Zoos and Animal Habitats
Most ponds and water features built for animals to drink from aren’t required to offer potable water (suitable for human consumption), but it’s a good idea, especially in environments like zoos and other animal habitats. For animals that are restricted in their range and water sources, it’s critical to ensure that they are not repeatedly exposed to harmful microorganisms and toxic pollutants. Certified potable (drinking) water meets the highest standards of water quality in the US and is free from harmful bacteria, germs, suspended impurities and salts.
Even if the water is potable at the source (when it exits the faucet), it must also be stored and made available to zoo and habitat residents as well as wildlife visitors in a fashion that does not introduce new harmful impurities. Some containers, pond liners, or other materials can leach plasticizing chemicals, harmful byproducts, or toxic elements like lead into the water. Even in very small amounts, these exposures can add up over the years, especially in small animals, amphibians, and reptiles that are particularly sensitive to the compounds.
Conservationists face a lot of questions about rewilding and establishing buffer zones or urban corridors to permit and encourage wildlife of all sizes and types to grow and flourish. Public parks, open spaces, greenways, utility easements and even newly planted riparian zones in traditionally flood-prone areas offer opportunities for ecosystem renewal. However, in many cases, if the quality of available water is too low, at least early in the process, it may be necessary to provide potable water to provide safe habitats and drinking water until riparian plantings or other natural filtering systems are thoroughly established. Dragonflies, honeybees, and wood frogs can’t be expected to thrive in waterways laced with antibiotics, septic system leachate, or even plasticizers from liners used in safe water basins.
For the highest level of safety for sensitive organisms in your wildlife habitat, choose NSF-61 Certified Potable Water Safe liners from BTL liners’ AquaArmor line.
Saltwater Environments
Even artificial habitats that house saltwater or brackish water ecosystems will start with potable grade water to ensure the environment is as free of dangerous contaminants as possible. Potable grade liners make sense here, just as they do in any other situation where water quality is important, but the presence of salt makes the solution just a bit trickier.
In fact, relatively high concentrations of salt can damage and lead to rapid deterioration of many types of liners, especially those used in artificial tide pools, estuaries or other brackish water ecosystems. Habitats simulating these environments require liners that will not break down over time with constant exposure to high salinity. Especially in artificial habitats housing fragile populations, a repeated cycle of repair and replacement for liners that have begun to weaken or leak presents unnecessary stress, disruption, and costs for the hosting aquarium, zoo, nature center or museum.
BTL Liners has a variety of products used specifically for holding the kind of extremely salty water produced by desalination plants. These products can hold extremely high concentrations of brine over long periods of time, even when exposed to UV radiation, without leaks or risk of rapid deterioration. Even better, these potable-grade liners are guaranteed not to shed dangerous chemicals or other toxins when exposed to the corrosive qualities of salt water. You can be assured that BTL’s liners will be able to tolerate any levels of salinity found in natural or constructed habitats.
