Virtually every stream, lake, river and aquifer in our state of Kentucky is used as drinking water source. Protecting these source of water from contaminants is a major state's priority in protecting the health of the people of Kentucky.

Water treatment is essential to ensuring Kentuckians with clean supplies of drinking water, planning and conservation is also very important in protecting water supplies. Kentucky is fortunate to have abundant water supplies. However, the availability of clean drinking water varies widely across the state. Droughts, contamination problems, and inadequate treatment capacity have affected drinking water supplies of many communities throughout Kentucky.

Contaminants can enter water a number of ways and come from a range of sources. In Kentucky, polluted runoff washed into streams, rivers, and lakes from farmlands and coal mines is the leading cause of water pollution.

The Kentucky Division of Water announces recently the release of the state Stream and Wetland Conservation Plan survey results.this is very important survey because some of us don't realize that we exploit our nature especially the source of our drinking water here in Kentucky. With funding from the United States Environmental Agency(EPA), Dr. Stephanie McSpirit of Easter Kentucky University was contracted to design the survey and get input from various stakeholders. Over 800 stakeholders were surveyed and included environmental professionals, federal and state regulators, farmers, homeowners, coal industry representatives, stream restoration engineers,and foresters.

When asked to reflect on the major challenges affecting Kentucky's streams and wetlands, many Steering Committee members, as well as other stakeholders from across the state, made reference to either the impacts of development or resouce extraction. Both were cited as two of the greatest challenges in protecting our state's water resources from further degradation and decline.

This was also mirrored in online survey, insofar as the effects of Development (sewage, residential growth and storm water) as well as the effects of coal were rated as the serious, "very serious" impacts. Many survey respondents really showed a huge concerns the detrimental impacts on our state's water resources. Fifty-six percent of survey respondents rated sewer and straight pipes and forty percent of respondents perceived the impact of coal and energy development.

KENTUCKY'S DRINKING WATER

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Drinking water suppliers now provide reports (sometimes called consumer confidence reports), that tell where drinking water comes from, and what contaminants may be in it. If your drinking water comes from a private well, you are responsible for your water's safety. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules do not apply private wells. EPA recommends that well owners have their water tested annually.

Public water and water distributions systems in Kentucky are regulated by Division of Water (DOW). The DOW works to ensure public health protection through primacy of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and the provision of potable water. Potable water is the finished water after treatment, that is safe and satisfactory for drinking.

Primacy refers to primary enforcement responsibility awarded to the state by Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) and enhance the quality and quantity of kentucky's water resources for present and future generation through voluntary, regulatory and educational programs.

Anyone proposing to conduct activities that result in physical disturbances to wetlands or streams need a Water Quality Certification to ensure Kentucky Water Quality Standards will not be violated.