DRINKING WATER ON CAPE COD All the drinking water on Cape Cod comes from the same place: our unconfined, sole source aquifer. The aquifer is underground Cape Cod and is nestled in a big saltwater layer. Saltwater is heavier than the freshwater aquifer so it sinks to the bedrock below. The fresh water aquifer rises up higher in some places, that’s called a lens. It’s unconfined because we live on a sand bar: sand, sand, everywhere! We all share the same drinking water source on Cape Cod, we’re communities connected by water. Sometimes the groundwater doesn't always stay in the ground. When this happens, above-the-surface groundwater creates ponds, lakes, streams, wetlands, and marshes. While typically not sources of drinking water, they are an essential part of the hydrologic cycle, reducing high groundwater levels by keeping the water flowing!
The aquifer is considered sole source because the six lenses are all connected.
The aquifer will recharge, or refill, in the wet seasons from rain and snow or other precipitation. In the spring the groundwater is closer to the surface and water bodies and wetlands are as high as they will be all year. The aquifer is full!
10.7B GAL
FRESHWATER LENS
SALT GROUNDWATER
Since 2000, public community drinking water suppliers have pumped on average about 10.7 billion gallons of groundwater per year from Cape Cod’s Sole Source Aquifer. CAPE COD COMMISSION
THERE ARE IDENTIFIED AND EMERGING ISSUES WITH DRINKING WATER ON CAPE COD. Here are some resources for you to find out more: HAVE YOUR WATER TESTED
RA DO N
If you have a well and want to learn more about test results, go to Cape Cod Extension’s well and drinking water fact sheet page.
It’s very easy to do: go to your local health department website for details or use Barnstable County Health and Environment’s Water Quality Lab page for information.
www.capecodextension.org/hazardouswaste/wellwater
www.barnstablecountyhealth.org/programsand-services/water-quality-laboratory
DISPOSING OF TOXIC WASTE
INFORMATION ON OTHER TOWN WATER BODIES
Learn how to get rid of unwanted household and yard chemicals and other items too toxic to trash. www.loveyourlocalwater.org
If you want to know more about the ponds, lakes, streams and rivers, wetlands and other water bodies, go to the Cape Cod Commission’s pages on this. Your town conservation or natural resources web pages will have your town’s specific information.
BARNSTABLE COUNTY PROGRAMS Barnstable County has a commitment to water quality and has many programs focused on research, testing, and education. We are focused on education and outreach — we enjoy meeting you! Explore our department sites, we are working for you!
noncommissioned
WASTEWATER RESEARCH
www.barnstablecounty.org/departments
Find out if your wastewater is contributing to the problem and be part of the solution by looking at data and research on alternatives to your current septic system or wastewater treatment.
LOOK INTO NGOS There are many NGOs on Cape Cod interested in researching and protecting water quality. Look in your local area by a quick search online. Get to know them.
www.masstc.org
WATER AUTHORITY WEBSITES
CONSIDER VOLUNTEERING
There are 18 water district and departments on Cape Cod, pumping over a hundred wells. Look for more information on your area’s water authority web pages.
HOW WATER TREATMENT WORKS
Volunteer with a government department, NGO organization, association trust, and group that is focused on water and put some boots on the ground! Volunteers are welcome!
COAGULATION
Water from a well is pumped from underground. However, if you are connected to town water, your drinking water has been treated before it reaches your tap. Here are some common steps in drinking water treatment as provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: COAGULATION occurs when certain chemicals are first added to the water to cause certain particles currently in the water, like dirt and other dissolved material, to clump together in larger groups, called floc.
LEARN ABOUT TEST RESULTS
MIXING
SEDIMENTATION
FILTRATION
SEDIMENTATION occurs when the heavier clumped particles (floc) sink because they are denser than water. FILTRATION occurs when the water, without the floc, passes through different membranes or filters of different sizes and different materials such as sand, charcoal, or gravel. DISINFECTION occurs when a disinfectant, usually chlorine, is added to the water to kill anything still in the water (bacteria, viruses, and parasites). An ultra-violet (UV) treatment for disinfection may also be used.
STORAGE
DISINFECTION
DISTRIBUTION
www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/public/water_treatment.html
CAPE COD
GROUNDWATER GUARDIANS
LEARN MORE ON OUR WEBSITE WWW.CAPECODGROUNDWATER.ORG