The City of Vidalia Waterworks is pleased to report that your community’s drinking water met or exceeded all safety and quality standards set by the State of Georgia EPD during the previous year. This brochure is a snapshot of the quality of the water we provided last year. Included are details about where your water comes from, what it contains, and how it compares to Environmental Protection Division (EPD) standards. We are committed to providing you with the information because we want you to be informed. For more information about your water call 912-537-4566 and ask for Sean Meyer.

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. EPA/Center For Disease Control guidelines on how to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline 800-426-4791.

Your water comes from ground water wells located throughout the City of Vidalia. The wells draw water from the Upper Floridian Aquifer. Wellhead protection program information for the Vidalia wells can be obtained from the City of Vidalia, 111 Brinson Rd., Vidalia, GA 30474.

Our City Council meets monthly at Vidalia City Hall. Contact 912-537-7661, to obtain the dates for these meetings. Please feel free to participate in these meetings and find out about your drinking water.

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 EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline 800-426-4791.

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 dissolves naturally occurring minerals, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity.

Contaminants that may be present in source water before we treat it include:

To ensure that tap water is safe to drink, EPA prescribes regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. We treat our water according to EPA’s regulations. Food and Drug Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water, which must provide the same protection for public health.

The table in this report lists all the drinking water contaminants we detected during the 2003 calendar year. The presence of these contaminants in the water does not necessarily indicate that the water poses a health risk. Unless otherwise noted, the data presented in this table are from testing done January 1 through December 31, 2003. The state requires us to monitor for certain contaminants less than once per year because the concentrations of these contaminants are not expected to vary significantly from year to year. Some of the data, though representative of the water quality, is more than one year old.

PO BOX 280

VIDALIA, GA 30475