Kenna

I’ve talked briefly about the Summit to the Summit party I attended last week, and I’d promised you more.

Summit on the Summit is a program created by Kenna. Kenna is a Grammy nominated recording artist originally from Ethiopia. A few years ago his father contracted a water borne illness and was deathly ill. Kenna’s father then told him the story about losing his best friend to a water borne illness at age four. Oh, and then at age 7. Another at age 11 and yet another at age 14.

Clean water in a developing country can be the difference between life and death. From infants to the elderly and everyone in between, water matters. If you recall psych 101 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs nothing can happen until the physiological needs have been met.

How does this relate to me? I know, I know, I asked the same question. Naturally, you can follow Summit on the Summit as they send out live tweets and climb Mt. Kilamanjaro. You can support Summit on the Summit Financially too.

You can also look at your own back yard. If there are water bottles piling up in your trash bin, I’d urge you to think about your health and the health of the planet. I have never been a fan of the individual water bottle. First off, I don’t want to drink water that’s more expensive than gasoline. That’s just not okay. Secondly, there isn’t a set of standards in place for water bottling. The City of Los Angeles provides me with more information about my water than a bottler.

I don’t like waste. I like the idea of using PUR, filtering the water I get from the city (for pennies), and enjoying clean fresh water at home. Unfortunately the world’s most developed nations have many of the same issues as emerging nations. Here in the US we have everything from pharmaceuticals to weed killers. Oh, also, they can add flavors… which is wonderful if you want it and weird if you don’t (this house is split on that one).

I got this information from the folks at PUR, which typically I’d summarize for you, but this time, well, they got it right:

Water Filtration:

PUR Water Filtration products do far more than provide great-tasting water. PUR reduces many unwanted contaminants to provide clean water right from your tap.

• PUR is the first leading brand to claim removal of pharmaceuticals identified in U.S. tap water – more than 99 percent for PUR faucet filters and more than 96 percent for PUR pitchers.*
• The main workhorse of PUR filters is activated carbon. Contaminants in water collide with the activated carbon particles and get trapped in the intricate pore structure of the carbon, thus removing the contaminant from the water stream.
• PUR filtration systems remove 99.9 percent of microbial cysts such as Giardia and Cryptosporidium parvum, which can lead to intestinal illness.
• PUR filtration systems remove 98 percent of lead and 97 percent of chlorine (taste and odor).
• PUR is the only leading pitcher certified by NSF to claim reduction of the weed killer atrazine.
• PUR is certified by NSF International and the Water Quality Association (WQA) and is tested by other third-party laboratories.
• PUR reduces contaminants in the water while leaving fluoride, which is essential for developing and maintaining healthy teeth in children and adults, and has been granted the American Dental Association (ADA) Seal of Approval.

Drinking Water Infrastructure and Contamination:

• In 2009, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave America’s water infrastructure a grade of a D-.
• The Environmental Protection Agency reported approximately 10-20 percent of human exposure to lead is attributable to lead in tap water.
• In April of 2009, The Associated Press reported that a vast array of pharmaceuticals — including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones — were found in the drinking water supplies of 51 million Americans.
• In August of 2009, The New York Times reported that the common weed killer atrazine may be dangerous at lower concentrations than what is currently allowed by the EPA, which may lead to birth defects and low birth weights in children.

Most importantly PUR has an ongoing commitment to giving. Every time you purchase a PUR system you are also supporting Dr. Allgood’s work, providing children everywhere with clean water.

Ooh, also, I met some of the folks at PUR and I’d really recommend you follow them on Twitter. They’re just nice. Really, nice is the new black. Dr Greg Allgood is @DrGregAllgood, Bruce Lux is @BDL3556, Rob Hite is @Hite RJ and Suzette and Dave Tomasi might have to be dragged into the world of social media kicking in screaming. Cuz ya know… they’re sorta adulty about it all.

*The kind folks at PUR brought me to a great party, this is my thank you.