The Northern Rockies Regional Municipality reassured community members that despite water smelling or tasting off, it is clean and safe to drink.
In their explanation, the municipality said water at the storage plant is tested by an outside party daily, and it must meet the Canadian Drinking Water Guidelines, which dictate what chemicals are acceptable in drinking water.
“Each guideline was established based on current, published scientific research related to the health effects, aesthetic effects, and operational considerations,” said Health Canada in their explanation of why the federal regulation of drinking water was established. They continued to say contaminants in water can cause health effects, such as E. coli or diarrhea.
Most of the community’s drinking water is collected in its storage ponds during the winter and spring seasons.
The Northern Rockies said the water is at its cleanest during those seasons, then as they continue to store and use the water throughout the summer, it gets warmer and stews in the ponds, this leads to the reported changes in its smell and taste.
Hot weather, which the community will see for much of this week, exasperates the issue, according to the region. Another concern with the region’s storage ponds is the built-up materials in the units, they are cleaned from the water but the flavour of the debris will remain.
“We are looking into cleaning the storage ponds to remove built-up sediment and plant material,” said the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality. “Until then, we understand the taste and smell can be frustrating, but please know our team is always working hard to provide safe, reliable drinking water.”
The municipality said they are collecting information to plan a budget and timeline for work next year, however, as the project remains in its research phase, it is unclear if the regional council will agree to make it a priority for Fort Nelson and its surrounding communities.
