Housatonic — The private water company serving the Housatonic section of Great Barrington recently violated a drinking water standard indicating elevated levels of an acid compound that, if allowed to continue for a long period of time, could cause cancer in those who ingest it.
In a notice sent out to its 850 customers on Monday, January 10, Housatonic Water Works (HWW) said, “Although this incident was not an emergency, as our customers, you have a right to know what happened and what we have done to correct this situation.”
During recent routine tests for drinking water contaminants during the latter half of 2021, the company discovered that its water exceeded the standard, or maximum contaminant level, for haloacetic acid compounds, known as HAA5, which the state Department of Environmental Protection says is “a disinfection byproduct that forms when chlorine compounds that are used to disinfect water react with other naturally-occurring chemicals in the water.” There are five significant HAA potentially found in disinfected drinking water and their combined concentration is referred to as total “HAA5.”
The level of HAA5 averaged at HWW’s monitoring location for October 2020 through September 2021 was 65 parts per billion (ppb), and for January through December 2021, it averaged 73 ppb. From October 2020 to now the range of HAA5 was 44 ppb to 103 ppb. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and MassDEP have set a maximum contaminant level for HAA5 of 60 parts ppb or micrograms per liter as an annual average.
According to the DEP, the maximum contaminant level for HAA5 is based on potential cancer risks following a lifetime of drinking the water. HAA5 are considered potentially carcinogenic to humans by the EPA because of evidence of their ability or tendency to produce cancer in experimental laboratory animals and limited evidence in people.
HWW treasurer Jim Mercer said customers do not need to take actions such as boiling water. If a situation arises where the water is no longer safe to drink, customers will be notified within 24 hours.
“In response to the HAA5 levels observed, we have since reduced the chlorine dosing while maintaining more than enough chlorine residual to meet and exceed all disinfection requirements,” the HWW statement said. “We expect this adjustment will satisfactorily reduce the HAA5 levels, however we will complete the required engineering report to more fully evaluate our system and opportunities to address the formation of HAA5.”
HWW has been under fire from customers and town officials for several years, mostly over discolored, roily water and deferred maintenance. State officials say they are powerless to regulate esthetic problems with the water. The selectboard is currently considering options for taking over the company, or merging it with the Great Barrington Fire District, which provides water to the rest of the town.
