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Is  Nitrogen Contamination of Water Increasing?

Let’s take a look at the probable causes of the Nitrogen Contamination of Water.  Over the decades, the use of  Nitrogen fertilizer to assist agricultural production has greatly accelerated. Since  the late 1940’s , consumption of fertilizers for agricultural use has increased about five hundred  percent (500%) . Some of this increase has been due to over-application of the suggested amounts which are needed to improve fruit & vegetable production. These excess amounts have resulted in runoffs of these chemicals and have found their way into our ground water, rivers, streams, reservoirs, and lakes. Many people have observed these effects as the green algae bloom which is found in lakes, stagnant bodies of water, and even shows up in satellite photos. Upon inspection, significant plumes of algae can be easily observed from space flowing into the Gulf of Mexico.

This increase in Nitrogen fertilizers applied to the land,  ultimately can lead to the contamination of our drinking water sources. When Nitrogen breaks down chemically it ends up as Nitrates which exist in a vast majority of our  rivers, lakes, and underground water sources, primarily in agricultural areas. Municipal water utilities are regulated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and are mandated to have no more than 10mg/liter (milligrams/liter) of nitrate/nitrogen concentration, which is considered to be an acceptable limit. Rural populations quite often obtain most of their water from underground wells, and these water sources are not subject to federal or local governmental oversight.

What  Nitrogen Levels  are Acceptable?

The minimum concentration levels are a definitive way of measuring the nitrogen contamination of water. A Minimum Concentration Level (MCL) of 10 mg/L (10 miligrams per liter)  is sometimes  exceeded in municipal water treatment, because of the excessive costs to remove it. In the main, however, it will typically be in the range of (2-10 mg/L). In rural environments, and due to the water runoff from agricultural lands, the level may end up being 3-10 times higher than the governmental specified Minimum Concentration Level.

Health Studies Point to Medical Conditions Related to Nitrogen Compounds

Many health studies have pointed to the fact that increased Nitrogen/Nitrate consumption may be contributing to a variety of very unfavorable medical conditions including diabetes, thyroid problems and possibly a higher risk for cancerous diseases. Persons who are concerned about these negative effects should seek out reliable medical scientific studies reflecting the problems with excess Nitrates in our food and drinking water supplies. You might want to check with your local water system provider to see what Nitrogen levels they measure and consider acceptable.

How can I Determine the Levels of Nitrogen/Nitrates in My Water Supply?

If your are on a municipal water system,  contact them and see what testing they have done, and how you might be able to see the results. Some municipalities publish this information in  newsletters or annual summaries  or have it available on-line. If you are unsure of your personal exposure to Nitrogen/Nitrates and you are on a well-based water source, or other non-municipal water system, you may wish to avail yourself of water testing kits  that are commercially available and will help you to identify elevated levels of Nitrogen/Nitrates in your drinking water.

How Does the  Nitrogen that I  Ingest Affect My Well Being?

How does the nitrogen contamination of water affect your body? It should  be noted, that the total of all Nitrogen/Nitrates in your body will be the sum total of these chemicals  found in your drinking water,  in the food that you eat, and in in some types of prescription drugs.  Minimizing any, or all of these sources may improve your health and wellness.

Energy Efficiency and the LED Lighting Advantage

Residential home lighting has become very familiar and routine in our modern age. The LED Lighting advantage  has recently become  more of a factor in modern home lighting. As the Gas Lights faded, and our world became lighted by electricity, our societies energy usage grew and grew.  In order to provide electric light, our electric utilities need to generate more and more electric power. Using various lighting methods, i.e., LED’s,  incandescent, Tungsten, Florescent and others, we can generate lumens. We use lumens to measure  the” real visible light output” that illuminates the area in the region of a light source. So in general, it may be said that what we pay for in our electric bill, for lighting, is  lumens. Let’s examine what the costs are for lumens and what efficiencies we might expect from LED based lighting devices.

Early developments in lighting produced the Edison Bulb which was his invention for generating light from electrical current. After years of trial and error , Edison finally found the ideal “element” tungsten for generating electricity inside a bulb that contains  inert gases inside. Early on Edison was in favor of using direct current (DC) to light homes and factories. Another earlier electrical experimenter Nikola Tesla, was an advocate of using alternating AC current for powering homes and factories.  Eventually after years of competition, Tesla won the battle, due to the fact that AC electricity was easier and less costly to distribute using both very large and smaller  AC transformers.

Tungsten bulbs produce a very nice type of light which emits a  wide spectrum of white light. The more power we put into the light, the higher the electrical power usage and the more lumens we get out; but unfortunately  generate more than lumens.  We also get a lot of  energy in the form of heat!  This extra heat output results in  additional costs.  For instance in summer, if we run air conditioning , this additional heat generated will tend to make a room warmer.  We need to consider the fact  that  we are paying for ALL the electrical energy going into the light bulb, in the form of both heat and light. A typical 100 watt incandescent light bulb will generate about 1600 lumens.   Some more efficient  LED lights can also produce a nice warm type of white light that is similar to incandescent lighting.

What does it Cost To Run a 100 Watt Bulb all Year Long?

For example let’s assume that you are paying 20 cents/kilowatt hour  for your electricity.  Computing  these costs for a year gives us:

Watts/Day –   (24hours ) x (100  Watts/day)   is equal to  (2400 watts-hours/day x 365 days/year) x (1kilowatt/1000 watts) = 876 kilowatts/year.  At the assumed  cost of $0.20 (twenty cents/kilowatt-hour) your yearly cost will be $175.20. At 10 cents per kilowatt-hour your costs will be $87.60 per year. Costs for electricity in your area will of course vary, and quite often you may be charged different costs/ kilowatt hour, depending on how much you use per month.  These blocks are sometimes called “tiers”.  Tiers typically result in much higher costs for energy, the more energy that you consume in one month.  In order to calculate your average cost of electricity per kilowatt,  you must average the amount and cost for each tier each month.  It is not uncommon in parts of the USA to see tier charges of over 50 cents per kilowatt hour!

The LED Lighting Advantage for Your Home

LED lighting can put out the same number of lumens as a 100 watt incandescent bulb, and  at a much lower cost. To get our typical 1600 lumens, we can use  an energy efficient LED type bulb.  According to the US Energy Department, LED lights with the ‘ENERGY STAR’ rating, use at least 75% less energy, and last at least 25 times longer than incandescent bulbs. So if we use these facts in the example above, our yearly costs for a 100 watt LED bulb/year will be about $45.80 and $21.90 respectfully. A great savings!

How is the LED Lighting Advantage Achieved?

LED’s came into being in the 1960’s and were used at first for indicator lights. They are made from semiconductor materials similar to  transistors & diodes, and use a low power DC Voltage source. LED’s have no filaments or glass bulbs inside, but instead use  semiconductor chips which emit visible light when they are energized by an electric supply circuit. The color of the LED varies depending upon the type of chemicals used in the bulb. Early lights were red, green and blue in color. When these RGB colors  are combined,  or mixed a light very similar to white light is produced.  The  resulting  light can be easily focused with lenses or diffusers.  As semiconductor technology advanced over time, the cost of these LED lights continued to tumble.  Very cost effective LED lighting solutions have  been achieved today.  Using LED technology, a home or business owner can experience the LED lighting advantage , by combining good lighting and  energy efficiency, while  typically experiencing reduction in the cost of energy.

Places Where Radon Gas Exposure is Found?

If you reside in North America ( United States or Canada),  you should be aware that Radon Gas Exposure is very common and found in the environment of all national regions.  Radon is a noble gas that is formed by the decay of Uranium, a naturally occurring element found in the soil and in water.  Although it is found in water, Radon will most likely affect humans in its gaseous  form in the air we breathe. Only two gaseous forms are found in elevated concentrations in our  human environment.  These are  Radon-222, and Radon-220:Radon-220 is seen to be most prevalent in our human environments.

Radon is colorless and  odorless, not subject to detection by our human senses.  It is the heaviest known gas, and is about nine times heavier than Air (approx. 20% oxygen & 80%  nitrogen).  It is only one atom, instead of two like O2 (oxygen) and N2 (Nitrogen , and is able to go through common barriers such as clothing, paper, low-density plastic, wood siding, and most insulation products. It is also able to penetrate mortar, concrete blocks and sheet rock which is commonly used in the building construction industry.

How does Radon Gas Exposure Occur and get into our environment?

Radon is not manufactured commercially.  Radon Gas Exposure occurs because Radon Gas is produced from the radioactive decay of Uranium found in rocks, rocky formations and most soil.  It is commonly found in ground water, building materials, or the ground itself.  Usually the most severe inhalation problems occur in Radon rich gaseous environments.  It can be found in basement areas, caves, mines, enclosed spaces adjacent to closed areas exposed to the earth, or typically in public baths and spas.

What is the level of  Radon Gas Exposure deemed to be potentially harmful to humans, and its concentration?

The U.S. EPA and U.S. Public Heath Service, have given the estimate that at least 20,000 lung cancer deaths per year are caused by  Radon gas exposure. It has become the second leading cause of lung cancer in the USA.  About one-third of homes in the USA  exhibit radon levels over 4pCi/L (4 picocuries/liter).  This is amount  is called the Radon gas exposure “Action or Reference level” of concern to inhabitants and home owners.

How can you make Accurate Measurements of  Radon Gas Exposure Levels in your home and other structures?

In general, electronic Radon gas detectors work by detecting particles that are being thrown off by the natural decay of Radon gas in your environment and in close proximity to the measuring detector. These particles are called “Alpha particles” and are counted as the result of being detected by a photo diode in the sensor which can detect the presence of Alpha particles. The electronics in the device measures the alpha particle activity, and filters out the extraneous “noise” in the environment of the sensor. If the detector is properly designed it will hold its calibration over a long period of time. Electronic measurement devices are calibrated  when they are manufactured. Each detector is compared to a “standard” and is adjusted to measure Radon levels within the  accepted tolerance of the device in order to insure accurate measurements. Re-calibration is suggested by the manufacturer, and the longer that period of the time is the better, since re-calibration will usually involve an ongoing expense.  The electronic Radon detector has an advantage of presenting an accurate readout value(s) over a period of time. It can be re-used and placed in all rooms of the home or business and give an accurate picture of radon levels throughout the year. Variation of radon levels are to be expected, due to climatic conditions and local variations in temperature, dust, airflow and moisture levels.  Evaluation of radon levels should be averaged over many measurements and throughout the year.

The lowest cost test for Radon gas exposure in the home can be performed by a single-use test device. These devices need to be in place for some time in order to obtain a useful radon average reading. Unfortunately they are useful only in one certain area of your home, such as a particular room or basement, and they need to be physically mailed to a laboratory for analysis of the radon levels that they measured. They are a “one-time” measurement solution, and are not costly, ($25 or less) but to measure radon gas exposure in an entire building accurately, it might mean obtaining multiple detector strips and placing them throughout your home or office.