The University of Central Florida routinely monitors its drinking water for contaminants. We had a drinking water standard violation earlier this year, and we want to let you know what happened and what we are doing to correct it.
The official violation notice from the Department of Environmental Protection can be viewed here.
Below are answers to questions you might have about UCF’s drinking water and the violation described above. We hope this helps you understand the information presented, as well as the steps we have already taken to ensure UCF has a safe and healthy water supply.
Is the water on campus safe to drink?
Yes.
What caused the violation?
Florida and many other states require the use of a disinfectant to minimize the possibility of bacterial contamination in the drinking water distribution system.
If water flows at too slow of a pace through the pipes on its way to the tap, that can lead to an increase in the amount of Total Trihalomethanes, or TTHMs. TTHMs are by-products of the reaction of the chlorine disinfectant with the natural organic and inorganic matter in the water.
What steps has UCF taken to solve the problem?
Since elevated TTHM levels were found at the CFE Arena sampling site in the spring, UCF has increased the flushing of pipes to make the water move faster.
UCF also has adjusted the amount of chlorine added at the water treatment plant and expanded monitoring and tracking through a computerized maintenance management system.
Why are you notifying the campus now for a problem that occurred in the spring?
The federal Environmental Protection Agency sets the guidelines for acceptable levels of TTHM and other contaminants in the water supply and also for the reporting of violations. The EPA guidelines for TTHM are based on the average test results over a one-year period (the four most recent samples collected).
If this were an emergency or if it required you to take any corrective actions, you would have been notified immediately.