Boil order issued for second time in local water district

A second boil order was issued for the homes and businesses served by the Passamaquoddy Water District (PWD) on Friday, October 7, because of high turbidity in the water caused by run-off from a bog area. As of Tuesday, October 11, PWD Superintendent Nancy Seeley did not have an idea when the boil order would be lifted.
An earlier boil order, also caused by the bog water getting into the PWD's impoundment area near the Perry treatment plant, had lasted for 10 days, having been issued on August 31 and lifted on September 9. Under the boil order, consumers are directed to boil water for at least one minute before drinking, washing foods, brushing teeth or consuming the water in any way.
Seeley says that the drinking water has again exceeded the allowed turbidity limit, although water samples are testing negative for coliform bacteria and there is "plenty of chlorine residual in the water" to kill any bacteria. However, turbidity can mask bacteria readings, Seeley notes. Coliform bacteria are an indicator that other potentially harmful bacteria may be present. Turbidity may indicate the presence of disease-causing organisms that can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea and headaches. The boil order was issued following discussions with representatives from the Maine Drinking Water Program.
According to Seeley, mud from the bog is clogging the PWD filters, which then have to be cleaned. Concerning efforts to keep the bog water out of the impoundment area, she says that some timbers recently have been placed to close off some of the bog area. Also, the PWD has hired Tate Stevens to break up some beaver dams by the Boyden Lake outlet on October 15 so that more water from the lake will flow into the impoundment area.
Just before the first boil order was issued, heavy rains during Tropical Storm Irene had flooded the bog area, and Seeley says that there was a release of water from the bog, caused not just by the rain, which came down with quite a force and washed away some existing timbers. The timbers, along with some beaver dams, were holding the bog water back. The level of the water in the bog, which is located near the Golding Road, has dropped four to five feet. "We don't know how the water was released," says Seeley, who notes that there could have been human activity involved. She has not seen any construction or road work in that area, though. "Something broke apart near the bog area. We're trying to determine how that happened so we can address it."
The PWD is working with the Perry selectmen to prevent such a release from happening again, and the PWD's engineering firm of A.E. Hodsdon and representatives from the Maine Drinking Water Program are looking at the area, too.
In addition, Seeley says a meeting is expected to be held this month to discuss the possibility of using a groundwater source that the Passamaquoddy Tribe has been looking at developing. The tribe has had test wells drilled on tribal fee land between the South Meadow Road and the Golding Road in Perry to explore the possible new water source. Among those expected to attend the meeting are representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the PWD and tribal, Perry and Eastport officials.
When the Maine Drinking Water Program lifts the boil order, the PWD will post notices and try to alert people by other means, too. Seeley says the water district is trying to improve its system for notifying its 750 customers when a boil order is issued. Along with using Facebook and email and notifying radio stations and newspapers to let people know about the boil orders, the PWD is calling some customers who are elderly or housebound. The police department also has been helpful in notifying people, and health officer Ken Jones has been notifying the restaurants. Any people who call the PWD to inquire are added to a list so that they will be called in the future.
"We're doing more, but we still missed a few," says Seeley. "It's difficult to get every single person. We try to get everybody we possibly can."