2023 Consumer Confidence Report

This report is intended to provide you with important information about your drinking water and the efforts made by the water system to provide safe drinking water. We want our valued customers to be informed about their water quality. This year, as in years past, your tap water met all USEPA and state drinking water health standards. For more information regarding this report contact Alex Urbanczyk, (847) 461-1651. If you would like to learn more, please feel welcome to attend any of our regularly scheduled Village Board meetings on the third Thursday of every month at the Village Hall at 675 Village Court. The source water assessment for our supply has been completed by the Illinois EPA and information on that is included below.

SOURCE OF DRINKING WATER
The source of drinking water used by Glencoe is Surface Water from Lake Michigan. The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs, and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it can 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. 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 may be naturally-occurring or result from urban storm water runoff, industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farming.
• Pesticides and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban storm water 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, urban storm water runoff and septic systems.
• Radioactive contaminants, which may be naturally occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.

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. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the USEPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791).

In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, EPA prescribes regulations which limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. FDA regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same protection for public health.

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/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the USEPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline (1-800-426-4791).

SOURCE WATER INFORMATION
Source Water                       Name                                     Type of Water                      Location
INTAKE (00106)                    LAKE MICHIGAN                   Surface Water                      3,300 FT NE PLANT

SOURCE WATER ASSESSMENT
To view a summary version of the completed Source Water Assessments, including: Importance of Source Water; Susceptibility to Contamination Determination; and documentation/recommendation of Source Water Protection Efforts, you may access the Illinois EPA website at https://dataservices.epa.illinois.gov/swap/factsheet.aspx.

Susceptibility is defined as the likelihood for the source water(s) of a public water system to be contaminated at concentrations that would pose a concern. The Illinois EPA considers all surface water sources of community water supplies to be susceptible to potential pollution problems. The very nature of surface water allows contaminants to migrate into the intakes with no protection only dilution, which is the reason for mandatory treatment for all surface water supplies in Illinois. Glencoe’s intake is located far enough offshore that shoreline point sources are not considered a factor on water quality. However, at certain times of the year the potential for contamination exists due to storm water runoff and wet-weather flows from the North Shore Channel. If currents are flowing in a northerly direction, contaminants from these flows could migrate to Glencoe’s intake and compromise water quality. A correlation between Northbrook’s rainfall data and North Shore Channel's discharge dates show the potential effect of these flows on Glencoe’s water quality. The proximity to a major shipping lane adds to the susceptibility should there be a spill near the intake.

2022 REGULATED CONTAMINENTS DETECTED

LEAD AND COPPER
Definitions:

• Action Level: The concentration of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water system must follow.
• Action Level Goal (ALG): The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. ALGs allow for a margin of safety.

If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. The Glencoe Water Utility is responsible for providing high quality drinking water, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components. When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 1 to 5 minutes before using water for drinking or cooking. If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your water tested. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline or at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/lead.

ppb: micrograms per liter or parts per billion - or one ounce in 7,350,000 gallons of water.
ppm: milligrams per liter or parts per million - or one ounce in 7,350 gallons of water.
*Note: The state requires monitoring of these contaminants on a triennial basis. Therefore this data, while accurate, is more than one year old.

Water Quality Test Results
Definitions: The following tables contain scientific terms and measures, some of which may require explanation.

• Avg: Regulatory compliance with some MCL’s are based on running annual average of monthly samples.
• Level 1 Assessment: A Level 1 assessment is a study of the water system to identify potential problems and determine (if possible) why total coliform bacteria have been found in our water system.
• Level 2 Assessment: A Level 2 assessment is a very detailed study of the water system to identify potential problems and determine (if possible) why an E. coli MCL violation has occurred and/or why total coliform bacteria have been found in our water system on multiple occasions.
• Maximum Contaminant Level Goal or MCLG: The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of safety.
• Maximum Contaminant Level or MCL: The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs are set as close to the MCLGs as feasible using the best available treatment technology.
• Maximum residual disinfectant level goal or MRDLG: The level of a drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk to health. MRDLG’s do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectants to control microbial contaminants.
• Maximum residual disinfectant level or MRDL: The highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is convincing evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of microbial contaminants.
• na: not applicable
• pCi/L: picocuries per liter (a measure of radioactivity)
• ppb: micrograms per liter or parts per billion – or one ounce in 7,350,000 gallons of water.
• ppm: milligram per liter or parts per million – or one ounce in 7,350 gallons of water.
• Treatment Technique or TT: A required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.
• NTU: Nephelometric Turbidity Units - a measure of water clarity.
• Turbidity: Is a measurement of the cloudiness of the water caused by suspended particles. We monitor it because it is a good indicator of water quality and the effectiveness of our filtration system and disinfectants. 

 
REGULATED CONTAMINANTS

Avg: Regulatory compliance with some MCL’s are based on running annual average of monthly samples.
ppb: micrograms per liter or parts per billion – or one ounce in 7,350,000 gallons of water.
ppm: milligram per liter or parts per million – or one ounce in 7,350 gallons of water.

Avg: Regulatory compliance with some MCL’s are based on running annual average of monthly samples.
na: not applicable
ppm: milligram per liter or parts per million – or one ounce in 7,350 gallons of water.

TURBIDITY
Definitions:

• Turbidity: Is a measurement of the cloudiness of the water caused by suspended particles. We monitor it because it is a good indicator of water quality and the effectiveness of our filtration system and disinfectants. 
• Treatment Technique or TT: A required process intended to reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.

NTU: Nephelometric Turbidity Units - a measure of water clarity.

TOTAL ORGANIC CARBON
The percentage of Total Organic Carbon (TOC) removal was measured each month and the system met all TOC removal requirements set, unless a TOC violation is noted in the violations section.

VIOLATIONS SUMMARY TABLE
We are happy to report that no monitoring, reporting, treatment technique, maximum disinfectant residual level, or maximum contaminant level violations were recorded during 2022.

2022 UNREGULATED CONTAMINANTS
In 2021 our PWS was sampled as part of the State of Illinois PFAS Statewide Investigation. Results from that sampling indicated PFAS were detected in our drinking water above the health advisory level established by the Illinois EPA. Follow up monitoring is being conducted. For more information about PFAS health advisories https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/water-quality/pfas/pfas-healthadvisory.html

UNREGULATED CONTAMINANTS

Minimum reporting level (MRL) = 2.0 ng/L
ng/L: nanograms per liter or parts per trillion – or one ounce in 7,350,000,000 gallons of water.
ND: not detected
*Per Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updated Health Advisories (HA) June 2022