Safe, secure and adequate supplies of drinking water are necessary for good health and well-being. For about half of the people in Maine, public water systems provide this essential service to their homes. The other half relies on private wells for their drinking water.

If your drinking water is supplied by a public water system, you can be assured that the water you receive is regularly monitored and tested to ensure that it meets federal and state drinking water standards and is safe to drink. In Maine, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Drinking Water Program implement state and federal drinking water regulations. These regulations require all public water systems to meet safety standards for drinking water quality. In fact, water systems regularly test for over 86 contaminants. These contaminants include germs like bacteria and viruses as well as chemicals like arsenic, lead, nitrates, uranium, and other chemicals that can make you sick.

Licensed water operators oversee the day-to-day operations of public water systems. They have a responsibility to ensure the water system is providing safe water to all its customers every day. During emergencies, such as a water main break, mechanical failure, or unusual natural event, water quality may be compromised. To ensure continued safety for their customers, water systems have mechanisms in place to shut down, alert operations personnel, and notify their customers of potential water-quality issues.

Each year, all community public water systems are required to prepare and provide their customers with an annual report on the quality of their drinking water. This is called a Consumer Confidence Report. The CCR provides information on your local drinking water quality, including the water’s source, any contaminants found in the water, and how consumers can get involved in protecting drinking water. If there are any problems identified, your public water system will describe any potential health effects, and actions taken to correct the problem. There will also be contact information provided so you can contact your water system if you have any questions.

If you have your own well at home, it was probably drilled by a Maine state-licensed well driller, who is trained and tested in the proper location and construction of drinking water wells. Drillers typically take an initial water sample from the well and have the water tested to determine if the water is safe to drink. After that, the homeowner is responsible for operation and maintenance of the well.

If your water is supplied by your own private well, the only way to know your water is safe to drink is to have it tested regularly. The Maine CDC recommends that a private well be tested every year for bacteria, nitrate, and nitrite and every three to five years for arsenic, radon, uranium, lead, and fluoride. For more information about private wells, visit http://wellwater.maine.gov.