Many customers have reported discolored water over the past several weeks the root cause of which is a change in source water chemistry. All of our water comes from groundwater wells. The slight change in the ground water has made minerals that contain manganese near the wells more soluble. Two of the treatment processes that we currently use to meet Safe Drinking Water Act regulations, chlorination and corrosion control, severely reduce the solubility of manganese which causes it to form a powder like coating on virtually all interior piping surfaces including water mains, service lines and home plumbing. Discolored water occurs when this coating is disturbed and the powder becomes suspended in the water turning the water brown and sometimes black. A disturbance, such as a water main break, can cause issues system wide or something as simple as filling the bathtub can loosen the deposits in your own service line.
Water Quality Public Notices
Periodically the Water Department posts notices about water quality. We are required to publish an annual Water Quality Report and other notices as required by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.
Total Coliform Rule Violation - August 2008
We exceeded the allowed number of positive Total Coliform Bacteria samples during the month of August 2008. We are allowed one positive sample per month and there were 5 positive samples taken that month. The public notice mailed to our customers is available online or view the testing timeline to see when the tests were taken.
Perchlorate Testing
Residents recently received a postcard notifying them that samples for Perchlorate were not taken during the third quarter of 2007. The samples were taken during November 2007. We are required to test for Perchlorate on an annual basis and were required by the DEP to collect the samples between July 1, 2007 and September 30, 2007. Taking the samples in November 2007 was a violation of the sampling schedule which is why residents received the notice.
Perchlorate was not detected in any of the samples taken during 2007 or in previous years. Perchlorate is manufactured and is found naturally in the environment. Its most commonu uses are for solid rocket propellant and explosives.
Perchlorate is an unregulated contaminant and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the process of determining if it should be regulated. Please visit the EPA's website for more information about possible sources of contaminaion.
