This is Arkansas’s public health story, celebrating 100 years of service. I’m Dr. Paul Halverson.
At the start of the twentieth century, merely drinking a glass of water could be life threatening. Improper sewage and waste disposal often contaminated water with diseases such as typhoid fever, dysentery and cholera.
In 1917, the Bureau of Sanitary Engineering was set up to improve the quality of our drinking water. Chlorination was an important first step. In 1947, Glen Kellogg took over the state’s water program and applied exceptionally high standards, further reducing biological and mineral contaminants.
When the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act was passed in 1974, Arkansas was one of the few states already meeting the strict new rules.
Public health efforts over the last century have added an average of 25 years to the life of each American.
This chapter in Arkansas’s public health story is brought to you by KUAR and your Health Department.