Water hardness and other aesthetics Water hardness refers to naturally occurring mineral content, mostly calcium and magnesium, which are essential for health and found in all water sources. The white deposits sometimes left by hard water on fixtures or cookware can be removed with a simple vinegar solution, and hard water does not pose a threat to human health. Because your water sources vary and are a blend of various sources of water including local groundwater, local surface water, and imported water, you may notice a difference in the taste or hardness (mineral content) of the water at different times of year. None of these factors affects the safety of your water. Having multiple sources of water is beneficial for IRWD customers.
Commitment to scientific innovation IRWD is proud to have a state-of-the-art and state- certified water quality laboratory — one of the best-equipped water labs in Southern California — right in Irvine on-site at IRWD’s Operations Center. Our Water Quality staff continuously monitors the water supply, reporting more than a quarter of a million results each year. • IRWD’s lab is accredited to 13 different fields of testing that include over 300 analytes. This allows IRWD’s Water Quality team to turn around test results faster and more efficiently. • On-site lab instrumentation can identify and measure substances in the low parts per trillion (ppt) range. This is akin to identifying one drop in 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools. • Laboratory staff reported an estimated 270,000 test results annually. Key objectives of IRWD’s laboratory are to produce high-quality, reliable data for regulatory monitoring and reporting, process control and research projects — meaning that every day, some of the brightest, most analytical minds are hard at work in our lab ensuring your drinking water is safe.
Tap water vs. bottled water Did you know the federal government does not require bottled water to be safer than tap water? Tap water is regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Safe Drinking Water Act, while bottled water is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The EPA requires tap water to be tested more frequently than bottled water using state-certified laboratories. Public water systems are required to provide annual reports, and the EPA enforces regulations through frequent testing and inspections. The FDA does not require the same rigorous certified testing for the water it regulates. What does all this mean? The next time you need to quench your thirst, know that you can do so confidently and safely with IRWD tap water!
IRWD's Water Quality Laboratory is one of the best-equipped water laboratories in Southern California. The lab recently earned additional accreditation from the Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program to test for PFAS, making IRWD one of the handful of laboratories in California to do so.
IRWD Water Quality Report 2025 | Page 4
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