Where can you get clean drinking water in America? You can buy clean bottled water, filter your water at home, or live in a city where the municipal water comes clean for drinking. You will often hear of cases of lead contamination in water in a given city. Still, the news does not mean that water in all cities is contaminated. Some cities, such as Hamilton, Ohio, offer the best drinking water in America.
Throughout the U.S. and in Canada, some municipalities stand out as exemplary when it comes to water quality. Other cities, however, do not purify their water enough, delivering the worst drinking water in America. Read on to get the answer to the question, is America’s drinking water safe?
Best Drinking Water In America
- Hamilton, Ohio – For three years now, the city of Hamilton has been recognized as having the cleanest drinking water. The water supplied through the city is sourced from the Miami Valley Buried Aquifer.
- Silverdale, Washington – Silverdale tap water ranks top according to the ranking by the American Water Works Association. The city has also been recognized a few times in Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting events.
- Emporia, Kansas – Even with news of polluted drinking water in America, the city of Emporia can serve about 25,000 residents with clean drinking water. The city has also been recognized three times as having the best drinking water in America at the Berkeley Springs events.
- Eldorado Springs – The town of Eldorado Springs in Colorado won the Best Municipal Water in the U.S. in the 2016 Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting event. The reservoirs and creeks from the mountains make the water supplied to the town clean and refreshing.
- Louisville, Kentucky – Louisville has trademarked its municipal tap water. The water is sourced from the Ohio River and then treated in a treatment facility that uses sand and gravel to filter water.
Worst Drinking Water In America
Rural America’s drinking water crisis has expanded to many cities. There are many cities with polluted drinking water in America with so many cases of infections and lead poisoning. Some of these towns and cities make you ask the question, is America’s drinking water safe? In such towns, you might have to use a water softener and a water softener to make the water safe. Read more about water softeners (and particularly whether they produce water that’s safe to drink) on American Home Water and Air.
Cities with the worst drinking water in America include the following.
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – The Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority advised all residents in 2017 to boil their water before consumption. After the warming, the water was found to have a low level of chlorine that could cause digestive disruption such as diarrhea and nausea.
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin – Milwaukee has also endured scandals involving unsafe drinking water. Between 2015 and 2017, children in some families tested for high levels of lead. Previously, the city had asked residents to install filters if they lived in homes built before 1951.
- Flint, Michigan – In 2014, aggravated amounts of lead were found in the water supplied to homes. The water reached homes with a brown sludge with a heavy metallic odor. Three years later, the water was considered safe for drinking, but politicians such as congressman Dan Kildee warns residents of drinking the water.
- Detroit, Michigan – The water crisis in Michigan does not end with Flint as it continues in Detroit. The crisis might be as a result of the old infrastructure in the state. In 2018, water was tested in 86 public schools in Detroit, where 57 schools had water contaminated with enough lead to cause brain damage. The findings of the tests resulted in the closing of water fountains and replacing them with water coolers. Detroit now focuses on installing filters in public schools.
- Newark, New Jersey – Newark is another city with abnormal levels of lead contamination in the U.S. According to a report released by the state, the lead contamination levels in the town are at record highs. Of more than 240 samples tested, 100 samples showed levels of lead higher than EPA standards. In a bid to filter the water and keep residents safe, the city is providing residents with water filters.
- Washington DC – The city has had a major crisis with polluted drinking water in America. In 2000, Washington, DC, was out of the list of cities with good drinking water in America. Even by 2016, the residents of D.C. were still receiving water from lead pipes. The problem is even worse as average homeowners need to pay more than $2,000 to replace their lead pipes.
- Brady, Texas – rural America’s drinking water crisis mostly deals with lead. However, the water in Brady, Texas, has aggravated levels of radium, which can cause bone cancer. The radium levels in Brady’s water are nine times worse than American standards.
Conclusion
Is America’s drinking water safe? There are many cities and towns with the best drinking water in America. In such cities, you get clean drinking water in America straight from your tap. Some cities, however, do not deliver safe drinking water, and you might have to filter the water to clean it or buy clean drinking water. Rural America’s drinking water crisis is now in towns and cities, and the situation is dire.
