Looking to save water and money? Older-model toilets use up to six gallons of water per flush, making them a source of a lot of wasted water. By replacing old toilets with high-efficiency models, estimates show that a family of four can save up to 20,000 gallons, or $110, a year. If half of Albany’s residents replaced one toilet in their home, it would save approximately 95 million gallons a year!
The City of Albany offers $50 rebates for replacing old toilets with high-efficiency ones (1.28 gallons per flush). Rebates are limited and awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.
Need help finding a water-efficient toilet? Visit the EPA’s WaterSense product search for guidance.
For more information please visit www.cityofalbany.net/conservation
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To our valued customers,
The Albany Public Works Department is pleased to present the 2023 Annual Water Quality Report for Albany and Millersburg. This report provides important information about the high quality of the drinking water Albany provides to homes, businesses, and industry 24 hours a day throughout the year. This information is provided to you in compliance with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requirements.
Albany regularly monitors the quality of our water to ensure we are producing and delivering excellent drinking water. In 2023, Albany met or exceeded all state and federal standards for safe drinking water. We place great importance on delivering excellent water and work hard to meet our goal of providing high quality and dependable service for all of our customers.
If you have any questions about this report or the City’s drinking water system in general, please contact the City of Albany at 541-917-7600 or www.cityofalbany.net/contact. To contact the City of Millersburg, call 541-928-4523. To provide input on our water quality, Albany invites you to join us at City Council meetings which are typically held on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month at 6:00 p.m. in City Hall, 333 Broadalbin Street SW.
Chris Bailey
Public Works Director
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Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791 or at epa.gov/safewater.
The sources of drinking water (both tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, springs and wells. As water travels over the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally-occurring minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can pick up substances resulting from the presence of animals or from human activity.
Contaminants in drinking water sources may include:
- Microbial contaminants
- such as viruses and bacteria, which may come from sewage treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and wildlife;
- Inorganic contaminants
- such as salts and metals, which can be naturally-occurring or result from urban stormwater runoff, industrial or domestic wastewater discharges, oil and gas production, mining, or farming;
- Pesticides and herbicides
- which may come from a variety of sources such as agriculture, urban stormwater runoff, and residential uses;
- Organic chemical contaminants
- including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals, which are byproducts of industrial processes and petroleum production, and which can also come from gas stations, urban stormwater runoff, and septic systems;
- Radioactive contaminants
- which can be naturally-occurring or be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities.
In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, EPA prescribes regulations that limit the amount of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Food and Drug Administration regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water that must provide the same protection for public health.
Special Notice for Immuno-compromised Persons
Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons such as those with cancer undergoing chemotherapy or who have undergone organ transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk from infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. Guidelines from the Environmental Protection Agency and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791.
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The cities of Albany and Millersburg receive their drinking water from the Santiam River system through one of two water treatment plants.
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The City of Albany sampled for 90 regulated contaminants on a continuous, daily, monthly, quarterly, annual, or reduced monitoring program in 2023. The federal Environmental Protection Agency requires disclosure of any regulated contaminants that were detected in the Albany-Millersburg public water system. Where allowed to monitor less often than once a year, the City of Albany is required to report contaminants detected within the last five years.
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