All About Total Dissolved Solids

Posted October 22nd, 2026
Reverse Osmosis, Water Testing, Water Treatment 101

We include a Total Dissolved Solids tester with every Black and White undersink reverse osmosis unit we sell. Total Dissolved Solids, or TDS, is the standard way that the health and effectiveness of reverse osmosis membranes are measured. Here’s an article form ScienceInsights that explains why TDS is important. –Gene Franks, Pure Water Products.

What Is Total Dissolved Solids and Why Does It Matter

Total dissolved solids, or TDS, is a measure of everything dissolved in water: minerals, salts, metals, and trace amounts of organic matter. If you’ve seen a TDS reading on a water quality report or a home testing meter, that number (expressed in milligrams per liter, or mg/L) tells you the combined concentration of all those invisible dissolved substances. The U.S. EPA sets a recommended limit of 500 mg/L for drinking water, though this is a guideline for taste and aesthetics rather than a strict health standard.

What TDS Actually Includes

The dissolved solids in water are mostly inorganic salts. The most common ones are calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium on the positive side, paired with carbonates, bicarbonates, chloride, and sulfate on the negative side. Groundwater often picks up nitrate as well, particularly in agricultural areas where fertilizer use is heavy. Small amounts of organic matter round out the mix, but minerals and salts make up the bulk of any TDS reading.

These substances enter water naturally as it flows through rock and soil, dissolving minerals along the way. That’s why well water and spring water often have higher TDS than surface water from lakes or reservoirs. Human activity adds to TDS too: agricultural runoff, road salt, wastewater discharge, and industrial processes all push the number higher.

How TDS Differs From Suspended Solids

Not everything floating in water counts as “dissolved.” The dividing line is a filter with pores roughly 1.5 microns wide. Anything small enough to pass through that filter is classified as dissolved. Particles too large to pass through, things like sediment, algae, or silt, are called total suspended solids (TSS). You can often see suspended solids as cloudiness in water, while dissolved solids are invisible. A glass of water can look perfectly clear and still have a high TDS reading.

How TDS Is Measured

There are two main ways to measure TDS, and they differ significantly in accuracy. The gold standard is the gravimetric method: a lab evaporates a filtered water sample and weighs what’s left behind. This gives a direct measurement with roughly 15% uncertainty for samples above 100 mg/L.

The far more common approach, especially outside of labs, uses an electrical conductivity meter. Because dissolved minerals carry an electrical charge, water with more dissolved solids conducts electricity better. A handheld TDS meter (the kind you can buy for home use) actually measures conductivity and then converts it to an estimated TDS value. This is useful for quick checks and real-time monitoring, but it’s considerably less precise. A study of over 4,500 samples found that conductivity-based TDS estimates can be off by as much as 45% in either direction. For regulatory or legal purposes, the gravimetric lab method is the standard.

TDS Levels Across Different Water Sources

TDS varies enormously depending on the source:

  • Fresh drinking water: typically under 500 mg/L, though many sources fall between 100 and 300 mg/L
  • Brackish water: 1,000 to 10,000 mg/L, too salty for most uses without treatment
  • Saline water: above 10,000 mg/L
  • Seawater: typically above 35,000 mg/L

Municipal tap water in most U.S. cities falls well below the 500 mg/L guideline, but private wells can vary widely depending on local geology. Limestone-heavy regions tend to produce harder, higher-TDS water, while areas with granite bedrock often have lower readings.

How TDS Affects Taste and Your Plumbing

TDS is classified as a secondary water standard by the EPA, meaning it’s regulated for aesthetic reasons rather than direct health risks. The practical effects of high TDS are noticeable in daily life. Water above 500 mg/L often tastes bitter, salty, or metallic. It can leave white scale deposits inside pipes, water heaters, and kettles, reducing their efficiency and lifespan. You may also notice spots on dishes and glassware or staining on fixtures.

On the other end, water with very low TDS (below about 100 mg/L) tastes flat and bland. Most people prefer water somewhere in the middle range, where enough minerals are present to give it a clean, slightly crisp flavor without any off-putting saltiness.

Health Implications of High TDS

High TDS by itself isn’t considered a primary health hazard, but it works as a warning flag. When TDS is elevated, it may indicate the presence of specific ions that do pose health risks, including arsenic, lead, copper, nitrate, and various agricultural or industrial chemicals. The TDS number alone can’t tell you which specific contaminants are present, so a high reading is a reason to get a more detailed water test, not a diagnosis on its own.

People who aren’t used to high-TDS water may experience gastrointestinal irritation when they drink it. This is generally a short-term issue rather than a chronic health concern, but it’s worth noting if you’ve recently moved to an area with harder water or switched to a new well source.

The Risks of Very Low TDS Water

Extremely purified water with little to no mineral content carries its own set of concerns. Water stripped of minerals through distillation or aggressive filtration lacks calcium and magnesium that your body can readily absorb. Research suggests that even a diet adequate in these minerals may not fully compensate for their absence in drinking water, with magnesium being particularly difficult to make up through food alone.

Cooking with demineralized water makes the problem worse. Low-TDS water leaches minerals out of food during cooking, with losses reaching up to 60% for calcium and magnesium and even higher for trace minerals like copper (66%) and manganese (70%). Over time, this adds up. Studies have linked long-term consumption of very soft, low-mineral water to higher risks of cardiovascular problems, bone fractures in children, certain pregnancy complications, and some neurodegenerative diseases. An expert consensus group concluded that hard water’s association with lower cardiovascular risk is likely real, with magnesium as the most important contributing factor.

How to Lower TDS in Your Water

If your water tests high for TDS, reverse osmosis (RO) is the most effective home treatment option. A single-stage RO system typically reduces TDS by 80% to 85%. Two-stage systems push that to 98% or higher. Distillation also removes dissolved solids effectively by boiling water and collecting the steam, which leaves the minerals behind.

Standard carbon filters, the kind found in most pitcher-style filters, do very little to reduce TDS. They’re designed to remove chlorine, some organic compounds, and certain metals, but they don’t strip out the dissolved salts that make up most of the TDS reading. If TDS reduction is your goal, you need an RO system or a distiller.

One consideration with RO systems: because they remove nearly everything, the resulting water can fall into that very-low-TDS range linked to mineral deficiency concerns. Some RO units include a remineralization stage that adds back small amounts of calcium and magnesium. If yours doesn’t, you’re relying entirely on your diet for those minerals.

Reprinted from ScienceInsight for March 26, 2026

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Water News October 2026

Posted October 22nd, 2026
Water News

 

newsboy

 

What Ever Happened to Lolong?

lolong

In September of 2011 we reported the capture of Lolong, the world’s largest crocodile ever held in captivity. He had just been captured in the Philippines.  At the time of our writing, Lolong was on a hunger strike. What ever happened to him?  The Wikipedia says:

Lolong (died 10 February 2013) was the largest crocodile ever held in captivity. He was a saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) and measured at 6.17 m (20 ft 3 in), making him one of the largest crocodiles ever measured from snout to tail, and weighing 1,075 kg (2,370 lb.).

In November 2011, British crocodile expert Adam Britton of National Geographic sedated and measured Lolong in his enclosure and confirmed him as the world’s largest crocodile ever caught and placed in captivity.

Lolong died from pneumonia and cardiac arrest, after a little over one year and five months in captivity.

EPA Drags Its Feet on Cancer-Causing Nitrate Research

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has backed off its re-assessment of cancer-causing nitrates despite decades of research suggesting the contaminant is more harmful than previously thought and that nitrate pollution is at crisis levels in US drinking water. 

The agency would not confirm the assessment was cancelled, but the work has been stagnant for more than two years and the department responsible for it was eliminated. And scientists and health advocates say regardless of whether it has been cancelled or is locked in a lengthy delay, Americans are paying the price with their health.  Unfortunately, the stalled assessment comes as nitrate pollution becomes more pervasive. (Circle of Blue)

 

 

EPA Withdraws Guidance for PFAS Intake for Drinking Water Suppliers

EPA has withdrawn the guidance that told states and utilities how to use the Clean Water Act to stop PFAS before it reaches a drinking water intake. In a memo dated August 11, 2026, the agency’s Office of Water identified several documents as “appropriate for rescission,” among them an April 2022 memo that directed states to use existing CWA authorities against PFAS discharges, and that laid out how EPA would handle PFAS. The withdrawal does not change a single statute. This means that while the 4 ppt regulatory statute for PFAS remains in place, it is now up to drinking water providers to test and assure compliance.  (WaterVerge)

 

Homeless People and Four Dogs Living in Sewer Rescued from Rising Water in San Bernardino CA

Rising flood waters trapped homeless residents in a sewer pipe.  The YouTube video of their rescue is worth watching.  (ABC News)

 

Wastewater Pollution from Data Centers

Little has been said until now about growing concerns of significant pollution of wastewater from data centers.  Attention has been directed at the quantities of water use and little has been said about the centers’ effect on water quality. A Guardian study addresses alarming findings in data center wastewater. Among the items of concern in the highly polluted water range from rare bacteria to “forever chemicals.” (The Guardian.)

 

Camp Lejeune Cancer Victims Will Get Treatment, If the Republicans Win the Election

President Trump promised at a political rally that veterans who got cancer from drinking the contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune will get treatment at veterans’ hospitals if the Republicans win in the November mid-term election. The water at Camp Lejeune was severely contaminated for many years and the U.S. military knew of the contamination but hid the problem

 

University Research Finds that Plastic Particles Become Much More Dangerous to Humans and Animals When Exposed to Water

Plastics are supposed to be chemically inert. It’s the reason they’re used so frequently to package food, bottle water, and create children’s toys: They’re safe. 

But something important happens when a large piece of plastic fragments into micro- and nanoparticles. Its surface area increases dramatically relative to its volume. Vastly more of the material is now exposed to its surroundings.

A new study by researchers from Columbia University and the University of California, Berkeley, found that this newly created surface is not necessarily safe, and identified the chemical reasons why.

“As plastic fragments into smaller and smaller particles, its surface area increases enormously. Then microplastics change the water that surrounds them, generating high-energy, reactive radicals (reactive oxygen species, ROS) that very likely contribute to biological damage that we see in animals and potentially in humans as a result of microplastic exposure,” said Wei Min, a Columbia professor of Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering.

“Our research found that when microplastics interact with water, as they do when they’re in bottled water, or when they’re absorbed into our bloodstream, they spontaneously generate what we call reactive oxygen species (ROS),” said Naixin Qian, a postdoctoral researcher in Wei Min’s lab who helped lead the research. “ROS are textbook examples of the kinds of molecules that can damage animal and human tissue.”  (Full article from Columbia University.)

 

Water News September 2026

Posted September 29th, 2026
Water News

Water News for September 2026

newsboy

When ocean temperatures increase, so does child malnutrition on land

Researchers are just discovering this troubling consequence of climate change, but they still don’t know why it happens. (Grist)

Ethiopia Limits Electricity to Crypto Mines

Amid ongoing drought, Ethiopia has cut the electricity supply to its cryptocurrency mines by 75 percent. (Circle of Blue)

Chloronitramide

A new article from the New York Times (NYT) highlighted the recent identification of chloronitramide, a water contaminant that has eluded classification for nearly 40 years. Researchers finally identified the chemical structure and the extent of its toxicity.

Chloronitramide is a disinfection by-product (DBP) that is created when chlorine-based disinfectants react with microbes or other substances in water to form a new compound. Researchers have been able to detect its presence, but only recently have they been able to identify its chemical structure. (WC&P)

Americans Have No Constitutional Right to Clean Water

A US appellate court has decided that the federal constitution does not guarantee a right to clean water.

That legal opinion came in the form of a decision on Friday from the fifth circuit court of appeals to uphold a lower court’s dismissal of a 2022 lawsuit from several Jackson, Mississippi, residents claiming that tainted drinking water violated their constitutional rights. Those residents of Mississippi’s capital city contended that their local drinking water was unsafe to drink because of high lead levels and other contaminants.  (Guardian)

UN Passes Resolution on Sea Level Rise

President Donald Trump’s second term has been a nightmare for global cooperation on climate change. Trump has yanked the United States from the Paris climate agreement, attacked a global agreement on a carbon tax for cargo ships, and threatened countries with tariffs if they get too vocal about climate.

Bauxite Mining Threatens Drinking Water in Ghana

Illegal bauxite mining in a protected forest in Ghana threatens the drinking water of an estimated 5 million people. (Circle of Blue)

 

Surprising US Stance on Rising Sea Level

World leaders at the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday approved a unanimous resolution on how to handle sea level rise, and the United States did not block it from moving forward. The passage of the accord represents a rare win for multilateralism, made all the more notable by the fact that the agreement includes references to climate change and climate aid for developing countries. (Grist)

States Defend the Mississippi Against AI

Leaders from 10 Mississippi River states are preparing to introduce legislation that protects the waterway from AI infrastructure development. (Circle of Blue)

 

Crocodile in Singapore Reservoir

 

A man in Singapore faces a long prison sentence after being arrested for posting a fake AI picture of a crocodile in a local reservoir. (BBC)

 

Elephant Butte Reservoir Is Almost Dry

New Mexico’s largest reservoir, Elephant Butte, has dwindled from being nearly full to 1.4%, its lowest level since 1971. (SciTechDaily)

New Desalination Method Discovered

Scientists have developed a solar-powered desalination system that turns seawater into fresh water while removing nearly all of the leftover salt as a solid instead of producing harmful brine. The self-cleaning technology could also recover valuable minerals such as lithium, potentially turning desalination waste into a useful resource.  (Science Daily)

PVC Pipe: Is It Safe for Drinking Water?

Posted September 19th, 2026
Plastic

Is PVC Safe for Drinking Water? The Real Risk

May 3, 2026

PVC pipe that meets current manufacturing standards and carries NSF/ANSI 61 certification is considered safe for drinking water by U.S. and international regulators. It’s the most widely used plastic pipe material in municipal water systems across North America. That said, the safety picture has some nuances worth understanding, particularly around the age of your pipes, chemical migration at very low levels, and long-term degradation.

What Makes PVC Approved for Drinking Water

The key standard in North America is NSF/ANSI/CAN 61, titled “Drinking Water System Components: Health Effects.” To earn this certification, manufacturers must submit their exact product formulas, including every ingredient and supplier. NSF then independently tests the pipes in its own laboratories, checking whether any chemicals migrate from the pipe wall into water at levels that could affect health. Those migration results are evaluated by toxicologists and peer-reviewed by an external health advisory board.

Certification isn’t a one-time event. Each certified production facility receives at least two unannounced inspections per year. The pipes are tested annually for compliance with NSF/ANSI 61 and at least twice a year specifically for residual vinyl chloride monomer, the chemical most associated with PVC safety concerns. If a manufacturer changes its formula in any way, it must report the change and potentially undergo additional testing before the certification continues. When phthalates or phthalate-based plasticizers appear in a product’s formulation, those products are tested separately for phthalate leaching.

Vinyl Chloride: The Primary Concern

Vinyl chloride is a known human carcinogen and the building block molecule used to make PVC. During manufacturing, trace amounts of unreacted vinyl chloride monomer can remain trapped in the finished pipe. Over time, small quantities can migrate into the water sitting inside the pipe.

The EPA sets a maximum contaminant level for vinyl chloride in drinking water at 0.002 mg/L (2 micrograms per liter), while its health goal is zero. The World Health Organization sets a stricter guideline value of 0.0003 mg/L (0.3 micrograms per liter), noting that “as vinyl chloride is a known human carcinogen, exposure to this compound should be avoided as far as practicable.”

How much vinyl chloride actually ends up in your water depends heavily on when the pipe was made. PVC pipe manufactured before 1977 has been found to leach vinyl chloride at concentrations as high as 14 micrograms per liter, well above the EPA limit. Modern manufacturing processes leave far less residual monomer in the pipe walls. Lab and field studies on newer pipes show vinyl chloride accumulation in the range of tens of nanograms per liter after a few days of water sitting still, and hundreds of nanograms per liter after two years. For context, a nanogram is one-thousandth of a microgram, so these levels fall well below both the EPA and WHO limits.

Heat and sunlight accelerate the process. Research on unplasticized PVC exposed to temperatures around 45°C (113°F) or direct sunlight found vinyl chloride levels reaching roughly 2 to 2.5 micrograms per liter over 14 to 30 days. That’s right at the EPA’s legal limit. This is why PVC water pipes are meant to be buried underground, not run along exterior walls or through areas with sustained high heat.

Pure Water Gazette note: Vinyl chloride is effectively removed by standard home water treatment with carbon filtration or reverse osmosis.

Phthalates and Other Additives

Rigid PVC (sometimes called uPVC) used in municipal water mains and most household plumbing does not require plasticizers to be flexible, so phthalate exposure from these pipes is minimal. Chlorinated PVC (CPVC), a related material common in hot water lines, is a different story. One EPA-referenced study found that CPVC pipe released significantly higher concentrations of several phthalates compared to PEX (cross-linked polyethylene) pipe. The highest measured phthalate from CPVC reached 18,400 nanograms per liter, while the same compound from PEX pipes peaked between 169 and 881 nanograms per liter depending on the type.

Lead stabilizers are another historical concern. In North America, lead-based heat stabilizers were phased out of PVC production starting in the 1970s. Modern PVC pipes use calcium-zinc or tin-based stabilizers instead. If your home has PVC plumbing installed before the early 1980s, the pipes may have been manufactured with lead-containing stabilizers, though the degree of lead migration into water from these older pipes varies.

Microplastics From Aging Pipes

A concern that has gained attention more recently is the release of tiny plastic particles from pipe walls as they age. Over years of service, the surface of PVC pipe develops pits and cracks at the microscopic level. Polymer chains break down, weakening the structure and making the surface increasingly rough and crumbly. This degradation produces particles in the micro and nanoplastic size range that can shed into the water flowing through the pipe.

The degree of degradation depends on how long the pipe has been in service and the conditions it faces. Research confirms that both PE and PVC pipes age relatively quickly in terms of surface integrity, and that aging pipes “should be considered a real and very important source” of microplastics and nanoplastics in drinking water. The long-term health effects of ingesting microplastics are still being studied, but the presence of these particles in drinking water is now recognized as a water quality issue worth monitoring.

How UV and Heat Affect PVC Over Time

PVC is not designed to withstand prolonged sun exposure. Ultraviolet light triggers a chemical reaction called dehydrochlorination, where chlorine atoms break free from the polymer chain and form hydrochloric acid. This process begins at the surface and works inward, making the pipe progressively more brittle. In testing, PVC lost about a third of its toughness after just 100 hours of UV exposure. After two weeks of outdoor weathering, fracture resistance dropped roughly 20 percent, reaching a 38 percent decline after one month.

The pipe doesn’t suddenly collapse, as its overall strength and stiffness remain relatively stable. But it becomes much more prone to cracking under stress. In hot climates where solar radiation is intense and summer temperatures exceed 50°C (122°F), exposed PVC and CPVC pipes can degrade significantly. This is one reason building codes require PVC water pipes to be installed underground or in protected indoor locations. If you notice any PVC plumbing in your home that sits in direct sunlight, such as near a window or in an uncovered outdoor run, that section is aging faster than it should be.

Practical Steps to Minimize Risk

If your home was built after the early 1980s and uses PVC or CPVC plumbing installed to code, the pipes generally fall within safe parameters for drinking water. A few practical habits can reduce your exposure to whatever trace chemicals do migrate from the pipe walls:

  • Flush stagnant water. Vinyl chloride and other compounds accumulate when water sits motionless in the pipe. If water has been standing for several hours or overnight, let the cold tap run for 30 seconds to two minutes before drinking.
  • Use cold water for cooking and drinking. Hot water dissolves contaminants from pipe walls more readily than cold water. This applies to all pipe materials, not just PVC.
  • Keep PVC out of sunlight. Any PVC pipe exposed to UV light degrades faster and may release more chemicals. Ensure outdoor sections are shielded or replaced with UV-resistant materials.
  • Know your pipe age. Homes with PVC plumbing from the 1970s or earlier may have pipes with higher residual vinyl chloride and possibly lead-based stabilizers. Testing your water or replacing very old PVC sections is reasonable if you’re concerned.
  • Look for NSF 61 markings. When replacing plumbing or adding new lines, confirm that any PVC pipe you purchase carries the NSF/ANSI 61 certification stamp. This ensures the product has been independently tested for chemical migration into drinking water.

PVC remains one of the most affordable, durable, and widely accepted materials for water distribution. For modern, properly installed pipe, the measured chemical migration levels sit far below regulatory limits under normal conditions. The risks increase with pipe age, heat exposure, and stagnant water, all factors you can manage with straightforward precautions.

ScienceInsights.  May, 2026

Pure Water Gazette Fair Use Statement

Posted September 11th, 2026
B. Bea Sharper

Water Treatment Information from Pure Water Gazette Numerical Wizard B. Sharper, who fills in the numbers that Harpers misses.

 

Pure Water Gazette Numerical Wizard Bee B. Sharper Ferrets Out the Watery Facts that Harper's Overlooks

Pure Water Gazette Numerical Wizard Bee B. Sharper Ferrets Out the Watery Facts that Harper’s Overlooks

 

 

Percentage of Earth’s surface that is covered by water–71.

 

Percentage of this water that is in oceans– 97.

 

Percentage of of Earth’s water that is available for drinking–<1

 

Gallons of water required to grow a day’s food for a family of four –6,800.

 

Total number of Chinese children who, according to my grandma, die each day because American children do not clean their plates — 165,000.

 

Gallons of US treated  water lost each day due to leaking pipes– >6 billion.

 

Special Feature:

 

Far Too Infrequently Asked Questions That Are Way Too Complicated to Answer with a Single Number

 

Percentage of Chloramine that can be removed by a shower filter — 0 to 10 in most cases.

 

Water News for August 2026

Posted August 30th, 2026
Water News

Water News for August 2026

 

newsboy

Plan for Colorado River Water Crisis Finally Unveiled by US Government

 

 

bathtubring

 

Bathtub Ring on the Stone Wall Grows Larger on Lake Powell

Federal government plan outlines cuts of roughly 40% to California, Arizona and Nevada but the fix is likely to be only temporary. The fight over dividing up the diminishing water of the Colorado River may be the the most contentious water story of our time.

The US government released its anxiously awaited plan for how to manage the Colorado River crisis on July 31, which includes the potential for harsh cuts in water supplied to California, Arizona and Nevada.Under the proposal, the so-called lower basin states stand to lose up to 3m acre-feet (3.7bn kiloliters) a year – enough water annually to serve more than 25 million people and roughly 40% of their collective total. The so-called upper basin states – Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming – were spared from mandates restricting their supply. The Colorado River supplies roughly 40 million people in seven states, two countries and dozens of tribes, and also irrigates 5.5m acres (2.2 hectares) of farmland. The federal government has limited jurisdiction over state-based water policy but is responsible for managing the dams at Lake Powell and Lake Mead, the two key reservoirs that lower basin supplies flow through. (The Guardian)

Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States, has fallen to a record low — yet another sign that the Colorado River system is spiraling further into crisis.

Water levels in Lake Mead dropped to 1,040.5 feet, below the previous record low of 1,040.58 feet set in July 2022, according to data published by the US Bureau of Reclamation.  The lake is now lower than it’s ever been since it was created nine decades ago. (CNN)

Border Wall Construction Is Robbing Water From Ranchers

 

Construction crews building a border wall in New Mexico were ordered to stop drilling new wells after ranchers said that pumping groundwater to produce concrete could threaten their livestock amid a severe drought. (The Guardian.)

Cyber Attacks on Water and Wastewater Facilities

On July 30, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI) released a joint statement warning about cyberattacks on water utilities across the country. So far, there have been 12 cyberattacks reported across the country that have targeted water and wastewater treatment facilities.

“After remotely accessing internet-facing devices, the actors changed the IP addresses and passwords, resulting in a loss of monitoring and control functionality,” the FBI reported.

Reports suggest that Iran is the prime suspect in these attacks, but there is no confirmed involvement to date. The FBI is also urging utilities to protect themselves by taking actions like disconnecting systems from the internet when possible and familiarizing operators with manual controls in the case of compromised automated systems.

The agencies also reaffirmed the necessity of complex passwords for security and proper firewall configurations to prevent unauthorized devices from connecting to internal systems. (WC&P)

 Record Rainfall in China

More than a million people had to be evacuated in China because of record rainfall resulting from Typhoon Dolphin. (The Guardian)

The EPA Finally Enters the Fluoride Debate

The following is from an EPA press release: “Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the next step in its review of public health risks linked to fluoride in drinking water: the release of the Protocol for Developing the Fluoride Human Health Toxicity Assessment. This marks a significant milestone in the agency’s expedited assessment of fluoride under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), a priority set by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin as part of the Trump Administration’s commitment to Make America Healthy Again, while following gold standard science.

“Every American should be able to count on safe and healthy drinking water, plain and simple. In light of new science and real concerns from the public, the Trump EPA is working in lockstep with HHS to expedite our review of fluoride under the Safe Drinking Water Act,” said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. “Today’s important milestone means we are another step closer to completing this assessment years ahead of schedule. Our new action outlines specifically how EPA’s assessment will be conducted and advances our commitment to transparency and gold standard science.”

“Parents deserve the truth about fluoride in drinking water—not assumptions, not politics, but rigorous science,” said U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “That is why HHS is working side by side with EPA to ensure this assessment focuses on the health risks that matter most for children, including neurodevelopmental effects and dental fluorosis. By conducting a rigorous dose-response analysis and making every step of the process transparent, we will give states, communities, and families the scientific foundation they need to make informed decisions about fluoride in drinking water.”

Earlier this year, EPA released its Preliminary Assessment Plan and Literature Survey for public comment. The agency’s new Protocol for Developing the Fluoride Human Health Toxicity Assessment reflects public input received on that plan. The Protocol is an essential part of developing the human health assessment; it is a road map that transparently describes how EPA will conduct the assessment while applying gold standard science.

EPA’s assessment of fluoride under the SDWA will consider neurodevelopmental effects in children (e.g., negative effects on brain function, including lower IQ). EPA’s assessment will also consider the negative health effects of dental fluorosis (e.g., discoloration and pitting of tooth enamel) in children. The agency will develop a human health toxicity assessment examining how much exposure to fluoride causes these negative health effects. This is called dose-response analysis, which EPA uses to determine the fluoride levels that a person can be exposed to without experiencing harmful health effects. The Protocol explains the scientific plan for conducting this analysis.”

The agency will use this Protocol to develop the draft fluoride human health toxicity assessment, which once completed will be available for public comment. EPA will use systematic review practices that are consistent with gold standard science and SDWA requirements, draw on expertise from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and will not prejudge any outcomes of the assessment. When final, the assessment will inform potential revisions to federal drinking water regulations. It will also help states and local leaders make informed decisions about fluoridating drinking water.

The significance: After decades of limiting itself to setting an MCL standard for Fluoride in water, the EPA is now going to weigh in on the wisdom of adding fluoride intentionally to drinking water. It’s about time!

Ocean Conservancy Removes 1.3 million Plastic Bottles from Beaches in a Single Day

 

More than 1.3m plastic bottles were collected from beaches, rivers and waterways last year during the world’s largest single-day volunteer ocean cleanup. About 630,000 people took part in the International Coastal Cleanup in 2025, removing almost 13.9m pieces of rubbish from more than 15,000 miles of coastline and waterways.

Plastic bottles were the most commonly recorded item, while more than 1.2m cigarette butts were litter-picked. Volunteers picked up 885,000 plastic bottle caps, 581,000 plastic shopping bags and more than 1m other plastic bags and food containers.

The annual cleanup is organized by the NGO Ocean Conservancy. Its director of plastics policy, Dr Anja Brandon, said: “There’s really no excuse for this – plastic bottles are among the most recyclable items out there, which tells us two important truths: one is that we are making too much plastic, and two is that a lot of our waste isn’t getting where it needs to go.”  (Guardian)

 

Massive Flood and Mudslides in Nepal

The death toll from catastrophic flash floods and mudslides in Nepal rose to at least 675 on a late August Saturday, as nearly 2,500 people remained missing in the country, including around 90 Americans.

More than 7,500 people have been rescued, according to Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, which consolidates information from Nepal Police, Nepal Army and Armed Police Force. More than 90,000 people have been affected by the disaster, according to Nepal Red Cross.

Rescuers have struggled to reach devastated communities along the Nepal-Tibet border, with the scale of the disaster coming into view four days after the torrent of water, ice and debris swept through Himalayan valleys, destroying homes, bridges and other infrastructure.

As families wait for news about their relatives, damaged roads, power outages and fears of further flooding have hampered rescue efforts.

Of those missing in Nepal, 589 are foreign nationals, according to the disaster agency. The Nepal Tourism Board said 261 foreign nationals have been rescued.

China has separately reported seven deaths and 554 people missing in its Tibet region, including hundreds of foreigners. It is unclear how much overlap there is between the Chinese and Nepali missing-person counts.

 

Water News for July 2026

Posted July 29th, 2026
Water News

Water News for July, 2026

newsboy

4th of July Special: Fireworks are Powerful Contaminants of Water

Three recent studies published in American Chemical Society (ACS) journals examined what fireworks leave behind, from discarded debris and airborne particles to chemical compounds released into the atmosphere. Fireworks debris alters water chemistry. Once fireworks burn out, they leave behind more than ash. Spent firecrackers scatter residue that contains partially burned fuel, metal salts, additives, and pieces of charred packaging. (Science Daily)

New Orleans is Sinking Faster Than Predicted

A new study has shown that New Orleans is sinking due to the climate crisis and that it has already hit a “point of no return.”

Water Quality Association States Opposition to Trump EPA’s Loosening of PFAS Standard

WQA issued comments opposing rescinding requirements for PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and certain PFAS mixtures without a scientifically supported basis. The comments emphasized that reversing the rules could create inconsistent treatment requirements, regulatory uncertainty and a patchwork of state standards that complicates communication and limits equal protection for consumers nationwide.

WQA remained neutral on extending the PFOA and PFOS compliance deadline but highlighted that the industry already offers certified point-of-use and point-of-entry treatment products capable of meeting or exceeding current requirements. These technologies provide an immediate, practical and cost-effective option for reducing PFAS exposure while supporting public health. (WQA Press Release)

The Dire Predictions for Lake Powel Get Even Worse

 

Experts say the critical reservoir system is careening toward a breaking point as the US west’s climate warms and dries. Lake Powell, US’s second-largest reservoir, threatens to plunge to unprecedentedly low levels this year after a historically bleak snowpack failed to raise its water level, scientists and water experts have said, adding renewed urgency to stalled talks over how to conserve a water source depended on by tens of millions of people in the US south-west.  (The Guardian)

 

Whitefish Disappearing Rapidly from the Great Lakes

The Great Lakes’ most emblematic fish is rapidly becoming history because of “. . .  the proliferation of quagga and zebra mussels, which now carpet entire lakebeds for hundreds of miles in any direction.”  (The Guardian)

 

Backlash Against Data Centers Growing

The is a growing nationwide backlash against the construction of resource-hungry datacenters, which opponents say place unbearable demands on local water and energy supplies. According to Data Center Map, the US has almost 4,500 datacenters, some consuming up to 300,000 gallons of water each day, equivalent to the demands of about 1,000 households. (The Guardian)

 

Nanoplastics in Water Don’t Just Contaminate the Environment: They Sustain the Growth of Harmful Bacteria

Tiny plastic particles in drinking water may be doing more than contaminating the environment. New research suggests nanoplastics can actually help harmful bacteria survive by strengthening the slimy biofilms they form inside water systems. These tougher biofilms become more resistant to disinfectants, making them harder to remove and potentially increasing public health risks. (Virginia Tech)

 

The San Carlos Reservoir Has Almost Vanished

A historic lack of snow in the Gila River watershed has left Arizona’s San Carlos Reservoir less than 1% full, triggering a massive fish kill and an indefinite closure. Despite the bleak conditions, heavy summer rains could help the reservoir rebound.  (Science Daily)

 

Building a Wall Requires Water–A Lot of It

Residents of southern New Mexico are complaining about water shortages caused by border wall building activities recently resumed by the Trump administration. Wells are going dry because of extensive pumping to support wall construction. New Mexico has strong protective laws that require permitting to draw groundwater, but the federal government has declared itself immune to regulation and is pumping vast amounts of water in arid regions without a state permit. (NPR)

 

Overuse of Water Fuels Climate Change: Here’s How

aralsea

The Aral Sea Today after the Soviet Union diverted the flow of rivers to irrigate cotton farms

The Aral Sea sits between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and was once the fourth-largest inland body of water on Earth. For the past 60 years, though, humans have bled it nearly dry irrigating cotton crops, leaving behind a salty plain the size of Ireland. Its loss has long been seen as an ecological and humanitarian problem, but new research shows that it has also been a significant driver of climate change.

Over the years, carbon collects at the bottom of lakes. If the water dries up, carbon in the dry lakebed becomes a source of atmospheric pollution. Only recently have scientists begun to understand the significance of the release of carbon from dried lake beds as a driver of climate change.  In fact, the figure is staggering. Between 1960 and 2022, scientists found, the Aral Sea had pumped a remarkable 748 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. That’s three times the annual emissions of Spain. Read the full story in Grist.

 

Citizens Rally to Save Fish in Overheated River

Along the Odet River in Brittany, volunteers are catching hundreds of trout and young salmon – not for sport but to save them. Fish being moved to oxygenated flowing water further downstream as water levels drop across the country.  (The Guardian)

  A New Study Finds that Almost All North Texas Waterways Are Now Polluted with Microplastics

Microplastics, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, are small pieces of plastic less than 5 millimeters long that come from sources such as larger debris that degrades down, or microbeads found in certain health beauty products like body wash.

Researchers and local volunteers sampled water from 77 North Texas waterways, including the Trinity River, White Rock Lake and Mountain Creek Lake.  According to the findings: “The overwhelming majority of sites contained plastic fibers.”

The report says microplastics can be a threat to the health of wildlife and humans. “This is a serious physical hazard.  These plastics can cause suffocation and gut blockage, and animals that ingest too much plastic can starve.”  Denton Record-Chronicle.

Water News June 2026

Posted June 29th, 2026
Water News

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The Take-Our-Word-For-It Water News for June 2026 

From this point our Water News in the Occasional will provide only an occasional source link. Please use a search engine to find information if you want to pursue the topic. 

 

greenpool

 

Trump’s Infamous Pool Fiasco

June’s most persistent water story was the embarrassing algae takeover and alleged “vandalism” of the “blue” pool at the Lincoln Center. The president paid millions for a no-bid pool repair deal that that turned out badly.

Drought Paradox

A study reported in LiveScience reveals that plants around the Colorado River turn to groundwater when it gets too hot and dry, reducing flow into the already strained basin. Vegetation draws on groundwater during dry summers, leaving less water for the river and, ultimately, people. (The Gazette’s take on this is that plants aren’t as dumb as some people think. They take any water they can get and let food crops in California fend for themselves.)

EPA Settled PFAS Claims with Chemours

The EPA got over $450 million in penalties and relief in an agreement with the chemical company Chemours to settle claims over PFAS pollution in three states. EPA alleges that Chemours released PFAS into the Cape Fear River (North Carolina), the Delaware River (New Jersey), and the Ohio River (West Virginia) — in some cases without required permits, and in other cases in violation of those permits.

US Targets Reservoirs

A US attack on two water reservoirs in the Bemani area of Sirik in southern Iran, located on the shores of the strait of Hormuz, left 20,000 people without drinking water, according to an Iranian water utility company. Hormozgan province water and wastewater company, or Abfa Hormozgan, said the reservoirs were “targeted and completely destroyed” by US military fire. Targeting civilian water reservoirs is a clear violation of standard rules of warfare followed by most of the civilized world.

EPA vs. Wego Chemical Group

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency filed an “administrative complaint” against Wego Chemical Group of Great Neck, N.Y., and related companies, for violations of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The complaint details Wego’s years-long failure to properly report its import and domestic distribution of chemical substances. Since at least 2016, Wego has imported hundreds of millions of pounds of toxic chemicals, mostly from China, without meeting basic federal reporting requirements.  The complaint also alleges that at least one chemical Wego imported could not lawfully have been imported at all.

 

According to The Guardian, Data Centers Are Water Hogs and It’s Going to Get Worse

 

Scientists have determined that the climate crisis, caused by the burning of fossil fuels, is worsening the duration and intensity of droughts in the US.

But a stampede of new data centers are adding extra demands via their hefty energy and water requirements. Large datacenters, some the size of small towns, can require up to 5m gallons of water a day, equivalent to the water use of up to 50,000 people, in order to provide cooling to arrays of humming networked computers.

Overall, the multiplying datacenters across the US are set to demand as much as 73bn gallons of water a year by 2028, up from about 17bn gallons in 2023. Each 100-word AI prompt uses up roughly one 500ml bottle of water due to the cooling needs of datacenters, researchers have estimated.

“The AI industry is sprinting as fast as it can to gain market dominance, and the rest of us have to deal with a great increase in water demand in places already in drought,” said Christopher Dalbom, an expert in water resources law at Tulane University.

“Even if there wasn’t climate change, we’d be feeling the effects of droughts more acutely, because water demand is going up and up, to feed more people and water more lawns and crops. There isn’t enough water to go around. Now with this explosion of datacenters, I think a crunch point is inevitable.”

Companies such as Google, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon are pouring billions of dollars into new datacenters, with developers often drawn to dry, sparsely populated areas, due to the lower cost of land and generous tax breaks. Arid climates are also thought to cause the least amount of corrosion to equipment over time.

One of the world’s largest datacenters, a complex twice the size of Manhattan, was last month controversially approved in a Utah county that has been deep in drought since summer last year. Meanwhile, Walla Walla county in Washington, site of a planned Amazon datacenter, has also been overwhelmingly in drought since July last year.

In Texas, two of the largest new datacenters are arriving in counties – Pecos county and Carson county – recently parched by drought. Datacenters could account for 9% of Texas’s total water use by 2040, researchers recently calculated, with the state’s water development board forecasting Texas will have to deal with rising overall demand and falling supply of water in the decades ahead.

The UN warns that ‘Severe’ stress on oceans as rate of sea level rise doubles in 10 years

The world’s oceans are under “severe and accelerating” pressure from human activities, with the rate of sea-level rise double that of a decade ago, according to a damning assessment from the United Nations.

The “intensifying” stressors, which include pollution and large-scale industrial fishing, are cumulative,  resulting in widespread biodiversity loss and putting ocean systems under “severe strain”.

The UN’s third World Ocean Assessment, which reflects the work of nearly 600 scientists from 86 countries, looked at the oceans’ health from 2021-25. The previous report, that covered up to 2018, found persistent degradation of the marine environment.

Five years on, scientists know more about the cumulative impacts of anthropogenic pressures on the ocean, and the latest report shows just how much of the damage has been done in the past few years. The scientists’ key findings include:

 Sea levels continue to rise at an increasing rate, from 2mm a year prior to 2015 to 4.3mm a year in 2023.

 16% of the increase in global ocean heat since 1955 occurred after 2018.

 The greatest relative warming has been observed in the Atlantic Ocean and the southern parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

 Large gaps in knowledge persist – with only 27% of the ocean floor mapped by 2025, deep-sea ecosystems remain poorly understood.

Has All Water On Earth Been Peed at Least Once?

A LiveScience study says probably not.

On the water side of the equation, the U.S. Geological Survey estimates that Earth has about 1.4 billion gigatons of water, including that in oceans, ice caps, glaciers, lakes, rivers, groundwater and vapor.

If you divide the weight of the world’s water by 0.2 gigatonnes of pee each day, it would take around 7 billion days, or about 19 million years, “to pee out the whole ocean,” one expert said. Given that the asteroid that “smacked the Yucatan” and wiped out the nonavian dinosaurs struck 66 million years ago, “even mammals have probably peed more than an ocean since we took over,” he said.

David Kreamer, a professor of hydrology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, agreed that when “you go back in history to the dinosaurs and things like that, that’s a lot of pee.” But he also said calculations that depend on assumptions and generalizations have a large margin of error.

Instead, when it comes to whether every last drop of water on Earth has been peed at one time or another, Kreamer said the answer is no.

Paraquat and Parkinson’s Disease

Though it is banned in many nations, the herbicide Paraquat is widely used in US agriculture. Paraquat is a valued killer of many weeds, but it is also linked to the vast increase in Parkinson’s cases. Paraquat is effectively removed from drinking water with carbon block filtration and reverse osmosis, but the real concern is the rise in Parkinson’s among farm workers. Parkinson’s is the fastest growing neurological disorder in the world.

Col0rado Governor Declared a Dire Drought Emergency

Colorado Governor Jared Polis declared a statewide drought emergency on June 4, 2026, activating the highest tier of the state’s drought response plan after a record-warm winter left snowpack near its lowest level in nearly four decades. Days earlier, federal forecasters delivered an even starker warning downstream: Lake Powell could fall below 3,490 feet — its “minimum power pool” — as early as August 2026, the elevation at which Glen Canyon Dam can no longer reliably generate electricity. Together, the two developments mark the moment the West’s slow-motion water crisis stopped being a forecast and became an emergency on the ground.

This is a distinct escalation from the basin-wide Colorado River shortage and Arizona’s delivery cuts WaterVerge covered earlier this spring, and it goes beyond the Front Range drought restrictions already in place around Denver, Erie, and Aurora. Colorado’s formal statewide declaration, and the accelerated timeline on Lake Powell’s hydro power threshold, are both new — and both raise the stakes for the roughly 40 million people who depend on the Colorado River.

 

 

A global report reveals the link between unsafe water and hunger

A landmark study spanning 121 countries has found that people without access to clean drinking water are pointedly more likely to go hungry, a link that holds even in wealthy nations and demands a fundamental rethink of how the world tackles food and water policy.

The connection between unsafe water and hunger may seem intuitive, yet for decades policymakers and humanitarian organizations have treated them as separate problems, solved by separate ministries, funded through separate budgets, and measured by separate metrics. A major new study published in Nature Food challenges that siloed approach with some of the most comprehensive global evidence yet assembled.

Protecting Yourself from Microbial Water Contamination

Posted June 27th, 2026
Ultraviolet, Water Treatment 101

Testing Water for Microbial Contamination

Adapted in part from information from Viqua, a leading manufacturer of ultraviolet treatment equipment.

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Scientists have long understood the link between unseen contaminants in water and illnesses. In the 1900s, filtration and treatment became mainstays for municipal water, and regulations for the quality of public drinking water systems were established. Health authorities consider the introduction of water chlorination to be perhaps the most significant advance in public health made in the 20th century.

If your water is supplied by a municipality, large or small, the water supply is tested routinely, at the source. However, many pipes buried underneath our roads and cities have been in place since the introduction of widespread water treatment and are long past the time when they should have been replaced. This aged and often crumbling infrastructure now poses its own risk, which is why it’s smart to test the water where it is used. Even with city water, microbial contamination can occur between the water treatment plant and your home.

But what if your water comes from a private water supply, such as a well, lake water, or even a rainwater tank? In these cases, no one is testing the water unless you are. It’s possible that your water was tested when the well was drilled or when the property was purchased, but microbial water quality changes over time and can be affected by extreme weather events, land-use changes, or a nearby failing septic system.

Many water contaminants cannot be seen or even tasted in water, so the only way to be sure of the quality of your water supply is to test it. Even if the presence of a particular contaminant is readily apparent, such as the red-colored stains left by iron on fixtures, getting the water tested will quantify the problem, making the best water treatment choice easier.

Private water system users are solely responsible for the quality of their water.  Public health authorities recommend that private well owners test for bacteria and nitrates at least once a year. Other contaminants, such as hardness, iron, or radon, may only need to be tested once. This testing frequency depends on the prevalence of naturally occurring substances in the area’s groundwater. Probably if you have experienced one of the following events, you should have your water tested soon:

• The water’s color, taste, or odor changed.

• Someone in the family has a weak immune system from an illness, medical treatment, or age.

• Someone who drank your tap water had an unexplained gastrointestinal illness.

• You moved into a new home.

For well owners, water should be tested at the wellhead at least once a year. The test sample should be taken before any water treatment equipment. Well water should also be tested whenever any work is done on the well or whenever any need for water treatment is suspected. Any change in taste or odor is a sign that a test should be performed. A test should also be done at intervals to test the efficacy of installed equipment. Testing for hardness, for example, will tell you how well your water softener is working. Likewise, a bacteria test will tell you if any disinfection equipment you have in place is working properly.

 

 

 

Total Coliform Bacteria

The most important measurement result for bacteria testing is called TC, which stands for Total Coliform Bacteria.  Coliform bacteria occur naturally in soil and decaying vegetation. They are associated with the presence of human or animal fecal contamination. While many coliform organisms are completely harmless, some, like E. coli, can make people sick and even be deadly. The usual practice is to test for coliform and if coliform is present in significant numbers, test for E. coli. Presence of E. coli is a definite indication that treatment is needed. Water with E. coli should not be consumed unless it is boiled or otherwise treated.

 

Treating Contaminated Water in the Home

There are several good strategies for treating microbes in water, but the most widely used for permanent residential whole house treatment are chlorination and ultraviolet. Of the two, ultraviolet (UV) is usually the easiest to apply and the most trouble-free to maintain.

 

Sources of more information about testing and treatment.

City and county governments usually can provide information and quick and inexpensive testing for bacteria.

There are many excellent professional water tests. Most mail-in tests available do not offer testing for bacteria.  Here’s a source from our website. The NTL tests include bacteria along with comprehensive testing for most significant water contamination. National Testing Laboratory Test from Pure Water Products.  If you are in a hurry for results, a local test for bacteria is bettter. Typical turn-around time on the NTL test is at least two weeks.

Residential Ultraviolet Units from Viqua.

Dry Pellet Chlorinator, a treatment for microbial contamination in wells.

Chemical Feed Systems that can disinfect water using regular household bleach.

 

 

 

 

 

Water News for May 2026

Posted May 30th, 2026
Water News

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Water News for May, 2026

For the first time, the EPA has flagged microplastics and pharmaceuticals as priority drinking water contaminants

America’s drinking water has carried microplastics and prescription drug residues for years. Washington is only now starting to officially care.

On April 2, 2026, EPA released its draft Sixth Contaminant Candidate List, designating microplastics and pharmaceuticals as priority contaminant groups under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Neither had previously held formal federal research status under drinking water law.

Science still has some catching up to do. No agreed-upon definition for microplastics in drinking water currently exists, and standardized testing protocols remain a work in progress. How quickly those gaps close will determine when utilities face hard compliance deadlines.  — Water Treatment USA 2026.

 

Bottled water can contain hundreds of thousands of previously uncounted tiny plastic bits

A new microscopic technique zeroes in on the poorly explored world of nanoplastics, which can pass into blood, cells and your brain.  In recent years, there has been rising concern that tiny particles known as microplastics are showing up basically everywhere on Earth, from polar ice to soil, drinking water and food. Formed when plastics break down into progressively smaller bits, these particles are being consumed by humans and other creatures, with unknown potential health and ecosystem effects.

One big focus of research is bottled water, which has been shown to contain tens of thousands of identifiable fragments in each container. Now, using newly refined technology, researchers have entered a whole new plastic world: the poorly known realm of nanoplastics, the spawn of microplastics that have broken down even further. For the first time, they counted and identified these minute particles in bottled water. They found that on average, a liter contained some 240,000 detectable plastic fragments — 10 to 100 times greater than previous estimates, which were based mainly on larger sizes.

Rivers Are Losing Oxygen at an Alarming Rate

Climate change is steadily stripping oxygen from rivers around the world, according to a new study published May 15 in Science Advances. Researchers found that this long-term oxygen decline is happening across most river systems, with tropical rivers emerging as the most vulnerable. The findings point to an urgent need for strategies aimed at slowing oxygen loss in freshwater ecosystems.  A sweeping analysis found that nearly 80% of the world’s rivers have been steadily losing dissolved oxygen, with climate change identified as the main driver. Science Daily

Ocean Ice Is Melting Much Faster Than We Thought

In research focused on the Fimbulisen Ice Shelf in East Antarctica, scientists discovered that the shape of the underside of the ice shelf strongly affects how seawater circulates below it. Where deep channels exist beneath the ice, ocean currents can form small circulation patterns that keep warmer water trapped against the ice instead of allowing it to move away quickly. This concentrated warmth dramatically increases melting in those locations.

The researchers found that melting within these channels can increase dramatically. In other words, the structure of the ice shelf itself helps determine where heat collects and how much damage that heat can cause. In a word, ocean ice is melting much faster than we previously believed. Science Daily.

 

Researchers Find Evidence of Fabled Giant Squid

Scientist working in the ocean off the western coast of Australia have used DNA to detect many ocean species that have not yet been observed by humans.  Among these most notably is a fabled giant squid. “Giant squid are among the ocean’s most mysterious animals. They can grow longer than a school bus (10 to 13 meters), weigh between 150 and 275 kilograms, and possess the largest eyes in the animal kingdom, reaching up to 30 centimeters across, roughly the size of a large pizza.” Science Daily.

 

Migratory Freshwater Fish Are in Rapid Decline

Some of the longest and most essential animal migrations on Earth take place beneath the surface of rivers. A major new report from the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), a United Nations environmental treaty, warns that many of these migrations are now rapidly breaking down. A sweeping global report finds that migratory freshwater fish are in steep decline, with populations down roughly 81% since 1970. These species depend on long, connected rivers, but dams and human pressures are cutting off their routes. Hundreds of species now need coordinated international protection. Experts say restoring river connectivity is critical to preventing further collapse.  Science Daily.

Kabul, Capital of Afghanistan, Is Running Out of Water Rapidly

 Kabul is rapidly running out of water. Its population relies mostly on groundwater extracted from wells. But the groundwater has been receding at an alarming rate, and some wells have to be dug as deep as 500 feet to reach it.

An April 2025 report by the aid group Mercy Corps said the level of Kabul’s aquifers had plunged by 25-30 meters (about 80-100 feet) over the past decade. Aquifers hold massive amounts of water deep under land surfaces. Water in them collects slowly over years as precipitation seeps in. Too much extraction from aquifers, or changes to the climate bringing less water, leads to depletion.

“Without large-scale changes to Kabul’s water management dynamics, the city faces an unprecedented humanitarian disaster within the coming decade, and likely much sooner,” it said.

Climate change, mostly caused by the burning of gasoline, oil and coal, has played its part. Repeated droughts have reduced snowfall, whose gradual melting can replenish groundwater. Instead, Kabul sees more sudden, heavy rainfall that leads to flooding but not enough of it reaches the aquifer. AP.

 

 USGS Groundwater Drought Metrics

The U.S. Geological Survey Released a Pioneering Study of US Groundwater Levels a pioneering study analyzing groundwater levels across the conterminous U.S., providing tools to assess groundwater drought and inform water planning.  

Nearly 27 million Americans, or 8% of the U.S. population, live in areas where water demand consistently approaches or exceeds naturally available water supply. Until now, accessing comprehensive water availability information required navigating fragmented datasets across multiple agencies.  A new tool eliminates many of those barriers.

The USGS National Water Availability Assessment Data Companion provides water managers, agricultural communities and researchers with detailed information about water supply and demand across approximately 80,000 watersheds nationwide.

“While the United States has abundant water nationally, regional imbalances between supply and demand may create water challenges affecting millions of Americans,” said Shirley Leung, lead scientist. “This tool can help decision-makers understand whether challenges may stem from limited natural water supply, high demand, or both. This information is helpful for effective water planning.”

There are also water‑rich regions of the country where communities and water managers may use the tool to identify potential economic opportunities tied to their water supply, as well as to support long‑term planning to preserve and protect this vital resource. USGS.gov.

 

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