Summer Heat Brings Coliforms to the Drinking Water Published Oct. 8, 2009 By Lois Walsh Team Eglin Public Affairs EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- One of the responsibilities of the 96th Medical Group's Bioenvironmental Engineering Flight is routine monitoring of the base's drinking water to ensure it meets health standards. In August, two routine compliance samples at both the Eglin Main Base and Eglin West/Housing Public Water Systems (Water System ID# 1460828 and #1460826) indicated the presence of coliform bacteria. "Total coliform bacteria are generally not harmful themselves," said Tech Sgt. Luis Mulero, bioenvironmental engineering flight. "Coliforms are bacteria that are naturally present in the environment and are used as an indicator that other, potentially harmful, bacteria may be present. It's important to stress that no harmful bacteria were found." By law, each water system can have no more than one sample per month test positive for coliform bacteria. Since the systems exceeded the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for total coliform, the law also requires repeat sampling when there is notification of positive sample results. "Our follow-up sampling indicated an absence of coliform bacteria," Sergeant Mulero said. The sergeant said no other action is required at this time. "Water quality experts from the 96th Medical Group and system operators from the 96th Civil Engineer Group work together to provide you with a safe and dependable supply of drinking water, and we want to assure you that our water is considered safe to drink at this time." For more information on the drinking water, contact Bioenvironmental Engineering at 883-8607.