We at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) are proud to provide some of the nation’s highest quality drinking water to our customers. In 2006, as in years past, the SFPUC’s water met or exceeded federal and state standards for drinking water. The State of California mandates that we send this Water Quality Report to you, which includes important information about your drinking water.

The winter of 2006 was one of the driest on record, and there will be more dry years to come because of global climate change. Therefore, it is extremely important to conserve drinking water. Conservation now may help avoid serious rationing later. We ask that everyone make a personal commitment to help conserve this precious resource.

With your continued support, together we can ensure delivery of reliable, exceptional quality drinking water for decades to come.

Susan Leal
General Manager

The following is text taken directly from the the 2006 Water Quality Report. A pdf version of the report in English, Chinese and Spanish is attached at the bottom of this page.

Where Our Water Comes From
In 2006, the Hetch Hetchy Watershed provided approximately 86% of our total water supply with the remainder supplemented by local watersheds in Alameda, Santa Clara, and San Mateo Counties.

Protecting Our Watersheds
The SFPUC actively protects the natural water resources entrusted to its care. An annual report on the Hetch Hetchy, Priest, and Moccasin watersheds is prepared to evaluate the sanitary conditions, water quality, and potential contamination sources in these watersheds. The report also presents performance results of watershed management activities implemented by the SFPUC to reduce the potential contamination sources. The 2006 sanitary survey concludes that very low levels of contaminants associated with wildlife and human activities exist in these watersheds.

The SFPUC also conducts sanitary surveys of the local watersheds every five years. The potential contamination sources identified in the 2005 survey are similar to the upcountry watersheds.

Our Drinking Water Sources
The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells. For our system, the major water source originates from spring snowmelt flowing down the Tuolumne River and is stored in the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. Because this pristine water source meets all federal and state criteria for watershed protection, disinfection treatment, bacteriological quality, and operational standards, the California Department of Health Services has granted this water source a filtration exemption. In other words, the source is so clean and protected that the SFPUC is not required to filter water from the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir.

The Alameda Watershed spans more than 35,000 acres in Alameda and Santa Clara Counties. Surface water from rainfall and runoff is collected in the Calaveras and San Antonio Reservoirs. Prior to distribution, water from the watershed is treated at the Sunol Valley Water Treatment Plant (SVWTP). Treatment processes include coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, filtration, and disinfection. Fluoridation, chloramination and corrosion control treatment are provided for the combined Hetch Hetchy and SVWTP water at the Sunol Chloramination and Fluoridation Facilities.

Surface water from rainfall and runoff captured in the 23,000-acre Peninsula Watershed, which is located in San Mateo County, is stored in four reservoirs: Crystal Springs (Lower and Upper), San Andreas, Pilarcitos, and Stone Dam. The water from these reservoirs is treated at the Harry Tracy Water Treatment Plant (HTWTP). Treatment processes at HTWTP include ozonation, coagulation, flocculation, filtration, disinfection, chloramination, fluoridation, and corrosion control treatment.

Your Water Rate Dollars at Work

Water System Improvement Program Update

Projects that enhance high water quality are a key component of the multi-billion dollar Water System Improvement Program (WSIP), a program developed to upgrade the SFPUC water delivery system.

In 2006 significant progress was made on the Cross Connection Controls Project, a WSIP project that modifies pipeline air valves and blowoff structures to eliminate the possibility of contaminants entering the Hetch Hetchy Water System. To date, SFPUC crews have completed more than half of the approximately 300 sites on pipelines throughout the 167-mile system.

For more detailed information on all of the WSIP water quality projects and their progress, visit us online at www.sfwater.org.

Water Conservation Starts with You

The winter of 2006 was one of the driest on record, and scientists tell us that with global climate change upon us, Californians can expect these drier winters to become more common. Today, more than ever, it’s important for San Franciscans to conserve our drinking water. Conserving water now may help avoid more serious rationing later.

It’s easy to save water by following a few simple steps, and installing water efficient appliances and fixtures like low-flow toilets and washing machines can bring even greater water savings. The SFPUC even offers cash rebates to property owners who replace these older appliances and fixtures.

Here are a few things that you can do now to save water:

• Turn off the faucet when you are brushing your teeth or doing the dishes.
• Take shorter showers. Each minute you cut saves 2.5 gallons.
• Use a broom to clean sidewalks instead of using a hose.
• Water your plants only at night.
• Operate your clothes and dishwashers with full loads, even if the machine has an adjustable load setting.
• Use a carwash instead of washing your car at home.

SFPUC offers a variety of ways to help you save, from free toilet flappers, low flow showerheads, and aerators, to rebates for water conserving appliances, to a Water Wise Evaluation where an SFPUC auditor can help you check for leaks. Call 415-551-3000 for more information.

The Highest Quality Water
The SFPUC’s Water Quality Bureau regularly collects and tests water samples from reservoirs and designated sampling points throughout the system to ensure that the SFPUC’s water meets or exceeds federal and state drinking water standards. In 2006, Water Quality staff conducted 88,096 tests of drinking water quality.

All drinking waters contain some minerals or elements, often in very low levels. In water quality terms these substances are called contaminants.

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. Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk.

The adjacent table lists all drinking water contaminants detected in 2006. Contaminants below detection limits, such as arsenic, perchlorate, MTBE, and others, are not listed. The table contains the name of each contaminant, the applicable drinking water standards or action levels, the ideal goals for public health, the amount detected in water, the typical contaminant sources, and footnotes explaining the findings.

Contaminants that may be present in source water include:

• Microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, that may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife.
• Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, that can be naturally-occurring or result from urban stormwater runoff, industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farming.
• Pesticides and herbicides, that may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban stormwater runoff, and residential uses.
• Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, that are byproducts of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can also come from gas stations, urban stormwater runoff, agricultural application, and septic systems.
• Radioactive contaminants, that can be naturally-occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.

In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the California Department of Health Services (Department) prescribe regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Department regulations also establish limits for contaminants in bottled water that must provide the same protection for public health. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the USEPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791).

Key Water Quality Terms Following are definitions of key terms noted on the adjacent water quality data table. These terms refer to the standards and goals for water quality described below.

Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL): The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. Primary MCLs are set as close to the PHGs (or MCLGs) as is economically and technologically feasible. Secondary MCLs are set to protect the odor, taste, and appearance of drinking water.

Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (MCLG): The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs are set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Public Health Goal (PHG): The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. PHGs are set by the California Environmental Protection Agency.

Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level (MRDL): The level of a disinfectant added for water treatment that may not be exceeded at the consumer’s tap.

Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level Goal (MRDLG): The level of a disinfectant added for water treatment below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRDLGs are set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Primary Drinking Water Standard (PDWS): MCLs and MRDLs for contaminants that affect health along with their monitoring and reporting requirements, and water treatment requirements.

Treatment Technique: A required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.

Regulatory Action Level: The concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements that a water system must follow.

Cryptosporidium and Giardia are parasitic microbes found in most surface water supplies. The SFPUC tests for them regularly both in source and treated water supplies. Both were occasionally found at very low levels in the SFPUC’s water in 2006. If ingested these parasites may produce symptoms of nausea, stomach cramps, diarrhea, and associated headaches.

City of San Francisco - Water Quality Data for Year 2006

Reducing Lead from Plumbing Fixtures The SFPUC removed all known lead service lines in the 1980s and has been replacing brass meters with lead-free meters since 2002. However, some homes in San Francisco may have increased levels of lead in their tap water caused by the deterioration of household plumbing materials that contain lead. Infants and young children are typically at greatest health risk. If you are concerned about elevated lead levels in your water, have your water tested or flush your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes before using the water whenever the tap has not been used for several hours.

Call 1-877-737-8297 for more information about our water test for lead. The test fee is $25 per tap. Families with the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program may call the Public Health Department’s WIC program and request a free lead test of their tap water.

The SFPUC also offers lead-free kitchen faucets to San Francisco customers at a discounted price of $10 ($110 wholesale value). For more information and an application form, visit us online at http://faucet.sfwater.org .

Visit www.sfwater.org for more information on other water quality issues.

Special Health Needs
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 system 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. USEPA/Centers for Disease Control (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) or at www.epa.gov/safewater .

Comments or Questions?

Water quality policy issues are decided at SFPUC Commission hearings. Hearings are held the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month at 1:30 pm at San Francisco City Hall, Room 400. For more information about upcoming meetings, call 415-554-3165.

Let us know what you think of this report. If you have suggestions, please contact us at feedback@sfwater.org or call 415-554-3289.

Call 415-554-3444 to report a water or sewer problem.

To Learn More

Want to learn more about drinking water regulations? Visit the California Department of Health Services at www.dhs.ca.gov  or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at www.epa.gov .