How to Purify River, Lake Water and Make It Potable
River, lake water is not drinkable and contains lots of bacteria that might cause health problems even for healthy people. However, there are emergency situations in which you have to drink whatever water that is available to you. It is very important to know the right ways of purify dirty water so that you are well prepared for water emergency situations. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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River and lake water may contain harmful bacteria as well as disease causing spores such as Giardia lamblia and Cryptosporidum. To completely kill these microorganisms you will have to vigorously boil the water for at least one minute as recommended by EPA (environmental protection agency). To be on the save side, you can boil the water longer to ensure that all microorganisms have been killed. When you are on higher elevations, you will have to boil the water longer to effectively disinfect.
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When boiling is not an option, chemical disinfection is effective at killing disease causing microorganisms. One of the most used is the iodine pellets sold in recreational stores and online retailers. These pellets are easy to use and very convenient to carry around with you.
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Make sure you evaluate the condition of the river or lake water before deciding to disinfect. Some water might be colored and can indicate more trouble than microorganisms. The water might be contaminated with chemicals that disinfection won't be enough to make it potable. In other words, choose your sources carefully and use common sense to judge the situation.
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For more information on emergency water disinfection, see EPA's official website on advice: http://www.epa.gov/ogwdw/faq/emerg.html
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