If you live in California the law may be changing soon regarding water softeners. This is because lawmakers will be discussing future legislation that could affect how homeowners use traditional water softeners.
Traditional water softeners use salt to replace the calcium and magnesium in the water with sodium. This effectively prevents the calcium and magnesium causing hard water stains around the home, however when the softeners are recharged, the salt is flushed out and can cause significant damage to the environment.
A recent report on California's 10News.com website says that the legislation would encourage homeowners to replace their traditional water softeners with models that do not use salt and would also compensate those who do replace their old systems.
One of the largest manufacturers of the traditional water softeners is said to be waging a heavy lobbying effort against the bill, and it remains to be seen if Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger would be willing to sign it if it passes.
Some oppose the bill because they are concerned about untreated hard water, which can also be wasteful because it makes it more difficult for soap and shampoo to work properly.
The controversy is particularly relevant in California because the state is grappling with chronic water supply issues and has faced rising treatment costs in part because of the salt that is released by many traditional water softeners.
Do you live in California, or know someone who lives there? What do you think about the new leglislation - do you think it will help the environment by using softeners that don't use salt? I'd love to hear what you think, why not leave a blog post and tell me your thoughts.
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