2-log reduction – (or 2-log removal) the reduction by 99% of targeted microorganisms or other contaminant parameter

3-log reduction – (or 3-log removal) the reduction by 99.9% of targeted microorganisms or other contaminant parameter  

4-log reduction – (or 4-log removal) the reduction by 99.99% of targeted microorganisms or other contaminate parameter

Algae: Single celled photosynthetic plants that live in water, existing as individual cells or as colonies that can form thick floating mats on the water surface 

Alkalinity: the measure of the buffering capacity of a water to resist changes in pH

Aquifer: A natural underground source of groundwater that is usually bounded at its base by bedrock or other strata and often surrounded laterally by sand or gravel that contains water

Bacteria: Bacteria are living organisms, microscopic in size, which usually consist of a single cell.  Most bacteria use organic matter for their food and produce waste products as a result of their life processes.

Boil Water Order: A Boil Water Order or Notice is issued by water utilities or public health officials when there is a concern that a disaster or other event, such as a water main break or the water main pressure has dropped below 20 psi, and that there is a potential that the water supply could be contaminated. Boiling your water is an effective way to ensure that your water is safe to drink. When a Boil Water Order is issued, you should make sure that any water used for drinking is boiled at least three minutes (five minutes at higher altitudes) to make sure that the water is safe. If you still have electricity, refrigerate the water after boiling.

BWR stands for Back Wash Recovery. This is one of the acronyms used to refer to a process function or operational procedure used in a membrane filtration facility. The water used to perform a reverse filtration (RF) cycle is not dumped down a drain to waste.  The BWR water is collected in a water reclamation tank.  The BWR water from the reclamation tank supplies a dedicated membrane filtration rack that is in place solely to filter the BWR water which then also becomes potable water for drinking.  This design feature provides a 99.8% recovery of all the water flowing through the membrane filtration plant.  Only the RF water from the BWR rack is wasted to the drain.  For every 2,000,000 gallons of drinking water produced, 6,000 gallons is wasted.  We are looking into developing a way that the BWR waste water can be used for irrigation of the landscape, or through special permitting can be released back into the wetlands instead of being sent down a sewer. 

CIP stands for Clean In Place. This is one of the acronyms used to refer to a process function or operational procedure used in a membrane filtration facility. The CIP procedure is explained with more detail on the CIP page.

Clearwell: A reservoir for the storage of filtered water until needed in the distribution system.

Coliform Bacteria: Coliform is a family of bacteria common in soils, plants and animals. The coliform family is made up of several groups, one of which is the fecal coliform group, which is found in the intestinal tracts of warm-blooded animals including humans. Coliform bacteria are a valuable tool in the drinking water industry.  We use coliform bacteria as an indicator organism.  If we detect coliform bacteria in the drinking water, then there is a strong possibility that a pathogenic (disease causing) organism is also present.  (See also Escherichia coli)

Color: the hue or tint of water usually cased by organic molecules such as those produced by decaying vegetation.

Contaminant: Anything found in water (including microorganisms, minerals, chemicals, radio nuclides, etc.), which may be harmful to human health.

Corrosion control: specialized treatment processes to slow down the damage to water system components caused by corrosion: treatment may include pH and alkalinity adjustments. 

Corrosion inhibitors: chemicals added for corrosion control treatment through the formation of protective films inside pipes and plumbing fixtures

Corrosive: the property of being able to dissolve metal or scale inside water systems

Cryptosporidium: A microorganism commonly found in lakes and rivers which is highly resistant to disinfection. Cryptosporidium has caused several large outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness, with symptoms that include diarrhea, nausea, and/or stomach cramps. People with severely weakened immune systems (that is, severely immuno-compromised) are likely to have more severe and more persistent symptoms than healthy individuals

CT: Is the product of the residual disinfectant concentration (such as chlorine) and the disinfectant contact time. By using this formula in the chlorine-disinfection process, we can calculate the time it will take to destroy or inactivate harmful organisms in drinking water.  The CT values are specified in the Surface Water Treatment Rule

 

Demand: the amount of chlorine required to react with microorganisms, reduced metals, organic compounds, ammonia, and other constituents in the water before a free chorine residual will form

 

Disinfectant: A chemical (commonly chlorine, chloramine, or ozone) or physical process (e.g., ultraviolet light) that kills microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, and protozoa.

 

Disinfection:  The removal or inactivation of disease-causing organisms from drinking water

Escherichia coli (Eshh-sure-ree-she-yah Coal-eye) (E. coli): the original bacterium of the coliform group isolated in 1884 by Theodore Escherich.  E. coli is associated with fecal contamination from warm-blooded mammals, and is thus a primary indicator of sewage pollution.

Filtrate: Water that has been filtered and ready for distribution (finished water, potable)

Finished Water:  Water that has passed through a water treatment plant; all the treatment processes are completed or “finished.” This water is ready to be delivered to consumers.

Giardia lamblia: A flagellated protozoan microorganism frequently found in rivers and lakes, which, if not treated properly, cause giardiasis, a debilitating illness with symptoms of stomach cramps, may cause diarrhea, fatigue, and cramps after ingestion.

Groundwater: The water beneath the surface of the ground, consisting largely of surface water that has seeped down.  Water in wells and most springs.  (Natural reservoirs below the earth's surface).

Groundwater under the direct influence of surface water. (GWUDI)  A term used in state and federal regulations to designate groundwater sources that are considered vulnerable to contamination from surface water.  Systems using such sources must generally provide monitoring and treatment as if they were using a surface water source.

Hardness: When water is referred to as 'hard' this simply means, that it contains more minerals than ordinary water. These are especially the minerals calcium and magnesium. Rainwater is naturally soft, but as it percolates through the soil it dissolves and collects minerals. Water hardness can be evident as white "chalky" deposits on hot and cold water fixtures, soap deposits ("soap scum"), and rings around the bathtub. This is the cause of the fact that soap doesn't really dissolve in hard water.   Hard water causes two problems:  1) It can cause "scale" to form on the inside of pipes, water heaters, tea kettles and so on. The calcium and magnesium precipitate out of the water and stick to things. The scale doesn't conduct heat well and it also reduces the flow through pipes. Eventually, pipes can become completely clogged.   

2) It reacts with soap to form a sticky scum, and also reduces the soap's ability to lather. Since most of us like to wash with soap, hard water makes a bath or shower less productive. Hard water can make laundering clothing more difficult, and requires the use of more soap when bathing and cleaning. Water softeners act to remove the hardness, and levels of iron and manganese, from your water. (See Water Softener)

Infiltration gallery: a perforated pipe, well, or caisson dug or bored into the porous gravel of river or stream to collect water. 

IT  Stands for Integrity Test.

Jar Test: a laboratory procedure that allows the operator to simulate the conventional treatment process on a small scale, used to estimate optimal coagulant or other chemical dosage required to achieve certain water quality goals.

Membrane filtration (MF): An effective and economical water filtration process using a dense bundle of uniformly skinned (with a pore size of 0.1 microns) hollow fiber membranes, bundled together in a PVC module housing (6,350 hollow fibers in a 6” diameter module, creating 538 sq. ft of filter area per module)  that are highly effective in the removal of bacteria and other microorganisms, particulate material, and natural organic material, which can cause color, taste, and odor problems in drinking water.

Microfilter: a membrane filter in the pore size range of 0.1 to 0.2 microns, commonly manufactured as bundles of porous tubes called lumen.

Micron (mm): One millionth of a meter. A strand of hair is 50 to 100 microns in diameter; a pencil dot made from the point of a very sharp pencil is 40 microns in diameter.  A micron is 0.003 of an inch.  

Nephelometric (neff-fell-oh-met-trick)  turbidity (turr-bid-it-tee) unit: (NTU) a standard unit of turbidity  measurement that is based on light reflected or scattered from a reference solution of the polymer Formazin (form-ah-zeen) when viewed at a 90° angle in a nephelometer. (neff-fell-aum-met-her)  

Pathogen: (path-ah-jen) A pathogen is a disease causing bacteria.  Some that we all are familiar with are E. Coli (from fecal matter), another is Streptococcus pyogenes (strep throat) and even Salmonella (food poisoning) to name just a few.

pH: The pH scale measures how acidic or basic a substance is. The pH range is from 0 to 14. Pure water is neutral, with a pH of 7.0. When chemicals are mixed with water, the mixture can become either acidic or basic. Vinegar and lemon juice are acidic substances, while laundry detergents and ammonia are basic.

Potable: (POE-tuh-bull) Water that does not contain objectionable pollution, contamination, minerals, or infective agents and is considered satisfactory for drinking. return to CIP made easy page

Public Water System (PWS): Any water system which provides water to at least 25 people for at least 60 days annually. There are more than 170,000 PWS’s providing water from wells, rivers and other sources to about 250 million Americans. The others drink water from private wells. There are differing standards for PWS’s of different sizes and types. The PWS number for the City of St. Helens is 4100724

Raw water: Water in its natural state, prior to any treatment; usually the water entering the first treatment process of a water treatment plant

Ranney Collector: This water collector is constructed as a dug well from 12 to 16 feet in diameter that has been sunk as a caisson near the bank of a river or lake.  Screens are driven radially and approximately horizontally from this well into the sand and the gravel deposits underlying the river.

RF Stands for Reverse Filtration. This is one of the acronyms used to refer to a process function or operational procedure used in a membrane filtration facility. The Reverse Filtration cycle is a programmed, regular process function that occurs every 45 minutes or 25,000 gallons of flow through each of the filtration racks. The RF cycle occurs up to 160 times per day keeping the filtration fibers fresh and clean in which the

Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) A federal law enacted Dec. 16, 1974, setting up a cooperative program among local state, and federal agencies to ensure safe drinking water for consumers.  

Sample: The water that is analyzed for the presence of EPA-regulated drinking water contaminants. Depending on the regulation, EPA requires water systems and states to take samples from source water, from water leaving the treatment facility, or from the taps of selected consumers.

Source Water: Water in its natural state, prior to any treatment for drinking.

Surface Water: Water that treatment systems pump and treat from that are open to the atmosphere, such as rivers, lakes, and reservoirs.

Surface Water Treatment Rule (SWTR):  A federal regulation established by US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) that imposes specific monitoring and treatment requirements on all public drinking water systems that draw water from a surface water source.  The rule requires surface water sources to be filtered and disinfected. 

Turbidity: (turr-bid-it-tea) Turbidity is a water quality measurement that refers to how clear the water is. The greater the amount of total suspended solids in the water, the murkier it appears and the higher the measured turbidity.  Clay, silt, and sand from soils, phytoplankton (fight-toe-plank-ton, suspended algae), bits of decaying vegetation, industrial wastes and sewage are common contributors of turbidity in water. Many of the suspended particles are too small to be seen without magnification and a glass of water may appear to be crystal clear, yet, that sparkling clear glass of water can contain a high measurement of turbidity.  Turbidity doesn’t hurt you; however, it should be pointed out that these minute (my-newt) suspended particles causing the turbidity could indicate the presence of waterborne disease.

Water Softener:  Water softening removes the hardness minerals, calcium and magnesium, by exchanging these minerals for sodium in common salt. Hard water is passed through a cylinder containing millions of tiny beads of ion-exchange resin which attract and remove the hardness minerals from the water. The resin is automatically cleaned or "regenerated" by rinsing a small amount of brine (common salt - sodium chloride - dissolved in water) through the cylinder. The sodium from the salt is left on the resin as it is exchanged for the hardness minerals trapped by the resin. The used brine, containing accumulated hardness, does not enter the household water system - it is automatically flushed away into a drain. Refreshed by the regeneration, the resin is again ready to remove hardness minerals, and to soften the water. This process is known as "ion-exchange".