Thanks to PHD's Aquifer Protection Program, many of us drink fresh, clean water every day from our household faucets. The Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, with help from Panhandle Health District's (PHD) Aquifer Protection Program, supplies us with such high quality water that it requires no special treatment before we drink it.

That's quite a feat considering more than 500,000 people in two states live and work over the aquifer. PHD helps the aquifer stay clean by managing sewage disposal from septic systems, how hazardous materials over the aquifer are handled and stored, and stormwater runoff.

The protections are important because the soil above the aquifer provides little protection from contaminants and the aquifer is the sole water source for half a million people.

"The aquifer is the lifeblood of the community," says Dale Peck, PHD's Environmental Health, Response and Technology Division director. "Our economy and quality of life depend on it. Protecting it costs much less than treating water after it's contaminated."

Water samples of the largely unprotected aquifer in the 1970s showed signs of deterioration. Septic systems were a likely cause. The Board of Health passed the region's first aquifer protection regulation in 1977, a rule limiting domestic septic systems to one per every 5 acres.

The 5-acre rule encouraged communities to develop sewer systems with wastewater treatment plants. Since 1977, Post Falls, Hayden, Coeur d'Alene, Spirit Lake and Rathdrum have all converted to sewer systems with wastewater treatment plants that keep contaminants from seeping into the ground.

PHD's aquifer protection team spends much of its time working with the 800 businesses over the aquifer. The team teaches businesses how to handle and store chemicals and other hazardous materials to prevent aquifer contamination.

Businesses over the aquifer store a total of 17 million gallons of liquid and 6.7 million pounds of solid hazardous materials. Some of those materials are in constant motion, from rail cars to storage tanks. PHD visits every business over the aquifer at least once every two years. Formal inspections are conducted at the nearly 400 businesses that store or handle significant quanities of hazardous materials.

Stormwater and the fertilizers, chemicals and more it carries with it are managed through community planning and zoning regulations. PHD helped develop the best practices that are utilized to regulate stormwater runoff. One best practice in most subdivisions now is the grassy swale. The vegetation and soil break down and trap contaminants before they can reach the aquifer.

Today, water samples from the aquifer are crystal clear and the goal of the Aquifer Protection Program is to keep the water at least as clean in the future. An Aquifer Protection District that voters approved in 2006 helps by providing the funding necessary for the protection programs.

Residents in the aquifer protection district pay a maximum of $12 per year for aquifer protection. Businesses pay a maximum of $24. This year, residents will pay $6 to support the aquifer protection programs.

Earlier this year, PHD added an Aquifer Sample Web Search to its website. The search enables anyone to check all 26 wells located over the aquifer for temperature and levels of constituents, such as chlorine, iron and volatile organic compounds. The data provided comes from water sampling that started in 1975 and continues today.

The Aquifer Sample Web Search is available at www.phd1.idaho.gov.

Cynthia Taggart is the public information officer for the Panhandle Health District. She can be reached at ctaggart@phd1.idaho.gov.