The following water quality report was completed in partnership with the State of Alaska. If you would like to request a hard copy, please reach out to the Site Administrator at the school. 

2025 LKSD Tununak Paul Albert HS PWS#2270613 Consumer Confidence Report

Is my water safe?  We are pleased to present this year's Annual Water Quality Report (Consumer Confidence Report) as required by the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). This report is designed to provide details about where your water comes from, what it contains, and how it compares to standards set by regulatory agencies. This report is a snapshot of last year's water quality. We are committed to providing you with information because informed customers are our best allies.

Do I need to take special precautions?  Some people may be more vulnerable to contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons 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. EPA/Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Water Drinking Hotline (800-426-4791). 

Where does my water come from?  Our water comes from a well under the direct influence of surface water near the water treatment plant building. A Source Water Protection Plan was completed and implemented for this water source in 2023.

Source water assessment and its availability:  The LKSD Tununak water system PWSID# AK2270613 located is a community public water system consisting of one active well. The Source Water Assessment for this well was completed in April of 2003 and the results of the assessment are: 
 
 Well #1 - WL001 (Groundwater under the direct influence of surface water)
 The Wellhead/Surface Intake Susceptibility is Very High
 The Aquifer Susceptibility is High
 The overall vulnerability to potential contaminants is:
 Bacteria and Viruses is Very High;
 Nitrates/Nitrites is Very High;
 Volatile Organic Chemicals is Very High;
 Inorganics/Heavy Metals is Very High;
 Synthetic Organic Chemicals is Low;
 Other Organic Chemicals is Very High
 
 For assistance, please contact the DWSP coordinator at 907-269-7549, or toll free in Alaska at 1-866-956-7656.You can go to the DWSP website for more information at: https://dec.alaska.gov/eh/dw/dwp.

Why are there contaminants in my drinking water?  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 (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791). 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:
 microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, that 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 by-products of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can also come from gas stations, urban stormwater runoff, and septic systems; and 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 number of certain contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same protection for public health.

How can I get involved?  If you have questions about your water please contact the individual listed at the bottom of this water quality report.

Description of Water Treatment Process:  Your water is treated by filtration and disinfection. Filtration removes particles suspended in the source water. Particles typically include clays and silts, natural organic matter, iron and manganese, and microorganisms. Your water is also treated by disinfection. Disinfection involves the addition of chlorine or other disinfectants to kill bacteria and other microorganisms (viruses, cysts, etc.) that may be in the water. Disinfection is considered to be one of the major public health advances of the 20th century.

Synthetic Organic Chemical (SOC) waiver:  The LKSD Tununak Paul Albert HS has a SOC waiver granted through the State of Alaska from 2023-2025. We are not required to sample SOC's during this waivered time frame. We plan to renew our SOC waiver before September 30, 2027 to maintain the waiver.

Monitoring and reporting of compliance data violations

Total Coliform Sampling: The water system is required to sample for total coliform and take a distribution chlorine residual reading same time / same place. This did not happen in March, July and October of 2025 and eight violations were issued. These violations were returned to compliance with samples received in April, August and November of 2025. There were no known adverse health effects. 
 
 Consumer Confidence Rules: Each year the water system is required to create a Consumer Confidence Report and submit a signed certification reporting that the report was submitted to the public. This did not happen in 2024. This generated 2 reporting violations. Once you receive this report and a certification is submitted to the DEC, both of those violations will be returned to compliance. 
 
 Chlorine Disinfection Treatment Technique Violation: The water system is required to maintain a chlorine residual at the water treatment plant of at least 0.2 mg/L. There were 3 readings below the limit in the month of January of 2025. Two violations were issued. These violations were returned to compliance on 3/1/25 when the February 2025 operator report was submitted to the DEC showing that adequate chlorine levels had been maintained in the water system. These levels have been maintained at the appropriate levels since January 2025. The health effects for drinking water with low or no chlorine residual could cause stomach upset, diarrhea and vomiting as it could be an indication of inadequate treatment of the water. 

Additional Information for Lead:  The LKSD Tununak lead service line inventory did not identify any lead in the system. The lead service line inventory was completed by the State of Alaska. The State reviewed available historical service line information which showed there were not any lead, galvanized requiring replacement or unknown service lines within the water system.  The following link can be used to access inventory information - https://ak-lsli-adec.hub.arcgis.com..
 
 Lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing. LKSD Tununak Pauk Albert HS is responsible for providing high quality drinking water and removing lead pipes, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components in your home. You share the responsibility for protecting yourself and your family from the lead in your home plumbing. You can take responsibility by identifying and removing lead materials within your home plumbing and taking steps to reduce your family’s risk. Before drinking tap water, flush your pipes for several minutes by running your tap, taking a shower, doing laundry or a load of dishes. You can also use a filter certified by an American National Standards Institute accredited certifier to reduce lead in drinking water. If you are concerned about lead in your water and wish to have your water tested, contact LKSD Tununak Paul Albert HS (Public Water System Id: AK2270613) by calling 907-545-4324 or emailing david_sparck@lksd.org. Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/lead. 

Water Quality Data Table

In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, EPA prescribes regulations which limit the number of contaminants in water provided by public water systems. The table below lists all of the drinking water contaminants that we detected during the calendar year of this report. Although many more contaminants were tested, only those substances listed below were found in your water. All sources of drinking water contain some naturally occurring contaminants. At low levels, these substances are generally not harmful in our drinking water. Removing all contaminants would be extremely expensive, and in most cases, would not provide increased protection of public health. A few naturally occurring minerals may actually improve the taste of drinking water and have nutritional value at low levels. Unless otherwise noted, the data presented in this table is from testing done in the calendar year of the report. The EPA or the State requires us to monitor for certain contaminants less than once per year because the concentrations of these contaminants do not vary significantly from year to year, or the system is not considered vulnerable to this type of contamination. As such, some of our data, though representative, may be more than one year old. In this table you will find terms and abbreviations that might not be familiar to you. To help you better understand these terms, we have provided the definitions below the table.

Additional Contaminants

In an effort to ensure the safest water possible the State has required us to monitor some contaminants not required by Federal regulations. Of those contaminants only the ones listed below were found in your water.

Contact Name: David Sparck
 Address: PO BOX 305
 BETHEL, AK 99559
 Phone: 907-545-4324