Assembly rejects requirements for communities to disinfect their water | Defend Wisconsin

Assembly rejects requirements for communities to disinfect their water | Defend Wisconsin

"A study by the Marshfield Clinic Foundation tested water in 14 communities between 2005 and 2007 and found that 34 of the 36 wells tested positive for viruses. None of the communities chlorinated their public water systems.

Researcher Mark Borchardt, a research microbiologist who now works for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, testified this spring before a state Senate committee that his work measured both household tap water and rates of illness.

"In other words, the communities that had the highest virus levels in their tap water were also the sickest," Borchardt told senators.

Borchardt said that the benefits of disinfecting water outweigh the cost.

His estimate: The expense of disinfection would cost all of the communities $1.3 million in equipment, supplies and testing over five years. But citing figures from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, health care savings would total $2.3 million or more."Assembly rejects requirements for communities to disinfect their water | Defend Wisconsin