If you ever have any questions about your water, use this guide to find the right number to call: (650) 991-8082 For questions about your water bill, or to start or stop service, call Utility Billing in the Department of Finance. (650)991-8200 To report a problem or a leak (24 hours per day), get water quality or other technical information, or for issues not listed, call the Department of Water and Wastewater Resources.

WHERE DOES OUR WATER COME FROM? Daly City gets its water about equally from two sources - ground water from Daly City's own wells and surface water from the Sierra Mountains. We have six wells located in three areas of Daly City. Daly City has used ground water from these or other wells for nearly 90 years, and we will continue to rely on inexpensive ground water in the future. When the amount of water needed for our customers cannot be met by ground water alone, then we buy water from the San Francisco Water Department (SFWD). The vast majority of this water originates from high Sierra snowmelt in 459 square miles of protected Yosemite National Park watershed. The remaining 20% is derived from 65,000 acres of San Francisco owned and protected watershed in San Mateo, Santa Clara and Alameda Counties (Crystal Springs, San Andreas, Pilarcitos, Calaveras and San Antonio Reservoirs). All SFWD water is delivered to Daly City via connections to the seven large aqueducts that run through Daly City. Besides being a local source of water (and not subject to aqueduct failures), our ground water is also much less expensive than SFWD water. In fact, once a well is constructed, the cost to pump a gallon of water is one-fourth the cost of SFWD water. Back to top HOW DOES WATER GET TO MY HOME? In most areas, both ground water and SFWD water is blended and then pumped to a steel or concrete reservoir through large buried pipes. Because Daly City is hilly, we have many reservoirs at different elevations, and your water may be pumped several times. Connected to the large pipes are smaller mains that branch out and take water down every street in Daly City, with smaller service connections leading to your home. Back to top HOW DO WE MONITOR WATER QUALITY? The water delivered to you is monitored every day of the year by trained water quality specialists. Water is analyzed in state-certified laboratories, both in Daly City's own laboratory and by private laboratories. Samples are collected from supply connections, distribution facilities and throughout the service area. Over 5,000 tests are performed annually to assure that Daly City's water is continually of high-quality. Back to top WHAT LAWS RELATE TO WATER QUALITY? The quality of drinking water is regulated by the Federal Government. In 1974, Congress passed the Safe Drinking Water Act (amended in 1986 and under review at the present time), which required the US Environmental Protection Agency to establish uniform standards for drinking water. In California, these standards are enforced by the State Department of Health Services and have been made even more stringent than the Federal standards. There are two types of Drinking Water Standards. Primary Standards are related to the protection of public health, and specify limits (called Maximum Contaminant Levels) that may be harmful to humans if consumed in excess. Secondary Standards are based on aesthetic qualities of water, such as taste, odor or clarity, and specify limits for substances that may affect consumer acceptance of the water. Back to top SHOULD I BUY A WATER TREATMENT UNIT? Commercial businesses frequently canvass door-to-door or by telephone attempting to sell home systems that filter or treat tap water. These systems range in price from less than one hundred dollars for simple filters to thousands of dollars for more elaborate units. Some sellers use ethical sales methods, but others make false statements about the quality or source of tap water, or mislead customers about contaminants and potential health problems to frighten them into buying unnecessary devices. The purchase of a treatment device is unnecessary in Daly City. Also, since safe operation of a home treatment device requires regular changing or recharging of filters, careless maintenance may even cause them to be detrimental to your water quality. Please call us right away if someone tells you your tap water is unsafe and that you should buy their product. Back to top SHOULD I BUY BOTTLED WATER? Bottled water offers no health or safety advantages over our own tap water. The source of bottled water and how it is processed are the keys to its quality, just as they are for tap water. In fact, many water bottlers take their water directly from municipal supplies. Within Daly City, the choice to use bottled water should be based on personal taste, and not on health or safety reasons. In 1992, an internationally-famous and expensive bottled water was recalled because of benzene contamination; similar types of incidents with other brands have occurred in the past. This demonstrates the fallibility of such products. One clear advantage of tap water is its price: over four gallons of Daly City water, delivered to your tap, cost less than one penny. On the average, bottled water costs over 80 cents per single gallon. Back to top SOME REMINDERS Is the Drought Really Over? During last winter, we had dramatically increased rainfall locally and even more precipitation in the mountains. These exceptionally heavy rains may cause people to say the drought is over at last. While that statement is partially true, the increasing population and subsequent need for water make it necessary to continue to use water in a way that helps our existing collection and storage facilities handle the growth in demand. So, those water saving tricks that you learned during the drought will help in the future. Color in the Water? Part of our service to you means repairing pipes that break - day or night. Sometimes this means closing valves to one or more streets to allow our workers to make repairs. Later the valves are opened and the pipes are flushed. All this activity may sometimes stir up sediment in the pipes, slightly coloring your water. The water is safe. To clear it, wait until after the workers are finished, and run your tap briefly. The color will disappear. (Be sure to use the water for your plants.) If you have a question, just call us. Cryptosporidium and Giardia Recent laboratory analysis has shown that Daly City ground water has no detectable level of these microorganisms.

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