-mail.com After hearing a request by a health official Tuesday to improve the quality of well water in Washington County, the County Commissioners sent the proposal to a local advisory board for recommendations. Laurie Bucher, director of environmental health for the Washington County Health Department, asked the commissioners for more stringent disinfection and treatment procedures to help rid wells of bacterial contamination and keep the drinking water safe for residents.

County sends out sickness survey The Washington County Health Department mailed a survey to 11,000 homes last week to explore a possible link between illness and drinking water. Officials said the survey wasn't prompted by any illnesses, but will be used to gather information for future comparisons. Roderick A. MacRae, the director of environmental health, said he wants to develop a formula linking contaminated drinking water and gastrointestinal illness. Such formulas exist for other health areas, he said.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The threat of contaminated drinking water was not enough to fill a classroom at James Rumsey Technical Institute Wednesday afternoon. A handful of interested citizens turned out to hear a pair of geologists outline plans to assess potential sites of water contamination in West Virginia. "What we're hoping to do is prevent problems from occurring in the future," state geologist William J. Toomey said. Toomey said the state's Bureau for Public Health is in the process of fulfilling a federal mandate that requires states to implement a source water assessment program by 2003.

A Fulton County, Pa., woman accused of sickening her boyfriend with eyedrops waived her preliminary hearing Monday. Vickie Jo Mills, 33, appeared in court and waived her preliminary hearing, Magisterial District Judge Wendy Mellott said. A date was not immediately set for mandatory arraignment, Mellott said. Mills, of 18250 Great Cove Road in Ayr Township, Pa., is charged with 10 felony counts of aggravated assault, 10 misdemeanor counts of simple assault and 10 misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment.

Testing of discolored water seeping from the ground in the area of Washington County's Old City/County Landfill into Conococheague Creek revealed an arsenic level almost double that of the Environmental Protection Agency's standard for drinking water, a Maryland Department of the Environment spokesman said. At MDE's request, Washington County has hired a contractor to investigate the issue and develop a remedial action plan, MDE spokesman Jay Apperson said. An Aug. 3 sample of the seep area was found to have 17 parts per billion of arsenic, Apperson said.

With all the talk about protein, carbohydrate and fat, it's easy to forget about a very important nutrient - water. Water makes up 55 to 75 percent of a person's body weight and plays a role in everything your body does every day.   Your body loses 8 to 12 cups of water every day and this needs to be replaced. Some factors which increase your fluid needs include: exercise, hot weather, low humidity, high altitude, a high-fiber diet and increased fluid losses from caffeine and alcohol intake.

The recycling debate in Washington County and its towns calls to mind the decades-old effort to put fluoride in the drinking water. It’s probably a good idea, but there are still elements out there who believe it is a plot involving Soviet mind control. Washington County has talked about curbside recycling for years. Like clockwork, the issue pops up before the commissioners on an annual basis, who agree that it’s time to do something about it — after just a little bit more study.

Public health heroes deserve our thanks To the editor: With Thanksgiving around the corner, there are some special people who deserve our thanks - our public health heroes. As a community volunteer organization, the Eastern Panhandle Medical Reserve Corps would like to acknowledge today as Public Health Thank You Day. All too often we are unfamiliar with our public health professionals and volunteers, who devote their careers to keeping us healthy. Our public health professionals, in the three counties of the Eastern Panhandle, are dedicated to programs such as clean and safe food service establishments, clean drinking water, comprehensive children's immunization programs, and most recently, H1N1 pandemic awareness and immunization clinics.

Hundreds of beer and liquor bottles, a black duffel bag hanging from a tree, the remnants of a fire. On a rainy April afternoon, these are among the signs that some people make their homes in the woods in an area of Hagerstown. A pair of boxer shorts can be seen in a heap of bottles. A cell phone was left in the dirt and is soaking wet. Volunteers from a local church, Lifehouse West on Salem Avenue, trudge through these trees every week, searching for anyone who needs help.

o Watch for winter dangers HAGERSTOWN -- The salt-whitened sidewalks of downtown Hagerstown were barren Friday, the occasional bundled pedestrian walking briskly to escape the wind as temperatures dropped into the single digits and wind chills dipped below zero. The low on Friday in Hagerstown was 5 degrees at about 7:44 a.m., according to i4weather.net, the Web site for Greg Keefer's Hagerstown weather station. The city felt its coldest at about 8:28 a.m., when 26 mph winds made for a wind chill of minus 11 degrees, Keefer's records show.

NAPSA From insulating your windows and doors, which can help lower your monthly heating bills, to having the right tools on hand to see you through an emergency, a few tips from the experts may help keep you, your family and your home safe this winter. Lou Manfredini, Ace Hardware's "Helpful Hardware Man," recommends several steps to winterize your home. "Any homeowner can undertake these steps," said Manfredini. "If questions arise, just stop by your local hardware store, where a representative will be happy to help out. " To start with, stock up on all the tools you might need to clear sidewalks and driveways, uncover a buried car and keep walkways clear.

SHENANDOAH JUNCTION, W.Va. -- Elks Run is considered to be a vital part of Jefferson County's environment, winding through farmland and woodlands in the center of the county and delivering drinking water for the towns of Harpers Ferry and Bolivar. While the health of the stream is regarded as good near the Harpers Ferry water treatment plant along Bakerton Road, parts of the stream are "impaired" by fecal coliform, which points to possible contamination from animal or human waste, said Dan Riss, a member of the Elks Run Study Group.