How are water characteristics measured?

Due to the development of increasingly more sensitive scientific instruments, it is possible to measure water characteristics in precise and minute quantities that previously went undetected.

The Water Quality Report shows measurements in parts per million, which is equivalent to milligrams per liter, and parts per billion, which is the same as micrograms per liter.

To put these measurements into perspective, consider that one part per million, in time, would be one second out of 11 1/2 days. One part per billion translates into just one second in nearly 33 years.