Reader comments
Arsenic in geothermal pools becomes issue

6 comments   |   Read story

Is common sense too much to ask | 11:09 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Pools should't be held to drinking standards, and neither should there be clorination required if the water is continually recycling as most natural spring pools are.

Can we ask for a little common sense from our regulators?
Recommend
Recommendations: 0
Don't Drink the Water | 11:47 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Gee, how about simply posting a sign that says Don't Drink the Water. Then everyone would be happy and healthy. The government beaurocrat gets to feel important, the law is complied with, no one gets sick, the hot spring doesn't get condemned, and no expensive treatment needs to happen. A $2.00 solution!
Recommend
Recommendations: 0
No drinking water regulations? | 7:53 a.m. Oct. 3, 2008
It's amazing that some people in Utah -- who just lived through a major epidemic of cryptosporidiosis last summer -- would believe that pool water shouldn't be drinkable.

Virtually everyone who got sick last year got that way because THEY DRANK CONTAMINATED POOL WATER. EVERYONE, especially kids, drinks some pool water while swimming; it's unavoidable. And every one of these pools had recirculation and filter systems that "recycled" the water.

Now, I can agree with the argument that water which contains only 3 or 4 parts per billion of arsenic isn't particularly dangerous to swimmers. But if we're going to require operators of man-made hot tubs to obey the regulations, then operators of natural hot springs shouldn't be exempt.
Recommend
Recommendations: 0
D'oh! | 1:28 p.m. Oct. 3, 2008
who drinks HOT spring water? Ick.
Recommend
Recommendations: 0
More idiot lawmakers | 4:16 p.m. Oct. 3, 2008
I don't think poster #3 gets it.

Quote: "But if we're going to require operators of man-made hot tubs to obey the regulations, then operators of natural hot springs shouldn't be exempt".

There's a huge difference here- the natural spring water is "recirculated" if you will on a much grander scale. The man made hot tubs re circulate the same water on a very limited scale.

I love hot springs. Life is risky. Why don't people understand that we don't have to legislate everything- including rediculous safety regulations like this one.
Recommend
Recommendations: 0
soutah | 11:38 a.m. Oct. 9, 2008
The average piece of chicken contains more arsenic (6-9 times) than EPA standards allow. It's because of the industrial garbage fed to chickens. Go veg!

"Government researchers found that the amount of arsenic in the chicken samples greatly exceeded the Environmental Protection Agency's upper safety limit of arsenic allowed in drinking water. In fact, the amount of arsenic found in the chicken was six to nine times that allowed by the EPA."

Lear more by googling arsenic and chicken.
Recommend
Recommendations: 0

No. Utah sees a major earthquake every 350 years. Last one? 350 years ago.