What people are asking Chandra Hingston, Lab Coordinator, about COVID-19 and their drinking water:
What essential Lab Work are you performing during this crisis? |
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I protect public health by testing the water to make sure it meets safe drinking water standards – as it comes into the WTP, at key points throughout the treatment process, and before it leaves the WTP to be piped to customers. That includes ensuring proper disinfection to kill viruses such as COVID-19. |
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Are you testing the water specifically for COVID-19? |
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| No, but although we can’t test for viruses specifically, monitoring for other parameters continually would alert us to a problem. As long as we are seeing normal results from our regular tests, we know that the process is doing what it should to keep the water safe. Our treatment processes are specifically designed to keep our drinking water safe from all viruses and other pathogens. | |
Do I need to boil my tapwater before eating, drinking, or serving to my pets? |
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| Absolutely not! Water leaving the JWC WTP is not compromised in any way, and is completely safe to drink – straight out of the tap. The only reason a person would need to boil water is for cooking purposes, or to make tea. Boiling for health reasons is completely unnecessary. | |
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Chandra Hingston attended Portland State University, and has a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and Molecular Biology, with a minor in Chemistry. She has worked in drinking water labs for over 13 years and has been employed at the JWC WTP for 10+ years. |
