A quick thought on the California Water Utilities compliments of Speakin...

Lead in our water - how can this be? by Tony Green

Our water sources are currently being adjusted in response to the variations in the water supply as the effects of climate change have become more pronounced. As a result occurrences of “snafus” in providing safe drinking water will become more commonplace.

Rusted Water pipes

The declaration of a water emergency

A water emergency was declared a few weeks ago in Flint, Michigan as a result of evidence of increased levels of lead in the potable water which were having pronounced effects on the health of the area’s children.  

In my current position I periodically test the water used to cool HVAC systems and process equipment for lead. Why? I am verifying corrosion of the stainless steel piping is not occurring.  Once piping corrodes lead is leached into the water.  Even if this water is found to contain lead this water is not designed for human consumption.  Potable water is designed for drinking consumption.

The City of Flint Michigan recently disconnected its water supply from the City of Detroit’s to the Flint River which was designed to save money for the financially strapped city. The use of the Flint River was intended to be temporary, set to end in 2016 after a pipeline to Lake Huron’s Karegnondi Water Authority was completed.

What “lead” to this?

Lead is a common metal found throughout the environment in paint, air, soil, household dust, food, certain types of pottery, porcelain, pewter, and in drinking water. In spite of its various uses lead can pose a significant risk to your health when ingested or inhaled. 

Lead can be introduced into drinking water from the plumbing and fixtures in your house as a result of corrosion. Lead levels in your drinking water are likely to be highest if your home or water system uses lead pipes, if the house is less than five years old, or the water is naturally soft water (low level of minerals). Typically, lead gets into water after water leaves your local treatment plant.

Other ways lead enter into your drinking water include well parts made of lead, or from a nearby industrial waste facilities or municipal landfills.

Federal standards limit the amount of lead in water to 50 ppb. While the EPA sets an action level of 15 ppb initial testing from the EPA indicated many of the resident’s homes had levels in excess of 20 ppb.

I am sure the scientists will figure out the source of the lead. Without testing, I will say the end result will be either the lead came for the lead piping connecting the water supply to people homes after the water was pulled from the Flint River or the Flint River, which has a history of poor water quality due to unregulated discharges by industries and municipalities will be proven to be contaminated. For decades, the river was used as a dumping ground for untreated waste from industrial businesses and towns among these wastes were lead which seeped into ground and into the river. In both cases the testing failed to catch the increased lead levels which were being supplied to the residents of Flint. 

The sad underlying truth

Regardless which one of these two scenarios will be proven perhaps the underlying truth is when utilities choose money over health of their constituents without oversight this is what happens. Perhaps I should test my water for lead.  I never thought I would need to test for lead in my drinking water, then again, neither did the residents of Flint, Michigan. 

Kindle for you. Kindle for me by Tony Green

Image of Kindle Library

I learned to read by reading a book with a front and back cover with words printed on paper pages.

Flash forward 40 + years and with the onset of E-Book technology I am hard pressed to consume a book if I can’t read use a Kindle. 

The Decline of Hard Cover Books?

What happened? Did the quality of hardcover books degrade to where they were no longer worth reading? The content in books other than trending topics had not changed. A novel which started out slow will still not be read to completion while a book which tell a captivating story will still be read cover to cover.  As I have reached Middle Age I need to use my reading glasses regardless if I sat down in bookstore or if I read an EBook while relaxing on my couch on a Sunday afternoon.

Why EBooks

What gives? Well, the difference is the portability and convenience using electronic reader brings.  No need to do spring cleaning on the piles of old books in your closet. There is now no need to make the trek to a conventional book store to wait in line when you can purchase and begin reading within seconds after finding the desired content via an Amazon search. No need to consume the good trees required to make the paper on which to print the words and no wasting shelf space storing these book assuming someone will buy them at all.

Fun and Easy

I enjoy reading in any fashion is provided I am reading something of interest while reading with a Kindle is fun AND easy. Why shouldn’t I take the easiest path to any desired destination including reading? 

My View of America - A county in transition by Tony Green

America then and now

I was raised in Philadelphia, as like many of the larger cities on the East Coast, was ethnically divided.  The various races, which included African-Americans, Latinos, Whites and Asians, who resided in close proximity, worked and attended school together but existed separately within their own communities.  After I joined the Navy after college many of my shipmates came from all over the country.  I discovered as Americans we had a lot more in common than I thought. Upon reflection, the America I grew up in before my enlistment and the America I returned to when I began my professional career was changing drastically.

Map of the United States of America

People are people

I realized several of the problems people had co-existing in peace resulted from an absence of culture sensitivity due to lack of exposure to people from different backgrounds than yourself.  People are people if they come together and get familiar with each other on a personal level. With that said, I am observing as a country we are moving toward being a more multi-cultural society.

Transition in Progress

The proof times are changing is clear, the year 2000 census provided choices for the first time for people to identify themselves as being a member of more than once race. The state of Hawaii’s minority population is greater than its non-minority and in California the Latino populace has matched the number of white residents and in a few years, will be like Hawaii, where the non-minority citizens will soon be the majority of inhabitants living in the state.

Conclusion

Our children will need to able to function in a more cultural and diverse world. How we prepare our children to navigate this changing landscape is in our hands. The challenge should be embraced.

Image courtesy of fotolia.us

Heterosexism in our workplace by Tony Green

Image of a lesbian wedding

I attended a workshop in the City of San Francisco earlier this week. As with most workshops the facilitator directed the participants introduce themselves before the meeting. One of the attendees happened to be an accountant who also admitted to being a lesbian.  Since the San Francisco Bay Area is famous for its large number of its residents who are either gay, lesbian or transgender this was not surprising.

The workshop involved addressing the challenges the participants expected to encounter while seeking employment.  The facilitator asked the accountant about her challenges and when she reported her primary challenge to be homophobia and/or hetero-sexism after overhearing anti-lesbian rhetoric after working hours from the HR team at her firm. I found this surprising and alarming.

The backlash has two separate versions. The first one version, homophobia involves an unjust fear of gay/lesbians while hetero-sexism can be described as those who are dogmatic about the superiority of the traditional male/female relationship.

Our facilitator mentioned this blatant case of discrimination violated employment laws and inquired why the incident failed to be disclosed to her manager or any one else. She did not want to bother with the stigma being a whistle blower. Even more alarming was, in her view, no action could be taken against the employer due the perceived superiority of management in the legal system.

The thought which stuck in my mind was, if I am in the San Francisco Bay Area which is well-known for its tolerance and these statements are coming from HR people what is being said in other “less opened- minded” parts of our country? What does this say about how tolerant we (or aren’t depending on your perspective) toward those who are different from us.

I am not lesbian but as a minority, an African-American this makes me nervous. Does this make you uncomfortable?

Image courtesy of fototalia.us