4 ms·

Every time I hit a severe bump on the road that is supposed to be a repaired pothole, I think of the workers who were assigned to that particular pothole. I thi

Every time I hit a severe bump on the road that is supposed to be a repaired pothole, I think of the workers who were assigned to that particular pothole. I think of all the times I've heard workers say "That's good enough, I'm ready to go to lunch early." Because of a few people's low standard of perfection, now tens and thousands of people must experience a slight turmoil in that spot over the next decade, slightly increasing wear/tear on their car. Apply this attitude to storage of a fundamental resource: safe drinking water. There is negligence because people are in a hurry, or because things become so routine that the sanitation workers don't even pay attention anymore. Personally, I drink all my water exclusively from a well. Untouched by human "sanitation" efforts. A few weeks ago I forgot to drive out to the country to refill my container with this well water, and had to drink from a city tap for about a week. I started getting ulcers all over my mouth. Perhaps this was coincidental, but it is the only time in the past few years that I have consistently drank city water over a sustained period. Chlorine, fluoride, who knows what else. I will say that NYC is supposed to have some of the best water in the nation because their reservoir is fresh snow melt. But any water kept in one place too long will be contaminated. “The idea is that flowing water never goes stale, so just keep on flowing.” -Bruce Lee

oftenwrong 8y ago
>any water kept in one place too long will be contaminated. Clean water stored in clean, sealed containers will not spontaneously become contaminated.
- DanBC 8y ago
  ...for very specific definitions of clean water, clean container, and sealed.
  - Scoundreller 8y ago
    Who doesn’t sterilize their water for 90 minutes at 15psi anyway?
    - moneytide1 8y ago
      I don't. It comes from the ground and I keep it in a container for a couple of weeks. I keep my sourdough starter open in the same area for a similar reason: I want to come in contact with local bacteria. Over time it builds up my immune resistance to things in that area. I don't go different places often (to minimize fossil fuel output), but I imagine when I do reloacte I'll have to start with sterilizing water for 90m as you recommend, then slowly start adding local water to introduce my immune system to the region.
- moneytide1 8y ago
  Good point, I shouldn't have said "any". I'm sure over long stretches of time there could be bacterial growth, but extremely limited especially if no sunlight (besides, a little bacteria is a good thing). I suppose my opinion is that as a matter of principle I wouldn't want to drink any water stored in one place for so long, regardless of the quality of the seal. I drink out of a 7-gallon non-BPA container that I keep out of direct sunlight. Refill about every two weeks.
  - Scoundreller 8y ago
    Algae is the problem with sunlight, not bacteria. Temperature plays a role too. A little bit of bleach would go a long way in preservation, but maybe that’s what you’re trying to avoid.
    - moneytide1 8y ago
      I am trying to avoid complete sterilization after reading a quote from a study: "... a lack of exposure of children (as well as adults) to dirt, commensal bacteria, and 'minor' pathogenic insults results in an immune system that does not function normally. This lack of antibodies to true pathogens in the immune system has resulted in the dramatic increase in allergies and asthma in developed countries over the past twenty years." -Callaway, Harvey, Nisbet
      - fencepost 8y ago
        To my mind at least there's a significant difference between commensal bacteria and sucking down one of the bacterial 'spurts' from a rotting pigeon or rodent in the drinking water.
        moneytide1 8y ago
        I'd like to start harvesting rainwater instead of relying on a well, but these 'spurts' you're talking about will the primary issue with a catching system. I'll probably just make a quick gravel->sand->activated charcoal filter in order to capture the bulk droppings, bugs, or whatever runs down the collection surface.
mcguire 8y ago
I hope your well is periodically tested for contaminants. Well water is not necessarily safe. Then there was the time the ant colony intersected the well column and we had red ants coming out of the faucet for a few days.
- moneytide1 8y ago
  Haven't done it. There is farmland nearby so I suppose I'm getting some of that eventually. But I believe the well taps onto a different aquifer (100' down) that receives water from a different runoff than the immediate land. I'll have to keep an eye out for ants. I look at the water the entire time I fill, and everything always looks clear.
  - mcguire 8y ago
    https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/wells/diseases.html https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/wells/dise... Agricultural or industrial runoff is not the only concern. The well equipment itself can become contaminated with beasties and the water can contain natural contaminants such as arsenic.
    - moneytide1 8y ago
      The ideal method that I'll set up eventually would be rainwater catching. That should prevent heavy metal infiltration. Although in this particular area there are airborne pesticide applications in the summer, so I'll have to keep a close eye out for that...
      - mcguire 8y ago
        Would still need to be tested regularly. https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/rainwater-collection.html https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/rainwater-...
lm28469 8y ago
> Because of a few people's low standard of perfection I'm sure they'd love to pursue perfection if they were paid decent wage and not pressured to be as fast / cheap as possible. It's easy to talk about perfection while sitting in a air conditioned office and slightly pressing on buttons while looking at a screen and getting paid 4-10 times the minimum wage these guys are getting while busting their asses outside no matter the weather. > Personally, I drink all my water exclusively from a well. Untouched by human "sanitation" efforts. Many things can be off with water coming from a well. Pollution, bacterias, &c. I hope you test / treat it often, otherwise it's not much safer than drinking tap water.
- LeftTurnSignal 8y ago
  >> I'm sure they'd love to pursue perfection if they were paid decent wage and not pressured to be as fast / cheap as possible. That and depending where you live, there's next to no money for road work. At the local county govt I worked at, the first department that would get gutted was the highway department. It can easily cost millions to redo a few miles of road, and you need to fix a bridge that doesn't get used much (but it is becoming a hazard because it's been neglected for so long), magically most of the road budget is already gone for that year. Now add in the unknowns like salt prices, the equipment to do anything, maintenance, and everything else that comes with it. Things here become "just good enough" because no one wants an increase in taxes to pay for it. I want to believe that isn't the case for every local govt, but it is for the few smaller ones I've worked with around here.
  - moneytide1 8y ago
    I felt that I was paid well during my time in road work (entire family still works there). Then again, I don't need useless things like most people in society, so I'm naturally satisfied with any quantity of federal reserve notes that I'm allocated. I agree with you that it's all being neglected. We had to steadily taper off the traffic into one lane before night time work began in the summer. I remember specifically one time I was slowing down traffic on the interstate by setting out the warning barrels - someone from out of state passing through was just so angry from having to slow down to 55mph for 10 minutes of their life. Flipped me off, along with the most rotten glare I've ever seen. I guess nothing else matters except for everyone getting out of THEIR way so THEY can get to THEIR destination. I'm sorry that I'm taking the gas tax we've all been paying in order to renew a 10 mile stretch of the interstate so you can do just that - travel INTER state (bump free). Peak capitalism

oftenwrong 8y ago

>any water kept in one place too long will be contaminated. Clean water stored in clean, sealed containers will not spontaneously become contaminated.

DanBC 8y ago
...for very specific definitions of clean water, clean container, and sealed.
- Scoundreller 8y ago
  Who doesn’t sterilize their water for 90 minutes at 15psi anyway?
  - moneytide1 8y ago
    I don't. It comes from the ground and I keep it in a container for a couple of weeks. I keep my sourdough starter open in the same area for a similar reason: I want to come in contact with local bacteria. Over time it builds up my immune resistance to things in that area. I don't go different places often (to minimize fossil fuel output), but I imagine when I do reloacte I'll have to start with sterilizing water for 90m as you recommend, then slowly start adding local water to introduce my immune system to the region.
moneytide1 8y ago
Good point, I shouldn't have said "any". I'm sure over long stretches of time there could be bacterial growth, but extremely limited especially if no sunlight (besides, a little bacteria is a good thing). I suppose my opinion is that as a matter of principle I wouldn't want to drink any water stored in one place for so long, regardless of the quality of the seal. I drink out of a 7-gallon non-BPA container that I keep out of direct sunlight. Refill about every two weeks.
- Scoundreller 8y ago
  Algae is the problem with sunlight, not bacteria. Temperature plays a role too. A little bit of bleach would go a long way in preservation, but maybe that’s what you’re trying to avoid.
  - moneytide1 8y ago
    I am trying to avoid complete sterilization after reading a quote from a study: "... a lack of exposure of children (as well as adults) to dirt, commensal bacteria, and 'minor' pathogenic insults results in an immune system that does not function normally. This lack of antibodies to true pathogens in the immune system has resulted in the dramatic increase in allergies and asthma in developed countries over the past twenty years." -Callaway, Harvey, Nisbet
    - fencepost 8y ago
      To my mind at least there's a significant difference between commensal bacteria and sucking down one of the bacterial 'spurts' from a rotting pigeon or rodent in the drinking water.
      - moneytide1 8y ago
        I'd like to start harvesting rainwater instead of relying on a well, but these 'spurts' you're talking about will the primary issue with a catching system. I'll probably just make a quick gravel->sand->activated charcoal filter in order to capture the bulk droppings, bugs, or whatever runs down the collection surface.

mcguire 8y ago

I hope your well is periodically tested for contaminants. Well water is not necessarily safe. Then there was the time the ant colony intersected the well column and we had red ants coming out of the faucet for a few days.

moneytide1 8y ago
Haven't done it. There is farmland nearby so I suppose I'm getting some of that eventually. But I believe the well taps onto a different aquifer (100' down) that receives water from a different runoff than the immediate land. I'll have to keep an eye out for ants. I look at the water the entire time I fill, and everything always looks clear.
- mcguire 8y ago
  https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/wells/diseases.html https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/wells/dise... Agricultural or industrial runoff is not the only concern. The well equipment itself can become contaminated with beasties and the water can contain natural contaminants such as arsenic.
  - moneytide1 8y ago
    The ideal method that I'll set up eventually would be rainwater catching. That should prevent heavy metal infiltration. Although in this particular area there are airborne pesticide applications in the summer, so I'll have to keep a close eye out for that...
    - mcguire 8y ago
      Would still need to be tested regularly. https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/rainwater-collection.html https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/rainwater-...

lm28469 8y ago

> Because of a few people's low standard of perfection I'm sure they'd love to pursue perfection if they were paid decent wage and not pressured to be as fast / cheap as possible. It's easy to talk about perfection while sitting in a air conditioned office and slightly pressing on buttons while looking at a screen and getting paid 4-10 times the minimum wage these guys are getting while busting their asses outside no matter the weather. > Personally, I drink all my water exclusively from a well. Untouched by human "sanitation" efforts. Many things can be off with water coming from a well. Pollution, bacterias, &c. I hope you test / treat it often, otherwise it's not much safer than drinking tap water.

LeftTurnSignal 8y ago
>> I'm sure they'd love to pursue perfection if they were paid decent wage and not pressured to be as fast / cheap as possible. That and depending where you live, there's next to no money for road work. At the local county govt I worked at, the first department that would get gutted was the highway department. It can easily cost millions to redo a few miles of road, and you need to fix a bridge that doesn't get used much (but it is becoming a hazard because it's been neglected for so long), magically most of the road budget is already gone for that year. Now add in the unknowns like salt prices, the equipment to do anything, maintenance, and everything else that comes with it. Things here become "just good enough" because no one wants an increase in taxes to pay for it. I want to believe that isn't the case for every local govt, but it is for the few smaller ones I've worked with around here.
- moneytide1 8y ago
  I felt that I was paid well during my time in road work (entire family still works there). Then again, I don't need useless things like most people in society, so I'm naturally satisfied with any quantity of federal reserve notes that I'm allocated. I agree with you that it's all being neglected. We had to steadily taper off the traffic into one lane before night time work began in the summer. I remember specifically one time I was slowing down traffic on the interstate by setting out the warning barrels - someone from out of state passing through was just so angry from having to slow down to 55mph for 10 minutes of their life. Flipped me off, along with the most rotten glare I've ever seen. I guess nothing else matters except for everyone getting out of THEIR way so THEY can get to THEIR destination. I'm sorry that I'm taking the gas tax we've all been paying in order to renew a 10 mile stretch of the interstate so you can do just that - travel INTER state (bump free). Peak capitalism