Management of Trihalomethanes in Finished Drinking Water Through Source Water Precursor Monitoring

Trihalomethanes are organic compounds formed in drinking water distribution systems as a result of disinfection. This capstone project researched and evaluated the statistical correlation of trihalomethanes in finished drinking water and total organic carbon in source water using data generated by Denver area utilities. Results of the study conclude that some drinking water supply systems show a slight correlation between source water total organic carbon levels and trihalomethane levels in finished water. Results of the study also verify the assertion that changes to treatment for the reduction of trihalomethanes, for the protection of human health under the Safe Drinking Water Act should be determined by each utility, using information from gathered data, seasonal trends, and small scale batch testing.

The Effects of Climate Change on Algae in the Denver Metro Area's Drinking Water Reservoirs

Six Denver metro water reservoirs were sampled to see what types of algae were found, and what impact the algae would have on drinking water reservoirs in the event of a bloom caused by warming water temperatures. Each sample contained algae. Toxic cyanobacteria, filamentous green algae, and different species of diatoms were found in the samples. Current climate change models show the temperature along the Front Range is rising and will continue to rise. With an increase in climate change and an increase in population, humans and animals will be at a greater risk of ingesting or coming into contact with toxic algae.

Review of Desalination and Concentrate Management Issues for Increasing Drinking Water Supplies

Water quantity and quality issues worldwide are causing nations to consider alternate sources for drinking water. Desalination and other membrane processes for treatment of seawater and brackish inland waters have been in use for the past quarter century and are growing in use worldwide. These treatment processes create a highly concentrated waste stream in which the principal constituents are dissolved solids. This report provides an overview of desalination methods and the methods available to dispose of this waste stream. Innovative technologies being studied for possible future use are also discussed.

The First Century of Right to Arms Litigation

This Article examines state court cases involving the right to arms, during the first century following ratification of the Amendment in 1791. This is not the first article to survey some of those cases. This Article includes additional cases, and details the procedural postures and facts, not only the holdings. The Article closely examines how the Supreme Court integrated the nineteenth century arms cases into Heller and McDonald to shape modern Second Amendment law. Part I briefly explains two English cases which greatly influenced American legal understandings. Semayne’s Case is the foundation of “castle doctrine” — the right to home security which includes the right of armed self-defense in the home. Sir John Knight’s Case fortified the tradition of the right to bear arms, providing that the person must bear arms in a non-terrifying manner. Part II examines American antebellum cases; these are the cases to which Heller looked for guidance on the meaning of the Second Amendment. Part III looks at cases from Reconstruction and the early years of Jim Crow, through 1891. As with the antebellum cases, the large majority of post-war cases are from the Southeast, which during the nineteenth century was the region most ardent for gun control. The heart of gun control country was Tennessee and Arkansas; courts there resisted some infringements of the right to arms, but eventually gave up. Heller and McDonald did not look to the Jim Crow cases as constructive precedents on the Second Amendment.