watermatters

April 2012

• Twin Tunnels Launch Delayed to 2014

  Saturday, April 28th, 2012

  Twin tunnels, each more than 7km in length and almost 4 metres in diameter, have been bored through the base of Grouse Mountain to send water from the Capilano Reservoir to the Seymour Filtration Plant.

  This $820 million project was originally scheduled for completion in 2009. Fraught with delays, the tunnels are still not in service. Consequently, unfiltered water from Capilano Reservoir that supplies tap water to western Metro Vancouver during the summer, remains too murky to use in the winter months. The latest projected completion date and start-of-service using the Twin Tunnels is now 2014.

  

  Cross Section of Tunnels. Image from Metro Vancouver online publication about the Seymour Capilano Filtration Project

   

  Posted in Vancouver Water

• Did Your Tap Water Change…on April 18?

  Saturday, April 28th, 2012

  If you live or work in Vancouver, western North Vancouver, western Burnaby or Richmond (see map) the answer is probably…Yes.

  Since September 2011, your tap water has been coming from the Seymour Filtration Plant because the Capilano reservoir was closed for the winter season. Winter rains wash excessive dirt and sediment into the Capilano reservoir, making  the water murky and too difficult to disinfect effectively.

  On April 18, 2012, Metro Vancouver put the unfiltered Capilano reservoir back in service. You may have noticed a change in the clarity of your water in the week following this change, as did Metro Vancouver. Heavy rains at the end of April stirred up so much sediment that the Capilano reservoir was temporarily taken back out of service.

  According to an official at Metro Vancouver’s water quality department, a decision is being made on May 7, 2012 about when to re-open the Capilano reservoir for summer use. Turbidity levels of tap water from the 3 reservoirs (Capilano, Seymour and Coquitlam) are posted daily on the front page of the Vancouver Sun and on Metro Vancouver’s website.

  What this means for you

  If you receive your tap water from the Capilano reservoir in the summer months (approximately April/May to September), you may notice that your water is not as clear during this period.

  If your water is coming from the Capilano reservoir, the pH of your tap water may drop below 7 to the acidic side of the pH scale.
  Lime is added to water coming from the Seymour reservoir after it passes through the Seymour Filtration Plant. This raises the pH to make tap water slightly alkaline. The reason why Metro Vancouver makes this pH adjustment is because acidic water is corrosive. By making tap water slightly alkaline, water supply lines last longer with fewer leaks. Leaching of heavy metals is also minimized when tap water pH is above 7.

  Impact on water filter performance

  If you use a good quality water filter, you may find that the water flow though your filter slows down more rapidly in the summer months due to elevated sediment levels (turbidity) in your tap water that may clog the filter.  Similarly, shower filters may lose their ability to reduce chlorine more quickly during this summer period. Filter cartridges should be changed if this slow down occurs.

  Future changes to your water

  If you live or work in western Metro Vancouver, you can expect your tap water supply to switch back and forth, seasonally, between Capilano Reservoir and the Seymour Filtration plant until the Twin Tunnels that join these two sources are finally put into service. This is now anticipated to happen in early 2014.

  All tap water in Metro Vancouver is chlorinated

  Chlorine is introduced to all tap water in Metro Vancouver, regardless of whether it comes from the Capilano or Coquitlam reservoirs, or from the Seymour Filtration Plant. The purpose of adding chlorine to our tap water is to disinfect it.

  Posted in News & Initiatives, Vancouver Water

• How to prepare Shungite water

  Friday, April 20th, 2012

  Cleaning the shungite chips
  Sterilize 200g of shungite chips in boiling water for 10 minutes. Don’t use soap. Cool and then thoroughly rinse the shungite chips.

  Making your first batch of shungite water
  Place the well-rinsed shungite chips in a 2 litre glass or ceramic container and fill with filtered or tap water.  Use 2 liter of water for each 200g of shungite chips.

  Let the water stand with the shungite chips for 24-72 hours. The container must be open to breathe during this process. A thin, natural fibre cloth can be used to cover the container to exclude dust and insects.

  Using shungite-infused water
  Pour the shungite-infused water into another lidded glass or ceramic container. This water is the finished water, ready for use. Refill the original shungite container with filtered or tap water to prepare a new batch.
  Excellent as a hair rinse. Useful for pets, birds and plants.

  Maintenance
  Once per month, thoroughly rinse the shungite chips under running water and put them outside in the sun for an hour to recharge. Sterilize the container at regular intervals. Replace the shungite chips with new chips approximately every 1-2 years, depending on the quality of the source water.

  More about Shungite here:

  What is Shungite?
  Shungite Products
  

   

  Disclaimer
  The information provided on this page has not been evaluated by Health Canada. The products mentioned herein are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.  Information and statements made herein are for education purposes and are not intended to replace the advice of your family doctor.

  Posted in Energizing Water, Water and Health, Water Treatment Guide

• What is SHUNGITE?

  Sunday, April 8th, 2012

  Shungite is a remarkable black stone that has been used in Russian households for centuries. Although it looks similar to coal, shungite has physical and chemical characteristics that are unlike any other natural mineral substance.

  Where does Shungite come from?
  There are several theories about the origins of shungite. Since it has unique properties formed by extreme temperatures only known to occur in stellar interiors and during lightning strikes, some scientists believe it came from a meteorite that crashed into an area of northwestern Russian, possibly billions of years ago. This location, on the shores of a lake in the Russian Republic of Karelia, is the only place shungite is found on Earth.

  For hundreds of years the waters which spring from shungite rock formations around this lake have been used for healing purposes.

  Russian Tsar, Peter the Great, supplied a piece of shungite to each of his troops to purify their drinking water.  History records that when an epidemic of dysentery broke out during the Battle of Poltava between Russia and Sweden, the Swedish forces did not have the shungite advantage to clean their water and, weakened by dysentery, lost the war (1709).

  Shungite’s composition & characteristics
  Shungite consists of fine crystalline silicate minerals in an amorphous carbon matrix. The silicate particles are approximately 0.5 to 1 micron in size. Shungite is made up of spherical structures called fullerenes rarely found in naturally occurring minerals. Shungite is electrically conductive, has high strength, density, chemical resistance, catalytic, adsorptive and redox properties.

  About Fullerenes
  Fullerenes are a newly discovered (1985) form of carbon which was previously only known to exist as diamond, graphite or coal. Fullerenes are named after Buckminster Fuller, the  American architect who designed geodesic domes which resemble spherical fullerenes in appearance. Fullerene C60 looks like a soccer ball and is also referred to as a ‘buckyball’.

  Fullerenes are hollow spheres of strongly linked hexagonal and pentagonal rings. They have enabled so many breakthroughs in science, medicine and industry that the laboratory scientists who developed their use received the Noble Prize for Chemistry in 1996.

  The quantum behaviour of fullerenes has captured the attention of scientists who have observed a Fullerene C60 Buckyball pass through two different slits simultaneously, making it the largest particle known to demonstrate the wave/particle duality of matter. This experiment is typically performed with much smaller particles such as electrons, photons or single atoms.

  The discovery of fullerenes in Shungite
  For several years after fullerenes were first discovered by researchers in 1985, it was believed that fullerenes could only be produced under laboratory conditions. In 1992, geochemists working at Arizona State University, noticed similarities between laboratory-produced fullerenes and shungite. The recognition that shungite embodies naturally occurring fullerenes sent shock waves through the scientific world. Since then, Russian scientists have been developing the use of shungite for a broad range of applications including restorative agronomy, radiation shielding materials, stealth technology, water treatment, chemical de-contamination, and a new generation of medical breakthroughs.

  Different grades of Shungite

  Chemical composition and appearance varies with different grades of shungite. ‘Dull’ shungite is the most plentiful & least expensive form. It can be polished to a high shine. ‘Bright’ shungite is rarest, most potent and expensive. It has a glassy black metallic appearance and not to be confused with ‘dull’ shungite that has been polished to a high shine.

  Click on these links for more about shungite:

  Shungite Products: shungite pendants, pyraminds, spheres, cell phone discs and shungite chips
  How to Prepare Shungite Water

  Disclaimer:  The info in this article has not been evaluated by Health Canada. Any products mentioned herein are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.  Information and statements made herein are for education purposes and are not intended to replace the advice of your family doctor.

  Copyright © 2012 watermatters. All rights reserved.

  Posted in Energizing Water, Water and Health

• Vancouver Water
• Water Treatment Guide
• Water and Health
• Energizing Water
• The Future of Water
• News & Initiatives

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