I just tossed a letter from my water district that started with the sentence,
“We are currently in violation of the treatment technique requirements…set forth by the Louisiana State Sanitary Code”.
While I understand the nuances and legalities that come with that territory, it’s a good reminder to myself that caring for the water that my kids + I consume falls under my mama bear duties.
I’m grateful everyday for fresh, clean water-but I’m also aware of my own due diligence in that department. Not only for our everyday usage, but also for securing in an emergency, or during a natural disaster.
Lack of access to safe drinking water isn’t something unfamiliar to those of us living in hurricane prone areas. I bet it’s also not too unfamiliar to those folks in Texas who saw an epic freeze in the winter of 2021. Water is a resource we have such incredible access to, but cleaning it to a stage safe for drinking, or ensuring you have safe water secured in another form are skillsets and parts of our preparedness that shouldn’t be left untended. Water is a vital component of even short term survival-and the solutions can be extremely simple.
If you’ve ever heard us talk about PACE plans over at Fieldcraft, it’s a military acronym (the Fieldcraft native tongue :)) for:
Primary
Alternate
Contingency
Emergency
It means: one ain’t enough. What’s your backup plan?
My PACE Plan For Clean Water
Drinking water is a survival necessity that I always keep a PACE plan in place for. Here’s mine:
P: Berkey Royal Filter/Purifier for daily drinking and cooking (I use an added fluoride filter in addition to the standard filters). It’s a gravity only system that doesn’t rely on electricity for operation-you can use it through any emergency, and I can transport it if I ever have to travel or displace from my home. I can also take the components apart to clean and sanitize regularly. I can’t sing the praises of the Berkey enough, I really do love it.
BONUS: use code AMBER10 for 10% off at Berkey!
A: 1 gallon x person x 3 days of distilled water that I purchase every 6 months. I pour it through the Berkey before it expires so it isn’t wasted and use it up that way, but it’s cheap to replace and makes for easy transport of safe water in quicker ways than you’ll see below.
C: Water bricks or water tanks. In case of a hurricane or other natural disasters where you had forewarning, I would use a WaterBOB in a bathtub.
E: Bleach, Water Purification Tablets/Solutions, or a LifeStraw.
The ratio for bleach is 8 drops/gallon of water. I tape a small pipette to the gallon of bleach I keep with my preparedness items and write the ratio in Sharpie on the bottle as well.
There’s many other solutions for water purification, but these are the ones I currently use for my own peace of mind. I hope you found something helpful that you can take away to secure your own family’s planning!
