Protecting the Public
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Summary:
Backflow prevention protects the potable water system from minor, moderate, and severe hazards.
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8/18/2008There are numerous, well-documented cases where cross-connections have been responsible for contamination of drinking water, and have resulted in the spread of disease. Backflow prevention protects the potable water system from minor, moderate, and severe hazards. There are over 10,000 reported cases of backflow contamination each year. Some cases can be fatal.
Control of cross-connections is possible, but only through thorough knowledge, vigilance, and education. Modern technology has provided us with new tools to prevent backflow from non-potable sources into our public water systems. They are called backflow prevention assemblies. Unlike the older non-testable, hardware for preventing backflow, The new backflow prevention assemblies are testable to assure they are in proper working order and tested each year. Placed at the site of the cross-connection they can protect the plumbing system from back pressure and or back siphonage. Placed just downstream of a water meter to an establishment, they can protect the public water system from any contamination that may occur within the establishment's plumbing system.
The City of Yuma has developed and implemented an ordinance that requires all industrial, commercial, and irrigation customers to install approved backflow prevention assemblies. These assemblies must be installed on the customers' property before branching to a private system. There are approximately 3,000 backflow prevention assemblies on water services in the City of Yuma service area. These devices are required to be tested annually by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. This testing is done by private state certified testers who have completed and passed hands on course approved by the State; testers have to prove to the state that they are able to test backflow prevention assemblies accurately.
