Date May 8, 2014
CONTACT: Mary C. St. Mary/Mary.StMary@Erie.Gov
Phone: 716.858.4941/ Mobile: 716.253.3925
Drinking Water Week Recognizes Role Water Plays in Health
What Do You Know About H2O?
ERIE COUNTY, NY—The Erie County Department of Health (“ECDOH”) and the American Water Works Association (“AWWA”) are participating in Drinking Water Week 2014 across North America by asking the question “What do you know about H2O Erie County”?
Throughout this week, AWWA, and partners across the water community will celebrate the value of water by learning about the critical role it plays in our daily lives and in the quality of life we enjoy. Aligning with this year’s theme, special attention will be given to the ways in which all water consumers can get to know their H2O.
“Our Division of Environmental Health’s Public Health Engineering team is responsible for the regulation of public water supplies and for overseeing and regulating public drinking water supplies’ compliance with State and Federal standards.” said Erie County Health Commissioner Dr. Gale Burstein. “Getting enough water every day is important for your health. Water helps your body keep your temperature normal, lubricate and cushion joints, protect your spinal cord and other sensitive tissues and get rid of wastes.”
“Drinking Water Week is a great opportunity to take time to realize how integral safe drinking water is to our everyday lives,” said AWWA Chief Executive Officer David LaFrance. “Now is the time to understand the roles we play in caring for our precious water supplies and systems to guarantee we have safe drinking water for generations to come.” The 54,000 community water systems in the United States provide about 90% of Americans with their tap water.
Annual Water Quality Reports are available on the following agency’s websites:
Erie County Water Authority http://www.ecwa.org/content/publications/annualwaterqualityreport_all
Buffalo Water Authority
http://buffalowater.org/Quality/WaterQualityReports/20132014WaterQualityReport
Town of Tonawanda Water Department http://www.tonawanda.ny.us/Archive/36
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For more information:
Erie County Department of Health – http://www2.erie.gov/health/
Erie County Department of Health, Environmental Health, Public Engineering -- http://www2.erie.gov/health/index.php?q=public-health-engineering
Erie County Water Authority -- http://www.ecwa.org
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- http://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/everyone/basics/water.html