Tag: lead

Aye, robot: Tiny techno tools can remove heavy metals from water

Imagine a scene that sounds like it’s straight out of “Star Trek”: a scientist releases thousands of tiny robots into a heavily contaminated water supply. Within an hour, the water’s almost clean.   According to an article from Water Online, this story isn’t science fiction at all. Researchers from Singapore, Germany and Spain have created…

Some relief for Flint residents

There’s some good news out of Flint, Mich.: members of a plumbers and pipefitters union have been installing new faucets and state-provided water filters, for free, in homes affected by the city’s water crisis. The new faucets were needed in some homes because the existing fixtures were too old to accommodate the filters.  The filters…

Flint, Mich. water disaster highlights nation’s infrastructure problems

If you’ve been following the news, you know that Flint, Mich., is in the middle of a water crisis. It’s a disturbing event that really drives home the importance of fresh, clean, drinkable water. It’s something we take for granted — until we don’t have it. One troubling aspect of this disaster is that it may have…

New lead mandate on tap for 2014

Did you know that in 2014, a Federal law will require that all infrastructure coming in contact with drinking water must contain no more than 0.25% lead by weight? Often called the “lead free” mandate, it’s a significant modification of the “Safe Drinking Water Act,” (established in 1974 to protect public health through the regulation…

How “green” is your Christmas tree?

It’s the holiday season, and for a large number of Americans — including many of us here at LCA — that means it’s time to put up a Christmas tree. According to the National Christmas Tree Association, between 25 million and 30 million real Christmas trees are sold in the U.S. each year. On the…