FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Patrick
J. Becher, Executive Director
Mohawk Valley Water Authority
792-0310
A story appeared in a
Utica newspaper this morning, Monday, December 14, 2009 related to the
purchasing of bottled water by Congressman Michael Arcuri’s office. The
stated purpose for using bottled water was concerns over the quality of the
drinking water.
The internal plumbing at
the Utica federal building contains lead piping throughout. There has been a
longstanding policy within this building not to consume water from the
lavatory faucets. Signs have been in place for many years stating this
precaution. The building management has had carbon filters in place on all
drinking fountains for as many years to guard against any potential risk
that lead levels could begin to rise when the water remains stagnant in the
lead plumbing over a weekend. Lead piping was used for a brief period of
building construction during the 1920’s.
“A water sample taken
from the building this morning shows that the water entering the building is
perfectly safe and meets or exceeds all drinking water standards,” said
Patrick Becher, Executive Director. The Mohawk Valley Water Authority
monitors water quality quite rigorously throughout the entire system to
ensure that the quality remains fully in compliance with all State and
Federal regulations. Becher added that “unfortunately, the comments
attributed Congressman Arcuri’s office did not fully explain that any
concerns they have are related to the internal plumbing of the building and
not to the water coming into the building. The customers of the MVWA should
know that the water they receive is as good as any public water supply in
the nation.”
