Water Quality Report for 2014

Dear Water Customer,

The City of Milwaukie Water Department is proud to announce that our tap water is as safe as any drinking water supply in the nation.  Our water meets or exceeds all water quality standards as set by Oregon Health Authority, Public Health Division, Drinking Water Services (DWS) and the EPA.

This report includes work done in 2014, current and upcoming projects for 2015, and the results of water quality analysis. This year’s report will include results on the 2014 federally mandated sampling for unregulated contaminants. 

Light Rail construction started in 2012 with most of the emphasis on relocating and protecting underground utilities.  In 2014 all of the water line projects were completed related to Light Rail.  During 2014 water staff invested many hours working with the light rail contractors to insure the City receives the most accurate as built plans for our records.

One of the major costs to providing water is electricity.  Our water production team continually monitors and maintains all of the pumps and motors to the highest efficiency standards possible. 2014 power cost was $170,692.08 and 2014 production was down by 20 million gallons (total gallons produced 775,041,000.) and resulted in an energy savings of nearly $6,000.00  Water staff will be looking for even more ways to save in 2015.

Thank you for taking the time to read this year’s report and letting us know how we can improve. Meetings that deal with Drinking water and related issues are held throughout the year and are announced in the City of Milwaukie monthly newsletter THE PILOT. If you have questions regarding information in this report please contact me. Thank you for taking the time to read the 2014 Water Quality Report. 

Ronelle Sears
Water Supervisor

Water Quality Tables

These tables report the levels of chemicals, disinfection by-products, microbial contaminants, lead and copper, and unregulated contaminants found in Milwaukie's water.

Maintaining Milwaukie’s Water Supply System

Maintaining our production assets such as the pumps, motors, generators, and reservoirs is a very important yet virtually unseen part of the daily work.  We electronically monitor the entire water system every second of every day and maintain all of the production equipment and water quality monitors.  All of the pumps and motors require preventive maintenance and condition monitoring.   Condition monitoring of electric motors includes the rate of pumping, testing and analyzing the vibration levels, temperature and power usage.  By assessing the condition of motors on a regular basis we can schedule maintenance or replacement prior to a failure. 

Our two treatment plants have now been in operation for over 24 years and our data and control system for 17 years.  Many of the electronic components can no longer be repaired due to obsolescence.  Annual required maintenance of the disinfection equipment costs nearly $4,000.00.  Obsolete disinfection component replacements cost are estimated to be in excess of $20,000.00 over the next two years.

System On Constant Watch

Our monitoring and control equipment is referred to as SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition).  The Milwaukie SCADA system reports all of the water drawn from wells, pressure readings, disinfectant residuals, and the amount of water in our reservoirs.  Problems with equipment, power failures, leaks or water levels are reported via electronic means to water staff that provide oversight of the system 24/7/365.  The SCADA system has over 300 alarm points that when activated must be acknowledged.  On call staff is trained to handle every possible alarm scenario.  All members of the water team are certified by the State of Oregon and must receive continuing education and training every two years to maintain certification.

A Busy Year for the Water Crew

Tasks for 2014 included over 4,070 separate tasks generated by customers and in-house work orders.     Customer service requests include items such as  final meter reads or initial billing meter reads, turn water on or off for customer plumbing repairs.  Other tasks include meter box clean outs, trim vegetation and repair or replace meters.  The crew responds to leak check for customers that may have leaks in their system.  The team also assisted the billing unit of the Finance department by placing shut off notices for nonpayment.  The crews are also required to lock water meter services for nonpayment.   When you add up the customer changes, leak checks and billing disputes they spent over 1,400 hours on site checks made related to reading water meters.  The water team also completed preventative maintenance and repairs on 213 fire hydrants and 136 water main valves.

In 2014 our largest project that was completed was the water main replacement on Monroe Street from Main Street to 28th Avenue and included a section at Penzance to include overhaul of a large control valve and vault improvements.  The old main was originally installed in the 1930’s.  This project is one of many to update our old infrastructure with new products that meet the new reduced lead standards.    

During the year 2014 the City was required by the state to install vents on top of the water towers to protect the drinking water from the environment. The total cost for this project was over $7,000. (picture) The City was also required to replace each fuel tank at two of our wells due to not having secondary containment. The new fuel tanks are now double lined and have spill pans below the tanks to protect our drinking water in the event of a fuel spill.

During the fiscal year (FY) 15-16 the largest project the division will complete is painting and repairing the elevated tank (green giant) at the intersection of 40th and Harvey. During the last year the Division hired a contractor to inspect the inside of all of the city’s water reservoirs. The contractor reported the elevated tank had the most damage and rust inside and outside of the tank. The Division was only going to paint the top of the tank in FY 15, but decided to invest the funds to repair the outside and the inside of the tank. The reservoir at Well #6 on Stanley Ave was scheduled to also be repainted in FY 15 but we have decided to use those funds to repair the elevated tank because it is in worse condition. The Stanley Ave reservoir will be repainted in FY 16.

Milwaukie’s Water Source

The City’s water comes by way of the Troutdale Gravels Aquifer located over 200 feet below ground.  This Aquifer provides water for communities on both the North and South side of the Columbia River.  The Troutdale Aquifer encompasses about 300 square miles and extends from northern Clark County in Washington State to south of Milwaukie and from East of Troutdale to the Willamette River.   The land mass above the aquifer and the Columbia River’s prehistoric paleo-channel (old-channel) serves to maintain water levels within the aquifer.  The paleo-channel of the Columbia serves to draw water from the aquifer during periods of low water use, such as in the winter, and provides water to the aquifer in times of high volume pumping in the summer. 

The City of Milwaukie reaches this source of water by means of 7 operating wells that range from 300 to nearly 500 feet deep.   Milwaukie wells are located in several locations around town. 

Emergency water connections with Clackamas River Water and The City of Portland Water Bureau and a possible future connection with Oak Lodge Water are capable of supplying all the water we may need in an emergency. Currently the valves for the interties are closed and that is why when Portland or another outside jurisdiction announces a “boil water” notice it does not affect the City of Milwaukie customers. These interties allow the Milwaukie water system to assist other water systems when they need water in times of emergency or high level maintenance.  

The Water Team

The Water Team combined has over 70 years of experience working for the City of Milwaukie Water Division. The crews have extensive knowledge of past history, main line types and sizes, valve locations, hydrant locations and meter locations. The in the field experience is so valuable when it comes to repairing broken water mains. Time is critical when getting a main shut down, if it is let go it can cause property damage and be unsafe for the citizens. They are skilled employees with a passion for providing safe drinking water to the citizens. There is no way to place a dollar value on this kind of experience, we can only hope that our employees are happy and satisfied because they are extremely valuable to our City and our water system.

Michael Cunningham is the Direct Responsible Charge (DRC) for the Water Distribution System and leads the maintenance team.  Michael also directs a lot of the daily maintenance and routine repairs for the production facilities.  Don Simenson is our DRC for water treatment and is responsible for the pumping and treatment of the ground water. Both of these employees have been with the City for many years and are extremely valuable to the City Water Division. They are required to obtain high level state certifications and make sure we stay in compliance with the state for all aspects of the water system.

The water team is comprised of one ½ time Supervisor, one Utility 2(working foreman), 4 Utility Workers, and one Water Quality Coordinator.  In support of our team is Engineering, Streets, Finance and to some degree all City of Milwaukie departments contribute to our success in serving the needs of our customers and the infrastructure.  We constantly strive to provide the most cost effective service to our residents, nearly 2000 Permitted Businesses, Schools, and Churches.   When someone calls to report a situation or a leak we respond as soon as possible to assess, repair or schedule the needed service.  If the call for a leak comes in over the weekend our on call person will respond and assess the situation. If the leak is minimal and not causing property damage and is safe for the public we will sometimes wait until the next working day to repair the leak because it would not warrant calling in a 3 person crew and paying each employee double time to do the repair. Our water crew is very experienced in these situations and able to make sound judgment calls on the system.

An Assessment of Our Water

In 2004 a drinking water source assessment was conducted by Oregon DEQ and Oregon Health Division Drinking Water Program with assistance from Milwaukie staff.  The assessment report indicates that the water system would be moderately to highly susceptible to a contamination event inside the drinking water protection area.  The drinking water protection area is defined in the Source Water Assessment Report based on the distance water migrates toward a well over a specified period of time. 
The presence of several high and moderate risk potential contaminant sources within the protection area was confirmed through a potential contaminant source inventory.

Under a “worst case” scenario, where it is assumed that nothing is being done to protect groundwater quality at the identified potential contaminant sources, the assessment results indicate that the water system would be highly susceptible to several of the identified potential contaminant sources.

In 2010 the drinking water protection area around well 4 was reevaluated and the area was expanded slightly to the north and west. 

In addition, the assessment results indicate that, at this time, the water system is considered susceptible to viral contamination.  Viral contamination is typically caused by failed septic systems.  You may view a copy of the source assessment at the Public Works and Community Development Facility located at 6101 SE Johnson Creek Blvd. If you would like your own copy one can be provided for a fee.

Additional Health Information

All of the water we drink, both tap water and bottled water, originates from a combination of rivers, lakes, stream, ponds, reservoirs, springs and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land and through the ground, it absorbs naturally occurring minerals and radioactive material. Water also picks up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity. Some of the contaminants that may be present in source water include: microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, which may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations and wildlife.

Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, which can be naturally-occurring or a result from urban storm runoff, industrial and domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farming.

Pesticides and herbicides may come from a variety of sources, such as agriculture, stormwater runoff and residential uses.

Organic chemical contaminants, including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, which are by-products of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can also, come from gas stations, stormwater runoff and septic systems.

Radioactive contaminants, which can be naturally occurring or be the result of oil and gas production, mining activities or manufacturing. In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the EPA prescribes regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public systems.

What is Milwaukie Doing to Keep Our Water Safe?

The City of Milwaukie works hard to prevent the “Worst Case” scenario and to protect our ground water resource and the water distribution system.  Milwaukie is currently extending it’s wastewater service area to reduce the viral threat from septic systems and works closely with Oregon DEQ and Federal EPA to monitor and cleanup past contaminated sites and to properly evaluate and render safe any new sites.  

Contaminated sites include former gas stations, dry cleaners, industrial and residential properties with contaminants ranging from naphthalene, heating oil and industrial solvents.  Oregon DEQ maintains a complete listing of these sites that can be viewed at http://www.oregon.gov/DEQ/WQ/index.shtml

Cross-Contamination: What is it and How to Prevent it

Cross-contamination is the leading cause of waterborne disease. Cross-Contamination occurs whenever the water contacts anything that is contaminated or objectionable. Wherever this can occur is called a “cross-connection.” As the water purveyor, we are mandated by State of Oregon Drinking Water rules (OAR 333-061-0020, 0070 through 0074) to eliminate or control all actual and potential cross-connections.   In 2014 water staff in conjunction with City Council updated the Cross-Connection Ordinance, Program plan and Policies to ensure that the rules are more easily understood by everyone. 

A cross-connection is any actual or potential connection between drinking water piping and any other substance. Examples of cross-connections include: residential irrigation, fire sprinkler systems, commercial beverage dispensers, boilers and garden hose spray attachments. If you would like to know if your home or commercial building is safe, please call our specialist at (503) 786-7622 for a free safety survey.

If you know of any backflow assemblies at your property they must be tested annually by a certified tester.

The City has about 1200 backflow assemblies on file, owned and maintained by the resident or property owner. During the 2014 calendar year we began to send out notices to facilities that were past due testing. We are now positioned to be sending out reminder notices and conduct facility surveys to locate and control potential hazards.  Over the next 12 months there will be test notices sent to every service that has a known cross-connection.  Many follow-up notices will be sent that stipulate the required discontinuation of service for non-testing.  The City is required to file an annual Cross Connection Compliance Report with the State of Oregon Drinking Water Program. Please check the City of Milwaukie web site for more information on keeping our water safe.

The Oregon Drinking Water Program (DWP) provides a current public list of OHA-certified Backflow Assembly Testers.  The public can use this list to select and contact a Tester that is currently certified and has indicated availability and appropriate licensing to test assemblies for compensation.  Only Oregon OHA-certified Testers can test assemblies in Oregon.

Certified public Backflow Assembly Testers on this list are required to obtain licensing through the Construction Contractor's Board (CCB) or Landscape Contractor's Board (LCB).  DWP does not verify CCB or LCB licensing for individuals on this list of public Testers.  Customers should always verify the licensing of any contractor they hire by using the above links or by calling the CCB at 503-378-4621 or the LCB at 503-986-6561.

National Primary Drinking Water Regulation Compliance

In order to ensure our drinking water is safe, the United States Environmental Protection Agency sets regulations for drinking water. The City of Milwaukie is in full compliance with the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations.

Drinking water, including bottled water, can reasonably be expected to contain at least small traces of some contaminates. The presence of contaminates does not necessarily indicate the water poses a health risk.

Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water that the general population. Immuno-comprised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have undergone organs transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly persons 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 including appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Water Drinking Hotline: 800-426-4791 and online at www.epa.gov/safewater

Help Protect Our Groundwater

You are in control of what chemicals are used in your yard and what falls onto your driveway.  Limit your chemical use and the use of cleaners that are harmful to the environment. Clean up any oil or gas spills in your driveway, do not wash them into the street.  Do not store fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides out doors.  These chemicals should be stored in a weatherproof shed equipped with a floor. Properly discard old or unused chemicals including cleaners, solvents, paints and lubricants through the local METRO Hazardous waste program.  For more information go to www.oregonmetro.gov .   Do you have a septic system?  If so please contact the City of Milwaukie Engineering staff and ask for information on connecting to sewer.  Old septic systems are the leading cause of high nitrate levels that lead to viral contamination of the drinking water aquifer.

Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule and CCRs

Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 333-061-0043(3)(l) requires community water systems to report detections of unregulated contaminants monitored for under the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) in their annual CCR. Specifically, they must report the average and the range at which the contaminant was detected. Water systems may want to briefly explain in the CCR why they are monitoring for unregulated contaminants. EPA has provided the following general suggested explanation: "Unregulated contaminants are those that don't yet have a drinking water standard set by USEPA. The purpose of monitoring for these contaminants is to help EPA decide whether the contaminants should have a standard."

Water Service Line Replacement

Milwaukie has some old water infrastructure that is still in active service. The need for water distribution service lines and mains to be replaced is crucial in protecting our valuable water resource. We find that a fair amount of the approximately 7000 service lines in Milwaukie’s water distribution system either have failed, are failing or will fail in the foreseeable future.  

A good portion of our water lines out in the city’s water distribution system are from the 1930’s through the 1960’s. Our citizen’s service line(s) and city water service line(s) are usually found in fair to poor condition and need replacement due to age and corrosion problems.

With our new street paving program we try to identify trouble areas and contract out to replace these older water pipes, so that newly paved roads don’t have to be dug up because of a potential water leak(s) occurring after the paving project is complete. City service line repairs and replacements can be costly.

Our internal water staff also replaces many service lines that are not contracted out when found to have a failure. We also use predictive assessment in trouble shooting which water service lines to replace, before these lines start to leak. These efforts help to prevent service outages, possible contamination of our citizen’s water supply and water loss regarding water conservation.

When we replace these old service lines we use copper and in the presence of pipe corrosion we use a newly developed form of cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) called Municipex. The city and home owners are finding that PEX or copper are great choices of material, to replace aging service lines.

Remember to please call our water supervisor if you see water running down the street, if the road is abnormally damp after a long spell of no rain or notice damp or wet spots in your yard. Our water supervisor Ronelle Sears can be reached at 503-786-7615 for any potential water leak issues you may have.