NEWARK WINDS DOWN BOTTLED WATER DISTRIBUTION NOW THAT FILTERS ARE PROVEN EFFECTIVE
October 4, 2019
Mayor Ras J. Baraka announced that the City of Newark will wind down distribution of bottled water to residents, except for pregnant women and families with children under the age of six.
- City of Newark
Beginning Tuesday, October 8, bottled water distribution will end at recreation centers.
Pregnant women and families with children under six years of age, can pick up two cases of bottled water every two weeks, Monday through Friday at the Newark Health Department WIC Program and the Shani Baraka Women’s Resource Center.
How to Get Bottled Water
At the Newark WIC Program at the Department of Health and Community Wellness, located on 110 Williams St., water will be available Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and the second and fourth Saturday of every month from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
At the Shani Baraka Center, located at 300 Clinton Avenue, water will be available Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Only PUR water filters and replacement cartridges will be available at the following three recreation centers:
St. Peter’s Recreation Center – 378 Lyons Avenue
Boylan Recreation Center – 916 South Orange Avenue
Vince Lombardi Center of Hope – 201 Bloomfield Avenue
Learn more about bottled water distribution
Filtering and Flushing Your Water
Preliminary testing results performed by the city, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency showed that 97 to 99 percent of filters tested removed lead below the federal action level.
Tests showed properly installed and maintained PUR filters, distributed by the city, were 97% effective without flushing in reducing lead below 10 ppb. With flushing, the filters were over 99% effective at reducing lead below 10 ppb.
After an extended period of non-use, running the water to flush out lead before using the filter is the best way to minimize exposure to lead.