Official website of the
City of Vancouver, Washington

Water Production and Distribution

About your water

The City of Vancouver is the fourth largest provider of drinking water in the state of Washington, serving up more than 9.8 billion gallons to nearly 210,000 people within the city and a portion of the unincorporated area in 2007. Our Water Maintenance Team is responsible for operating and maintaining the extensive water distribution system, which includes more than 800 miles of pipes and more than 64,000 service connections (water meters) across the community. Top priorities for these operations and maintenance personal are quality, service, and cost containment.

The City of Vancouver's drinking water not only meets all state and federal requirements, it frequently exceeds them. In fact, Vancouver puts its water through far more stringent tests than U.S. and Washington laws require. You can view the details in the Water Quality Report for 2008 through the links on the left.

Proposed water conservation goals

The City of Vancouver is required to set Water Conservation Goals for its municipal system per state Department of Health water use efficiency requirements (WAC 246-290-830(4)(a)). Opportunities for public information and input on the proposed goals was provided through this web site and at the Water Resources Education Center. The Vancouver City Council will consider a resolution adopting the proposed Water Conservation Goals on Monday, July 6, 2009.      

Vancouver's draft proposed Supply Side Goal is to maintain annual water loss from the distribution system at 6 percent or less. This goal can be achieved by continued monitoring of water loss through meter calibration, meter exchange program and leak detection.

Vancouver's draft proposed Demand Side Goal is to reduce the average equivalent residential unit (ERU) annual water consumption by a minimum of 1 percent within six years. This goal can be achieved by education and promotion of water conservation using utilities flyers, handouts, web-based information, and educational activities and programs at the city's Water Resources Education Center.

Drop by during Thursday's Public Open House/Forum to learn more. Or click here to submit an e-mail offering input on the proposed goals.

Look to the Table of Contents, left, for links to information about water quality, cross connections, backflow testing and more

We encourage you to learn more about your water and water resources. You'll find some frequently asked topics on this page and more information on the Water Service Table of Contents links, located to the left. You may also want to visit Related Links, located on the left of your screen, where you can get information about water rates, learn about historic drought information, or play a fun game aimed at teaching kids how to use water wisely. 

Using water wisely

Did you know that the average family of four uses about 400 gallons of water a day?

Some of that water may be going down the pipe needlessly. In the United States, the average toilet uses 5-7 gallons of water per flush and the average shower as much as 5 gallons per minute. Leaky toilets can waste as much as 200 gallons each day.

Using water wisely helps conserve supplies and can help save on water bills. To get started, here are some water conservation tips:

Indoors

• Don't use the toilet as a wastebasket. Each flush wastes water.
• Check toilets and faucets for leaks and fix any problems. 
• Run your dishwasher only when it's full. 
• Wash only full loads of laundry or use the proper water level setting for your load size. 
• Don't leave the water running when brushing your teeth or shaving. With the tap running at full force, shaving takes 20 gallons of water, teeth-brushing takes 10. 
• Take shorter showers or use less water in your bath. A full bathtub requires about 36 gallons of water. A five-minute shower using a water-conserving showerhead will use just 15 to 25 gallons.
• Consider installing water-efficient toilets, faucets and showerheads as a water-saving investment.

Outside

• Go native. Use native or Pacific Northwest-friendly plants and trees in your yard instead of green lawn. Native plants are  suited to our seasonal weather and more disease and insect-resistant.
• Improve your soil by working organic materials, such as peat moss or compost, into the soil to help retain water. Consider aerating your yard to help it retain water.
• Water efficiently using a drip system or a sprinkler with a low application rate and check for even coverage. Established grass only needs an inch of water each week.
• To reduce evaporation, water your lawn and gardens in the early morning or evening.
• Never water the sidewalk, driveway or street. Make sure the sprinkler aim is limited to the lawn or garden.
• Apply mulch around plants and trees to retain moisture and inhibit weed growth.
• Use a broom, not a hose, to clean driveways and sidewalks.

Passing all the tests

Federal and state laws say utilities must test for fewer than 100 different substances in drinking water once every three years. Vancouver does more. The city tests its water for 240-plus substances each and every year to ensure we’re providing you, our customer, with the highest quality water possible.

This year, the City of Vancouver went a step further to find out how good its water is. When national news raised the coast-to-coast issue of trace amounts of drugs turning up in the drinking water supply of millions of Americans, Vancouver submitted water from each of its stations to very stringent parts-per-trillion pharmaceutical testing. The results are now in. In tests for 15 different common pharmaceuticals, ranging from acetaminophen to antibiotics, no pharmaceuticals were detected in Vancouver’s water. Only minute traces of caffeine were found at the parts-per-trillion level, and none at the parts-per-billion measurement most often used in state and federal standards.

Why the concern? Some fraction of pharmaceuticals and caffeine that people consume in coffee, sodas, tea and prescription and overthe-counter medications passes unmetabolized through the body and is flushed down the toilet and into wastewater systems. There currently are no regulatory requirements for testing or removing pharmaceuticals from wastewater as it is cleaned up and released back to waterways, where it may eventually flow to communities that use surface water for drinking water.

All of Vancouver’s drinking water, 100 percent, comes from wells that tap three underground aquifers. Our Water Resources Protection Ordinance regulates protection of these critical aquifers and recharge areas, including compliance for businesses and industries that manage hazardous materials. During the past five years, about 400 businesses have been visited, inspected, and provided with technical assistance and education as part of this program. Meanwhile, the city’s Sewer Connection Incentive Program (SCIP) makes public sewers available and affordable for neighborhoods where septic systems still exist within the city’s service area. Between 1998 and winter 2007, some 729 homes switched from septic to safe, reliable public sewer, and another 1,134 now have sewer available for connection.

You can help protect our vital water resources, too. The City of Vancouver, in conjunction with Clark County Solid Waste, encourages everyone to dispose of unwanted pharmaceutical medications properly. Only human waste and toilet paper - not pharmaceuticals or other products - should ever be flushed down the toilet. Remember - Our decisions and actions today impact options and opportunities for generations to come.

For information on how to dispose of unwanted medications safely, please visit www.clark.wa.gov/recycle. To learn more about our water, visit the main page at  www.cityofvancouver.us/water for annual Water Quality Reports, conservation tips and other information.

Water testing Q & A

Q: How many substances does the City of Vancouver test for each year?
A: Federal and state laws say utilities must test drinking water for fewer than 100 different substances once every three years. The City of Vancouver goes beyond those requirements and has its water analyzed for more than 250 different substances, some regulated and some not regulated, each and every year. The city's 2007 Water Quality Report to the community makes note of 11 regulated substances and 14 non-regulated substances, in Vancouver’s water for 2007. The results for all of these were below levels allowed by federal and state agencies. The remaining 225 substances not listed in the report were not detected in the city's water. 

Q: Which substances were covered by the City of Vancouver's pharmaceutical testing?
A: In addition to caffeine, the City of Vancouver had each of its water stations tested for the following substances at parts per trillion: Carbamazepine, Estronem, Estradiol, Ethinyl Estradiol, Progestrone, Testosterone., Gemfibrozil, Ibuprofen, Iopromide, Triclosan,  Acetaminophen,  Diazepam, Fluoxetine, Sulfamethoxazole and Trimethoprim.

Q: Were any pharmaceuticals detected?
A: None of these substances, which range from over-the-counter medications, such as Acetaminophen and Ibuprofen, to prescription medications, such as Trimethoprim, a bacteriostatic antibiotic, were detected in any of the City of Vancouver's water stations, even at minute parts-per-trillion measurements. Caffeine was detected at levels ranging from 40 parts per trillion to 3.3 parts per trillion. It had not been detected in previous year’s tests that measured in parts per billion.

Q: Is the City of Vancouver required to test for pharmaceuticals?
A: No, there currently are no requirements for these tests. The city chose to have its water tested in order to keep citizens well informed of the quality of its drinking water.

Q: How might pharmaceuticals get into water?
A: There are many ways pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) can enter the environment. Some are easily broken down and processed in the body. Others are not. Depending on the substance and the human involved, some fraction of pharmaceuticals and caffeine that people consume in coffee, sodas, tea and prescription and overthe-counter medications can pass unmetabolized through the body and be flushed down the toilet and into wastewater systems. There is also a potential that some may dispose of unwanted pharmaceuticals improperly by directly flushing these down the toilet. (Only human waste and toilet paper - not pharmaceuticals or other products - should ever be flushed down the toilet!) Wastewater, in turn, is cleaned up and released back to waterways. Some waterways serve as a source of drinking water for communites that, unlike Vancouver, don’t have the option of high quality aquifers. Currently, there are no regulations for testing and treating pharmaceuticals in municipal wastewater, and little is known about the engineering and technology that would be needed to do so. Much more research is needed, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 

Q: Does any of the City of Vancouver's drinking water come from surface water?
A: All of Vancouver’s drinking water, 100 percent, comes from wells that tap three underground aquifers. The City of Vancouver has active, effective programs that continuously work to protect our water resources. Our Water Resources Protection Ordinance regulates protection of these critical aquifers and recharge areas, including compliance for businesses and industries that manage hazardous materials. Our Sewer Connection Incentive Program (SCIP) makes public sewers available and affordable for neighborhoods where septic systems still exist within the city’s service area. Our Water Resources Education Center provides people of all ages with education and outreach for all to get involved in helping to protect water.

Q: How should I get rid of unwanted prescription medications?

A: For information on how to dispose of unwanted medications safely, please visit http://www.clark.wa.gov/recycle/A-Z/Materials/Meds.html

Q: How can I learn more about environmental concerns regarding pharmaceuticals and personal care products?
A: Information is available online at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Web site. Visit http://www.epa.gov/ppcp/basic2.html.