Who Regulates the Las Vegas Water Supply?
Las Vegas water is regulated by the Las Vegas Valley Water District (LVVWD) Board of Directors.
Several other organizations also help to oversee Las Vegas water, including…
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which regulates 120 different contaminants in public water systems, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates contaminants in bottled water.
Now that you know who regulates Las Vegas water, let’s take a closer look at the city’s latest water quality reports…
Las Vegas Annual Water Quality Report
They also tested for over 75 unregulated contaminants required by the EPA.
Fortunately, Cryptosporidium (an organism that causes diarrhea), was not detected.
Another study found that Las Vegas tap water is the second hardest in the country.
“Hard” water is water that contains high amounts of minerals like calcium and magnesium.
According to the LVVWD, the hardness of the water was 278 parts per million, or 16 grains per gallon.
That’s a super high concentration of dissolved minerals!
So how does this affect you and your family?
For starters, washing your clothes is more difficult with hard water because it damages the washing machine and wears down your clothes.
It can also make your skin and hair more irritated and dry.
And last but not least, it has an impact on the taste of food.
When you use hard water to boil pasta or wash vegetables and fruits, the taste of minerals is absorbed into the food, affecting the flavor, smell, and color.
Next up, let’s see what the Environmental Working Group has to say about Las Vegas water…
Environmental Working Group's Water Quality Report
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a non-profit organization that does reports on water quality and consumer food products.
Ultimately, the EWG's health standards are a heck of a lot stricter than the federal government's.
In their most recent report, they discovered 14 cancer-causing contaminants above safe levels, including:
- Arsenic: 445x
- Bromodichloromethane: 261x
- Bromoform: 4.4x
- Chloroform:54x
- Chromium (hexavalent): 10x
- Dibromoacetic acid: 92x
- Dibromochloromethane: 118x
- Dichloroacetic acid: 69x
- Haloacetic acids (HAA5): 246x
- Haloacetic acids (HAA9): 721x
- Nitrate: 13x
- Total trihalomethanes (TTHMs): 341x
- Trichloroacetic acid: 62x
- Uranium: 3.3x
They also confirmed that Las Vegas falls into the "hard water" category.
Next, let’s take a look at where Las Vegas sources its water…
Where Does Las Vegas Get Its Water?
Las Vegas drinking water starts as snowmelt in the Rocky Mountains and flows to the city via the Colorado River.
In fact, 90% of the water in Nevada travels thousands of miles from the Rockies and ends up in the beautiful Lake Mead.
The remainder — roughly 10% — comes from the water supply just beneath the earth's surface.
Keep scrolling to learn how Vegas purifies and treats their water…
Treating Las Vegas Drinking Water
Las Vegas’ main water treatment method is called ozonation.
Ozone is a highly effective disinfectant that kills bacteria, like Cryptosporidium and other microorganisms that lurk in tap water.
Chlorine is also added as the water leaves the treatment facilities, protecting the water on its way to your home.
Chlorine is a chemical disinfectant that kills the majority of living organisms it comes in contact with.
Chlorination is used throughout Nevada's water distribution systems because it’s the most cost effective way to disinfect large volumes of water.
Oops! Las Vegas’ Water Failed a Few Tests…
During the 2017-2019 monitoring period, the Las Vegas Valley Water District (LVVWD) received a notice of violation for failing to collect sufficient water samples at two of their groundwater wells.
During that time, they did not complete all required monitoring for some Synthetic Organic Chemicals (SOCs).
Eventually, they provided the SOC monitoring from the two groundwater wells, and all sample results met the Safe Drinking Water Act health standards.
Since then, they added additional monitoring processes to prevent it from happening again.
In 2020, the LVVWD ran 307,655 analyses on 54,465 water samples and they still found some contaminants sneaking into Las Vegas' water supply.
Let's take a closer look at the most common contaminants…
Common Contaminants Threatening Las Vegas' Water Supply
Some of the most common water contaminants are microorganisms, inorganic contaminants, chemicals, and radioactive compounds:
Microorganisms like bacteria and viruses can be found in wastewater discharges or animal waste from urban or agricultural runoff.
2. Inorganic Contaminants
Salts and metals are examples of inorganic contaminants that can occur naturally or as a result of industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, farming, or mining.
Pesticides and herbicides from farms and residential homes can make their way into the water supply.
On top of that, organic chemical contaminants can come from gas stations, industrial discharges, and stormwater runoff.
Radioactive compounds like radium and uranium are naturally present in most soil and rocks, and can dissolve into the water supply if they get disturbed during construction and mining projects.
Keeping Lead Out of Las Vegas Tap Water
The water infrastructure of the Las Vegas Valley Water District (LVVWD) does not use lead components or lead service lines.
The Water District has no control over the materials used in home plumbing components.
Most lead in drinking water comes from materials and components in service lines and home plumbing.
Lead-based plumbing components are more common in homes built before 1986 (when they were still legal).
High levels of lead can cause health problems, especially in young children and pregnant women.
To reduce the risk of lead exposure, flush your water for2 minutes before drinking or cooking.
If you’re concerned about lead in your tap water, have it tested by a private laboratory.
So, Who Is Las Vegas Tap Water Dangerous For?
Because the tap water in Las Vegas is extremely hard, a few special groups of people should be extra careful…
Las Vegas tap water can be especially risky for:
- People with weakened immune systems
- Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy
- Infants, young children, or the elderly
- HIV/AIDS infected individuals
- Donors/recipients of organs
- Pregnant women
- People with skin disorders
Even the water in a lot of Las Vegas hotels is quite hard, and it doesn't taste particularly good either.
Nonetheless, it’s still technically safe to drink for most people.
If you’re in Vegas for vacation and want to avoid tap water, lots of Las Vegas businesses use high-quality alkaline, spring, and bottled water.
Keep in mind that plastic bottled water is usually contaminated with toxic chemicals like BPAS and PFAS!
But hey, that's where home water filters come to save the day...
Should Las Vegas Residents Use In-Home Water Filters?
As the saying goes, it’s better safe than sorry!
A high-quality filtration system is a great way to provide delicious, safe drinking water for your whole family.
Filters come in various sizes, shapes, and levels of efficacy.
Carbon filters can be great for improving smell and taste, but reverse osmosis (RO) filters are the cream of the crop….
They combine activated carbon filters, sediment filters, RO membranes, ion exchange resins, and polishing filters to remove up to 99.9% of contaminants, including arsenic, lead, PFAS, and bacteria.
Cloud Water Filters even have built-in software that monitors the quality of your water 24/7.
