State authorities are giving north Alabama residents the all-clear after a scary few weeks in which an EPA health advisory raised questions about whether the tap water in some areas was safe to drink.
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley issued a statement Thursday that the last Alabama drinking water system affected by the health advisory had tested below the new threshold for a pair of long-lasting, man-made chemical contaminants that build up in human bodies over time and could eventually lead to health problems.
Bentley said the latest test results from the West Morgan East Lawrence Water and Sewer Authority showed all samples taken were within the new guidelines for concentrations of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).
"Safe drinking water is vital for all Alabama residents and I appreciate the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and the Alabama Department of Public Health for their continued effort to conduct a sampling of the blended water to alleviate any concerns surrounding the safety of the water in north Alabama," Bentley said in a news release. "I am happy to see a resolution to the water concerns that have plagued this community."
The EPA published its final health advisory on May 19 for PFOS and PFOA, stating that lifetime exposure to these chemicals in drinking water could lead to negative health effects, even at low concentration levels. Possible health effects include developmental problems, and certain types of cancer. Pregnant women and breast-feeding infants were considered to be more susceptible to negative health effects.
At that time eight Alabama water systems had test results showing concentrations higher than the new advisory threshold of 70 parts per trillion. Six of those systems were able to quickly switch to a different water source to get under the new threshold.
However, it took the West Morgan East Lawrence Water and Sewer Authority (WMELWSA) and the West Lawrence Water Co-op -- which gets much of its drinking water from WMELWSA -- several weeks to reduce the concentrations of chemicals in their water.
In the meantime, general manager Don Sims recommended WMELSA customers not drink or cook with their tap water, causing a stir in the community. Bentley and other state officials called the do-not-drink recommendation an overreaction.
The water authority later agreed to purchase excess clean water from neighboring Decatur Utilities to blend with its own water to dilute the contaminants to concentrations of less than 70 ppt. That measure is expected to be a stop-gap until a more permanent filtration system can be installed.
According to the news release, the WMELWSA water will be tested every two weeks by ADEM to ensure it stays below the threshold.