Protecting Your Drinking Water and FAQs | South Carolina Department of Environmental Services

Whether your drinking water comes from a lake, river, reservoir, or groundwater, it is important to protect the source from contamination. One of the best ways to protect your drinking water is to prevent pollution from getting into your drinking water source. Your drinking water can become polluted with animal waste, fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides, motor oil, gasoline, and other substances as they get carried to the source by runoff pollution.

All public water systems have identified potential sources of contamination and are working on source water protection plans. You can get involved in protecting your drinking water too by contacting your water provider.

If you have your own drinking water well, you can take steps to protect your water source. Be sure the well cover, cap, and casing are in good repair, and install a locking well cap. Keep hazardous chemicals like paint, fertilizer, pesticides, gasoline, and motor oil away from your well. Check your well each month for visible signs of cracking or corrosion. Keep the area around your well clean and free of debris. Do not pour harmful chemicals on the ground and don't overuse fertilizers and pesticides. Have your septic system checked each year, and pumped every 3-5 years. Dispose of household chemicals properly. Never pour them in your yard or down a storm drain.

Contact: Leigh Anne Flynn, (803) 898-3531

Bacteria

Leaking septic systems, pet waste, wildlife, farm animals, and improper application of manure

Nutrients

Fertilizers, agriculture, pet waste, and leaking septic systems

Chemicals

Fertilizers, pesticides, and household chemicals

Trash

Paper, plastic, cigarette butts, and yard waste

Sediment

Croplands, forested lands, improperly managed construction sites, and eroding streambanks

Motor Vehicle Fluids

Antifreeze, battery acid, brake fluids, motor oil, and gasoline

Don't Dump Anything Down Storm Drains

Storm drains lead directly to waters that may be sources of drinking water.

Pick Up After Your Dog

Pet waste contains bacteria, which can increase your risk of getting sick when ingested through swimming or other recreational activities.
Visit SCDES's Swimming Advisory website for more information on swimming advisories for high-use rivers, lakes, and streams.

Properly Maintain Your Car and Septic System

Proper maintenance ensures your car or septic system will not leak and get washed into waterways.

Avoid Using More Water Than You Need

Water is a limited resource. As populations grow the need to have enough supply of clean water will increase, along with the costs to treat it.
Look for the WaterSense label for high-performance, water-efficient products.
- EPA's WaterSense website

Properly Dispose of Unwanted Medicine

Don't flush or pour down a drain.
After being flushed or poured down a drain, many medicines pass through sewer and septic systems.
Because these systems (septic and sewer systems) cannot always treat or remove the medicines, they may end up in streams, lakes, and groundwater which could be sources of drinking water.
Learn how to properly dispose of unwanted medicine.

Your drinking water comes from either groundwater (wells) or surface water sources (rivers, lakes, or reservoirs).
In South Carolina, about 80% of public water systems use surface water as their source of drinking water, and about 20% use groundwater.
To find the source of your drinking water, contact your water supplier or read your Water Quality Report provided by your water supplier every year.
For more information on South Carolina's water supply usage, see SC Water Use Report.

SCDES regulates all public water systems (PWS) and is responsible for ensuring that these public water systems are in compliance with all state and federal regulations.
Local municipal, county, and other government entities, along with private water suppliers, are directly responsible for the quality of water that flows to your faucet.
Water systems test and treat their water, maintain the distribution systems that deliver water to consumers, and report on their water quality results to SCDES.
States and EPA provide technical assistance to water suppliers and can take legal action against systems that fail to provide water that meets state and federal standards.
If you get your drinking water from an individual residential well, you are not subject to state and federal regulations.
The owner of a residential well is responsible for the quality of the water.
If you are concerned about the quality of your well water,
- Visit SCDES's Testing Your Drinking Water web page, or
- Contact SCDES's Residential Well Program for more information.

Although bad-tasting or bad-smelling water can be offensive to consumers, in most cases it is not considered to be a public health concern.
Your drinking water may have an "off taste" if it's been sitting in the pipes for too long.
- Flushing out the pipes in your home by turning on all the faucets at the same time for a few minutes may get rid of the off taste.

First, determine if the concern is coming from your household plumbing or the water supplier.
Ask your neighbors if they are having a similar issue.
You may contact your water supplier or local EA Regional Office.
You may also want to consider using certified water filters or treatment units.
The National Sanitation Foundation provides a list of certified units.

Chlorine or chemical taste or smell
- Can be caused by chlorine that is added to the water by your public water supplier
- May be caused by the interaction of chlorine with a build-up of organic matter in your household plumbing.
Sulfur or rotten egg smell
- Usually caused by bacteria growing in your sink drain or water heater.
- In some cases is caused by naturally occurring hydrogen sulfide.
Musty, moldy, earthy taste or smell
- Usually caused by bacteria growing in a sink's drain or from fungi
- Can also be algae or fungi that naturally grow in surface water sources.
Metallic taste
- Can be caused by metals such as iron.

In the event of an emergency, you may need to disinfect (kill germs) small quantities of drinking water.
Boiling is a very effective means of disinfecting drinking water.
Chemical disinfection of small quantities of water for drinking is more convenient and if done correctly, is as effective as boiling.
For information on how to disinfect your water, visit EPA's Emergency Disinfection of Drinking Water website.

Lead is found almost everywhere: food, paint, dust, soil, air, and even some drinking water.
Children and pregnant women are most susceptible to health risks from lead in drinking water.
Lead is rarely in drinking water when it leaves the treatment plant; however, it can leach into the water from old plumbing.

Copper is a metal that is commonly used in household plumbing and pipes.
Like lead, copper may leach into your drinking water from copper pipes and copper-containing fixtures in older plumbing.
The most noticeable effect produced by copper is a blue-green stain on bathroom fixtures such as tubs and sinks.
Learn more about copper in drinking water.

Radium is a radioactive element, which can occur naturally in soil and rocks.
Radium is usually not an issue in surface water sources, but can affect some groundwater sources due to local geology.
Learn more about radium in drinking water.

For information on the quality of your drinking water, read your Water Quality Report from your water supplier or contact them directly.
- Your water supplier will have their contact information on your water bill.
If you are concerned about the water quality of your private well, contact SCDES's Residential Well Program for more information.
You can also call your local SCDES regional office.

Every year your water utility publishes a report on the quality of your drinking water (also known as a Consumer Confidence Report).
For links to other state's local water quality information, visit EPA's Local Drinking Water Web site.
For information on drinking water contaminants and their health effects, visit EPA's Drinking Water and Health website.
Visit SCDES's Drinking Water Resources web page, for additional resources and links.