Consumer Confidence Reports

What is the source of your drinking water? Where does your water ORIGINATE? (It is treated at a water treatment plant, but what watershed or aquifer is the sources of the water?) 

My drinking water in Los Angeles County comes from the Sierra Nevada range and reaches the Santa Clarita Valley through the State Water Project Aqueduct. It also comes from groundwater pumped from the Alluvial and Saugus Formation, two natural underground aquifers.
What chemicals were found in your water that was higher than expected? 

Copper and Trichloroethylene were two of the chemicals found in my water that was higher than expected. 

What chemicals did you NOT expect to find in your water?

I did not expect to find Arsenic and Barium in my drinking water.
Are there associated health risks with the chemicals found in your water? Longterm consumption of arsenic in drinking water can lead to cancer in the lungs, bladder, skin, and kidneys. Barium can affect the nervous and circulatory system, cause muscle weakness, gastrointestinal problems, and an increase in blood pressure.

Growing up I was always hesitant about drinking tap water, mostly because I was unsure of the condition of the pipes that were transporting that water into my home. For this reason, I grew up drinking bottled water, and would only drink water from the tap when used for cooking and had been boiled beforehand. Later when I became aware of the dangers of chemicals in plastic bottles, I switched to Brita filters. According to the Brita website, their filters "use coconut-based activated carbon with ion exchange resin in a BPA-free housing to reduce chlorine taste and odor, zinc, and the health contaminants copper, cadmium, and mercury".