Note: We received this note from an alert area resident. WPOA's office has confirmed the information, and noted that the raw water sample (taken Jan. 27/tested Jan. 28) containing E. coli came from a well not treated with disinfection. It is not considered an immediate risk to residents.
Last week (1/29) the WPOA received an e-mail from Larry E. Mitchell of Aqua Texas asking the organization to help get the word out about E-coli bacteria found in one of their wells serving Woodcreek phase II, commonly referred to as Woodcreek North. This is the second such notice from ATI since the first of the year. These notices are required by the TCEQ when this type of contamination is detected. The threat to the people in Woodcreek North appears minimal but it is concerning.The e-mail from Aqua's Larry Mitchell:
From: Mitchell, Larry E. LEMitchell@aquaamerica.com
Date: Fri, Jan 29, 2010 at 1:39 PM
Subject: public notice required
To: WPOA OFFICE woodcreekpoa@gmail.com
Dear Sir:
The TCEQ is requiring us to do another public notice regarding a raw water sample (untreated water) from a well serving Woodcreek Phase 2. We were wondering if you might help us again in getting the notice out. If you could mail this notice to your member list we would greatly appreciate it. Any questions let me know.
Thanks.
Larry E. Mitchell
7 comments:
The Notice says:
"One raw water well sample collected on January 27, 2010 and reported to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality on January 28, 2010 tested positive for E. coli bacteria. This was NOT a treated water sample, and the well is equipped with disinfection."
The way I read it, the well is one that supplies drinking water to WN, only they test it before treating it with disinfectant. So the disinfectant kills the e-coli and the residents are drinking water with dead E-coli in it.
Why are the residents of the WPOA paying for a notice when ATI knows that according to TCEQ rules they need to mail the notices. Don't we give ATI enough money from our water bills to pay for that or they just screwing us again
Oh my God! We are all going to die from west Hays County water. This is Obama's fault - and the fault of all his liberal radical socialists. I bet the E. coli was put in the water by some eco-terrorist Al queda sympathizing unbathed hippie. If we just let the free markets work, we wouldn't need government at all. Tea Partiers rule, Dude.
Sigh...
so, back to boiled bottled water?
That’s why nearly all water suppliers put chlorine in the water. Since Aqua is tapping into the Trinity aquifer it makes me wonder about the safety of private wells nearby. E-coli in the aquifer is a puzzling situation to me. If I had a private well in the area, I would have my water tested.
It is a fact that ATI has leaky pipes and is said to leak about 80 million gallons of water per year. Since their sewer system is a pressurized one, I would expect they are leaking sewage from those pipes as well. Since E-coli’s source is human or animal feces it may be that Aqua Texas’ sewer system is the source of the contamination.
I think there are more questions than answers here and I wouldn’t expect ATI to be forthcoming with information. They only reported the two incidents because the Law required them to do so beginning this year. This contamination could have been going on for some time. Don’t expect the TCEQ to be much help either.
I personally, would have young children drink bottled water just to be safe. The bacteria can be devastating to the youngsters.
The state and county should go several steps further than just issuing notices on the untreated well water. They should be taking soil samples from under known sewer lines, pump stations, the sewage holding pond to check for contamination, and fining the hell out of Aqua is any is found.
This could be only the tip of the iceberg of massive soil/groundwater contamination, as one commenter points out.
Where are our public health officials? Are they standing on the sidelines?
Today, 2/11 Aqua Texas issued another "Notice" that E-coli was found yesterday in the untreated water from one of their wells suppying Woodcreek North. Yuck!
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