March 22 is World Water Day

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In honor of World Water Day, let’s all take a moment to remember how important it is to protect our water sources. All water is part of the critical system that protects the environment, our health, the economy and our way of life.

The Municipality of Marmora & Lake encourages you to participate in World Water Day by sampling your well water and doing your part to protect drinking water supplies.

Around the world many people struggle to have access to clean safe water. We all play a role in protecting valuable water resources so we can have a sufficient supply for our daily needs. In Ontario there are many checks and balances to ensure our municipal supplies of drinking water are safe for drinking. However if you get your drinking water from a well it is your responsibility to ensure you protect your water supply and test it to ensure it is safe to drink.

The Health Unit recommends that you take preventative measures to protect your water supply and that you sample your well water seasonally to ensure it is safe to drink. It’s a free test and water sample bottles are available at health unit offices and at Town Hall.

What you can do to protect water sources:

  • Maintain your well: check that surface water is diverted away from the casing, the cap is a properly fitted vermin proof cap

  • Keep chemicals away from your well and surface bodies of water especially in flood prone areas

  • Don’t flush medications and chemicals down your toilet as these may make their way into water sources

  • Take advantage of household hazardous waste days in your community to properly dispose of chemicals and harmful products that may contaminate water sources

  • Ensure you maintain your septic system so that it does not contaminate surface or ground water supplies

  • Support nature’s water filters by not destroying natural wetlands

  • Dispose of animal waste in a manner that does not pollute water supplies

  • CONSERVE water as it is a precious resource

For more information on Well Water please visit: http://hpepublichealth.ca/home/drinking-water

For more information and tips on Water Conservation please visit: http://quinteconservation.ca/site/images/stories/water/docs/water_conservation.pd