The water fountains on campus on Sept. 24, 2024. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar
Living in a big city comes with big city problems like the tap water never really tasting like water. Students all over campus constantly use the tap water to shower, wash dishes and drink.
Users have been noticing that the water they ingest can not be trusted because of its concerning taste and look.
“On a scale of one to ten, water quality on campus is like a four,” said psychology sophomore Gracie Wilson. “It’s probably not drinkable. If it’s not filtered, I wouldn’t drink it.”
To understand why the water is so distasteful, the University’s water supply comes from the City of Houston. There are multiple guidelines that the school must follow to keep up with regulations.
According to Houston Public Works, the city’s drinking water systems have maintained a superior rating and constantly been awarded Gold and Silver awards by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies.
The water travels from the Lake of Houston, through the city and lands in the hands of UH students.
“The water that the city takes from the lake, they treat it to meet what is called ‘The Water Quality Standards for Drinking Water’. That usually includes taste, odor and aesthetics,” said Director of the Hurricane Resilience Research Institute Hanadi Rifai. “They have to be free of bacteria and limits on other chemicals.”
Contrary to the city’s awards, students still find the water’s taste a hard thing to swallow.
Dorms are being stolked up with cases of water or constant runs with filtered pitchers just to avoid the tap.
“One time I was really lazy and didn’t run the water through my Brita,” Wilson said. “I got the water and refused to drink it, I tried, but I couldn’t. It tastes very odd.”
Students have had multiple occurrences when the water runs white for a minute after they turn the faucet on.
That discoloration is due to the water sitting in the pipes for a period of time and natural chemicals having a reaction.
“Let’s say you have a drinking fountain and you drink from it and you notice the water tastes different. Now, there could be nothing wrong with the water, it just tastes different because of where the water came from and how it was treated,” Rifai said. “There might be some non-harmful residuals of sodium and calcium, which naturally occur. But it makes the water have some sort of aftertaste.”
The health and hygiene of students largely revolve around access to clean water on campus. Tap water in Houston is less filtered, making it feel unhygienic.
“My skin was definitely better before I got here,” Wilson said. “I feel like it’s mainly from washing my face with the water.”
Big cities come with the repercussions of having a large amount of water to filter, process and distribute. Thus, the quality of water returning to a house or a dorm will be deficient.
“On background, it may be important to note that different cities have different categories of water and Houston’s water is considered hard water,” said Executive Director of Media Relations Kevin Quinn. “Most Texas cities have hard water but to varying degrees.”
In comparison to other cities where the tap water is drinkable, Houston’s is a question to be raised.
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“Hard to swallow: Students unsatisfied with campus tap water” was originally posted on The Cougar