H 2 Oh!!

Go ahead, Cleveland.  Drink your 8 glasses of water.  Pitch those trashy plastic bottles and take your own container with you.  Refill it from any old tap you like. Just tune out when someone wants to propagandize you about expensive filters. Why?  Because your local tap water is ranked among the best.

Today I toured the Baldwin Filtration Water Treatment Plant and got something of an education.  I learned that:

-Our water comes from a spot in the middle of Lake Erie, many miles offshore, free from shoreline pollution and much of the suspended sediment subject to the turbidity of shallower spots.

-The Cleveland Division of Water has partnered with the Environmental Protection Agency to instill the highest standards months or years before the rest of the nation is required to follow suit.

-Our local water, even before filtration, is more pure than most well water, and even some spring water.

-Your local filtration plant is clean, modernized with the latest equipment, filled with precautionary systems and fail-safes, carefully secured against tampering, and hyper-hygienic.

-Your local water undergoes 400 laboratory tests per month for quality and safety.

-Your local water frequently exceeds federal standards by up to 100%...in fact; this has earned Cleveland Water awards of excellence.

-The Division of Water is adamant about protecting and conserving the Lake Erie watershed.

Friends who have moved away and returned to visit have muttered enviously about how their Cleveland pals have held onto their youthful looks, health, and energy better than those who have moved away.  They surmise aloud that "it must be in the water."  Well, it may well be!  If you are fortunate enough to live in Cleveland or have a visit here, do drink a (tap water) toast to your good health and good fortune!