At a recent meeting held by Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association (NSWCA), of which Massapequa Water District Commissi
oner Raymond J. Averna currently serves as president, guest speaker Paul J. Ponturo, P.E., senior water resources engineer with H2M Architects & Engineers in Melville, discussed with Long Island water commissioners scientific information and data regarding the water contamination crisis in Flint, MI.
“When Flint changed its water source from treated Detroit Water and Sewerage Department water obtained from Lake Huron and the Detroit River to the Flint River, officials failed to apply corrosion control treatment to the new water source,” said Pontoro. “This resulted with lead contamination that created a serious public health danger. The corrosive Flint River water caused lead from aging pipes to leach into the water supply, producing extremely elevated levels of lead.”
Ponturo added that while many Long Island water providers utilize “infrastructures that are almost 100 years old New York State has strict water management compliance regulations in place for preventing such crises. Each Long Island water district follows these regulations and continually maintains their respective infrastructure to avoid potential water contamination, including lead leaching intrusion.”
“Local Long Island water districts get their water from a sole source subterranean aquifer as opposed to lake or river water,” said Averna. “While our raw water contains virtually no lead even before treatment, the public can see complete information on what is in the water of our 21 commissioner-run NSWCA member districts within each respective district’s annual Drinking Water Quality Report.”
—Submitted by the Massapequa Water District
