π¨ WATER ALERT | Midwest & Great Plains, U.S. β Cancer-linked pesticide atrazine detected in 25% of all U.S. river miles, federal data shows
π Location: Midwest and Great Plains, United States β corn and sorghum belt waterways serving as drinking water sources for millions
β£οΈ Contaminant: Atrazine β a widely used agricultural herbicide linked to cancer and endocrine disruption, detected year-round in many waterways
π₯ Affected: Millions of Americans drawing surface water from rivers in the Midwest and Great Plains, with peak exposure risk in May and June
π§ͺ Health Risk: Linked to hormone disruption affecting thyroid and reproductive systems; classified as a possible human carcinogen by the ATSDR; biological effects documented at concentrations as low as 0.1 ppb β 30x below the current legal limit
β οΈ Status: EPA maximum contaminant level has not been updated since 2003 and remains at 3 ppb; the European Union banned atrazine in 2004; no new federal limits are currently in place
π‘οΈ Protection: Reverse osmosis filtration is effective at removing atrazine from drinking water; standard carbon filters may offer partial reduction but are not fully reliable against atrazine
π Read the full story:
#WaterSafety#Atrazine#DrinkingWater#WaterContamination#Pesticides#PublicHealth#MidwestWater#WaterAlertworldwaterreserve.com/atraziβ¦
Mussels vs. No Mussels πͺ
A single native freshwater mussel can filter 5 to 10 gallons of water every day. After just 30 minutes, this tank demonstration shows the impressive mussel filtering power.
And that bubbler? It only adds oxygen. The filtering is 100% mussel power.
ALT Two side-by -side aquariums. The aquarium on the left has clear water with a group of freshwater mussels inside the tank. The aquarium on the right has cloudy water and no freshwater mussels inside the tank.
Fog contains typically from 0.05 to 1 grams of water per cubic meter, with droplets from 1 to 40 micrometres in diameter. Fog collection is the harvesting of water from fog using large pieces of vertical mesh.
Roughly 33% of the certified water workforce is eligible to retire within the next decade. Plant superintendents already see it in the shift schedule. Operators pulling double shifts while you explain to city council why recruiter fees won't fix this.
Posting a water operator role on Indeed gets you applicants who do not know what a clarifier is. You spend a week sorting out retail managers instead of interviewing certified operators. A water-only board means every applicant already speaks the language.
Municipal procurement was designed for buying trucks and treatment chemicals, not filling an open operator shift. By the time a requisition clears the budget cycle, your best candidate took a job somewhere else. Short staffing is a process problem before it is a people problem.
SCADA technicians are the hardest seats to fill in a water plant. An operator can cover a shift, but nobody improvises PLC logic at 2 AM when the HMI freezes. Utilities lose SCADA talent because general job boards never reach the specialists who actually know the systems.
Posting a certified operator role on a niche board and hearing silence for 60 days is worse than not posting at all. The board dies, the listing ages, and next time you go back to Indeed. A water job board only works if both sides actually show up.
License reciprocity is the most underused career lever for certified operators. A Class IV who learns their certification transfers to a neighboring state with a higher pay band just unlocked a move without starting over. Most general boards don't even acknowledge it exists.
Companies brace for $400bn future water risk costs
Businesses anticipate almost $400bn in future impacts from water-related disruptions, with many organisations failing to put processes in place to manage risk across the supply chain.
edie.net/companies-brace-forβ¦
Amazon will spend millions to help save Colorado River water
The ecommerce giant announced that it would send $20 million to water-saving projects in Arizona and California, kicking off a new longer-term effort to rally money for water conservation.
The company formed a new coalition, dubbed the βColorado River Basin Collaborative,β aboutamazon.com/news/sustainβ¦ which collectively aims to spend $100 million on water conservation across two years.
kjzz.org/business/2026-09-21β¦ by @awhager via @kjzzphoenix