CMBOS | WATER

“What I ask of you is to think about your creative process - the product that you’re making, think about the inputs that go into it and the outputs at the end of life, what’s going to happen to it.”

-Monica Nakielski, CMBOS WATER

For our March installation of CMBOS on the global theme of WATER, we were privileged to have Monica Nakielski, Director of Sustainability and Environmental Health at Blue Cross Blue Shield as our guest. Her talk was informed and passionate—full of facts and figures that made the water crisis very real to all of us on both a global and local level. She presented the perfect combination of fear/reality and motivation/hope for us to all think and rethink about how we utilize, conserve, and protect our water source.

REMINDER: in the spirit of #CMIMPACT and WATER, we started a community fundraiser for charity:water, an organization dedicated to bringing water to the remotest communities around the world. It’s not too late to support the cause. The campaign runs through June and we have raised $240 of our modest $300 goal. Let’s make a #CMIMPACT together! We want to show how a cascade of small splashes can make a waterfall. 💦

The resources below were curated and provided by our March #CMWATER guest, Monica Nakielski, highlighting some interesting facts about our local water source, resources to learn more about environmental sustainability efforts and sustainable principles that they can take back into their process and practice at work and home. (Thank you, Monica!

The 12 Practices for Artists to go green came from BLICK Art and having practiced environmental sustainability for over ten years, this is a solid list for folks to gain ideas and the rational, ‘the what and why’ behind the recommendation.

The water quality testing facts is a grouping of facts and resources for individuals focused on improving the quality of their water.

Did you know?

1.    Not all Massachusetts residents get their drinking water from the same source. It depends on where you live.

2.     In some communities, drinking water comes from a reservoir fed by rivers and streams, while others use wells to pump from underground aquifers.

a.    To learn more about where your water comes from, contact your local water supplier. You can find the name of your water supplier on your water bill.

3.     The Environmental Protection Agency and the MA Department of Environmental Protection require your public water system to test for 80+ contaminants on a regular basis, and to report on their findings.

4.    Some households source their drinking water from private wells, which unlike public water systems, are not regulated by the EPA or MassDEP.

a.    If you use a private well for your drinking water, make sure to have your water tested once a year by a certified laboratory.

5.    Your water supplier is required by the EPA to issue an annual report about the quality of your drinking water by July 1st.

a.    This report is called a Consumer Confidence Report, and includes information about where your water comes from, contaminants, and additional sources with information about your water.

b.    Your Consumer Confidence Report will be mailed to your residence, but you can view many of them online by visiting the Environmental Protection Agency website.

6.    Environmental Working Group keeps a tap water database where you can view the drinking water test results from your water supplier. It also includes information from the U.S. EPA Enforcement and Compliance History database. Access the EWG tap water database here.

How can I get my water tested?

1.    The MA Department of Environmental Protection keeps a list of state certified testing labs on its website.

2.    For residents with private wells, consult the following MA DEP testing guide.

Everyone is creative. Everyone is welcome.

A big thanks to everyone who made it out to our March event. We especially want to thank our sponsors, partners, and volunteers for making our event a smashing success every month.

IMPACT HUB BOSTON - We loved being with you in your gorgeous space for the last 3 months. Thank you for being such wonderful community partners. Special s/o to Alexis Orellana and Katie Schultz.

Event photo credit: Kim Maroon and Prince Aibangbe