Public Water Supply

Do you have city/community water?

If you live within a city, village, apartment complex, nursing home, manufactured housing community or something similar, you may be on city/community residential water which is provided by a type 1 community public water supply.

A type 1 community public water supply is a system that distributes drinking water to at least 25 residents or 15 living units year-round.

The water provided typically comes from either surface water (lakes or rivers) or groundwater (through wells).

How does this water get into your home?

Click the MI EnviroMinute link below to watch how water gets into your home if you live on a public water supply.

MI EnviroMinute

How is my drinking water maintained?

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets minimum standards for drinking water quality.

The EPA and the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) regulate the quality of water from type 1 community public water supplies through the development and enforcement of rules and through monitoring efforts.

Michigan's Safe Drinking Water Act includes additional requirements for drinking water quality, including strengthening lead and copper testing in 2018 and adding testing for PFAS in 2020.

Regular maintenance is required to operate and comply with these rules and regulations. To cover the cost to do this work, customers pay for water. This could be through a water bill, rent or other payment options.

Where can I learn what the quality of my public drinking water is?

To help keep people informed of the quality of their drinking water, type 1 community public water supplies are required to release an annual Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) no later than July 1 each year.

The CCR provides information specific to your drinking water system, such as:

• Contact information.
• The source of the drinking water (lake, river or groundwater).
• Results for regulated contaminants found in the drinking water.
• Information on the contaminant and how to reduce exposure.

Consumer Confidence Reports are released in one or more ways:

• Email.
• Direct mail.
• Newspaper.
• Posted in a lobby or community center.

To get a copy of the report, call your water supplier, look on your supplier’s website, contact your local health department, your EGLE district office or use the EPA’s CCR search tool.

What can I do to maintain the highest quality drinking water?

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has actions they recommend for everyone to take to maintain high quality drinking water, even for those on public water supply.

Keep your water moving

If you have not used your water for several hours, you can get your water moving by doing any of the following:

• Take a shower.
• Flush toilets.
• Run a load of laundry.
• Run your dishwasher.

Before using the water from any faucet for drinking or cooking, run the cold water again for at least several seconds or until it goes from room temperature to cold.

Clean your faucet aerator

MDHHS recommends that everyone clean their aerators at least every 6 months.

To learn how to clean your aerator, check out the Cleaning Your Aerators factsheet.

Check your home’s plumbing

It is important to know what the plumbing in your home is made of to know if there are risks of drinking water contamination.

Check out this home plumbing checklist “Check for Lead in Your Home Plumbing” to help you know if you’re at risk.

Test your water 

If you are concerned about your water quality, check with your water supply to see your drinking water test results. If you still would like to test your water, consider having your water tested by a certified drinking water laboratory.

Visit the Drinking Water Testing website to learn more.

Stepping up for the environment

Our everyday actions impact the environment and our drinking water. If everyone in Michigan takes action, even small things like cleaning up after your dog, recycling and throwing away trash properly can have a big impact on the health of our environment and the quality of our drinking water.

More ideas and suggestions for stepping up for the environment can be found on the webpage Stepping Up for the Environment.

All of this information and more can be found on our website, Michigan.gov/CareforMiDrinkingWater.

If you missed one of our previous newsletters, they are posted on our website. Visit the Care for MI Drinking Water website Learn More page.

A little bit about the newsletter

Thank you for subscribing to our Drinking Water and Health Newsletter. We are excited to share important information with you! Through this newsletter, our goal is to help you stay informed about your drinking water quality and what role you play in protecting it. This newsletter will offer science-based, up-to-date information about how harmful substances in drinking water can affect health. It will provide you with resources to help you better understand your likelihood of exposure to contaminants and help you make informed decisions to protect yourself and your family!

As a subscriber, you will also be updated about virtual, local and state-wide educational opportunities for you and your family to get involved in! This edition is about public drinking water supply.