Home of the BrewNosers

LeafMan66_67 wrote:Our office (on Cornwallis Street) has the smelly water. I haven't noticed it here in Lr. Sackville yet.

John G wrote:We had the smell before tropical storm sandy. I heard in the news that it was due to higher than normal cyanobacteria blooms in Pockwock water reserve. I thought it was my hot water heater anode, so took it out and replaced it (it needed replacing anyway as it was almost all gone from the rod). However, the smell is in both the hot and cold water so it wasn't the hot water tank. Regardless of how safe it is, it stinks and tastes bad.

Some Halifax Water users fed up with smell

Issue tied to bacteria, but utility says it’s safe to drink
Theresa Bell has been itchy for the past three weeks, a condition she says is caused by Halifax Water.

Bell, a Spryfield resident who has environmental sensitivities, says she usually enjoys the clear, cool water that comes from her taps, but recently the water has brought her nothing but trouble.

“I’ve had to (use) vinegar and baking soda to take the musty water smell off me,” she said.

Earlier this week, Halifax Water announced the musty smell and taste in the water was caused by the growth of geosmin in its Pockwock water source, which provides water to Halifax, Bedford, Sackville, Fall River, Waverly and Timberlea.

Geosmin, a naturally occurring compound found in surface waters, is produced by the growth of bacteria, but the water is safe to drink, its website says.

But for people with environmental sensitivities, the quality of the water is an issue, Bell said.

Before she realized there was something different about the water, Bell said she started experiencing abdominal cramps, which only went away when she stopped drinking the smelly water. When she washed with it, her skin became itchy.

Halifax Water spokesman James Campbell said geosmin is common in water supplies elsewhere but “it’s the first time we’ve ever experience it in 75 years.”

He said an unusually warm and dry spring and summer, followed by an extremely rainy period this fall, provided the perfect breeding ground for geosmin.

Despite the earthy, mouldy smell, Halifax Water says ongoing testing shows the Pockwock water is free of any type of harmful bacteria or pathogens.

However, not everyone seems to be noticing a difference in the smell or taste of their water, Campbell said.

Tests show geosmin is present in 14 parts per trillion at the Pockwock supply, while the general threshold at which most people taste or smell it is 15 parts per trillion, he said. Though some folks can detect it at eight parts per trillion.

“The important thing to remember is that the water is perfectly safe,” Campbell said, adding that people with environmental sensitivities “should follow up with their physician.”

Bell said she went to her doctor, who told her to stay away from the smelly water.

Once the temperatures fall, the problem is expected to go away, the utility says.

There are carbon filtration systems that can clean geosmin from the water, but because Halifax has never had the problem before and there is no guarantee it will pop up again, the utility is not in a rush to invest in a new filtration system, Campbell said.

More information about geosmin can be found on the Halifax Water’s website at halifaxwater.ca.

(djeffrey@herald.ca)

STELLARTON – The water pouring from Stellarton taps exceeds the limits set for carcinogenic byproducts, and has been for about a year, town engineer Tony Addis said Monday.

Addis informed council members of the problem during a discussion about a water study being offered by Dalhousie University at the town’s committee of the whole meeting Monday evening.

“There are disinfection byproducts which are cancer causing and we are exceeding the limits,” Addis said.

September’s reading for the town was the worst it’s been with the level of byproducts almost twice the permissible level, he said.

Council seemed surprised by the information.

“We should never do that, should we?” questioned Mayor Joe Gennoe.

Although the town is exceeding the limits, Addis said the Department of Environment and the Department of Health are aware of the situation and the town has never been told not to use the water.

“It’s with their full knowledge that we are exceeding them.”

Water still a turn-off in Halifax
Cold weather hasn’t quelled musty qualities

Last fall Halifax Water announced that a good cold snap should get rid of the foul taste and smell affecting the city’s water supply, but it appears some of the pesky compound causing the problem is still around.

“We were hoping the cold weather would take care of it,” said James Campbell, the water utility’s spokesman.

The most recent water quality tests are from mid-December and show that as of Dec. 13, geosmin was present in the water at the Pockwock Lake Watershed at levels of 13 nanograms per litre or 13 parts per trillion.

According to information provided on Halifax Regional Municipality’s website, the threshold at which most people can detect the smell of geosmin is 15 parts per trillion. However, people with more sensitive noses can detect the odour when the concentration is as low as eight parts per trillion.

“Geosmin, a naturally occurring compound found in surface waters, produces an earthy, musty-type taste and odour in the water,” the water utility’s website states. Campbell says that geosmin is caused by dying and rotting algae.

While it poses no health risks and Halifax’s water is safe to drink, some people have found the earthy, musky smell hard to stomach.

Pockwock supplies water to Halifax, Bedford, Sackville, Fall River, Waverley and Timberlea.

The last water test was done on Dec. 27, but the results are not in yet. However, there is recent anecdotal evidence that some geosmin is still around, Campbell said.

Campbell said the water utility has received at least two calls from the public since Dec. 27, complaining that their water still smells and tastes bad.

This fall and winter is the first time Halifax Water has ever had an issue with geosmin in its 75-year history, although it is a common issue in many jurisdictions, he said.

The theory is that last summer’s unusually dry weather, followed by heavy rains in September, caused the outbreak.

“Whether this is the new world order, we don’t know,” Campbell said.

But to be on the safe side, Halifax Water is currently testing a number of carbon filtration systems that could be used to treat future geosmin occurrences.

However, it is too soon to say whether the utility will decide to purchase and install a filtration system to treat a problem which may not occur again, he said.

Further complicating the issue, a new carbon filtration system would likely be quite costly and the utility would have to apply to the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board to request a rate increase to cover the additional costs, Campbell said.

In the meantime, officials at Halifax Water are still hoping Mother Nature will soon take care of the problem.

Information from other areas shows that once the water temperature drops to 4 C the geosmin dissipates, Campbell said.

On Dec 13., the water temperature at Pockwock was 5 C, he said.

In warm weather, the lake water is coolest near the lake bed and warmest at the surface, but in winter the reverse is true, and the water from the bottom rises to the surface, while the surface water sinks, Campbell explained.

It’s that movement of the water that officials believe will cure the problem.

“Any kind of material that would be in the water column at the upper levels would settle to the bottom,” he said.