Town officials declare Housatonic water to be safe
Great Barrington – In a statement released today (August 15) Great Barrington Health Agent Jayne Smith and Town Manager Jennifer Tabakin now insist that all Housatonic Water Works (HWW) drinking water is considered safe to drink, cook with, and bathe with. There are no advisories with the exception of the normal precaution of letting water run for 30 seconds (or until cold) to avoid using water that has been sitting in pipes.
In June, 20 locations were sampled during a regularly scheduled round of testing for lead and copper. The results of the tests showed four lead and three copper “Action Level” instances (action is required if elevated readings in more than 10 percent of testing sites exceed the federal “Action Level” for lead or copper). The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) bases the number and frequency of sample locations required for each public water supply on population and other criteria including a home’s age and location within the Housatonic distribution system. MassDEP determined testing locations that it feels are representative of the water system.
Both schools served by HWW met state standards. Lead was not detected in either school’s water in 2015 or 2016.
The Great Barrington Health Department will provide testing kits and technical assistance for residents who would like to test their own water. For more information on HWW and water testing, call Jayne Smith at (413) 528-0680. For more information on MassDEP, contact Jan Sullivan at (617) 624-5757 or jan.sullivan@ state.ma.us.
