WESTLOCK – Wednesday, Nov. 6 the Town of Westlock announced that they would be flushing the underground water system with the process to be completed within two days.
The flushing of the system is expected to have an immediate improvement in the water taste and odour.
“The water coming out of the water treatment plant is fine at this point. We have 46 km of water pipeline underground,” explained Robin Benoit, Operations Director for the Town of Westlock.
“Some of that water is still there and we are just going to flush and get rid of it.”
“While the quality of our water remains well within Alberta Health Service’s standards for potable water, we are continuing to address the taste and odour of our water supply,” stated the Town of Westlock in a Facebook post.
“Water Safety is a top priority, with daily monitoring at the treatment facility and regular testing throughout the region confirming compliance with the Alberta Health Services standards for potable water.”
Benoit stated that there has been feedback on the water quality for the last three weeks.
In the Oct. 21 Town meeting Benoit explained the cause of the situation with the water issues.
“The drought conditions compounded the changeover that occurs in our water ponds (raw water supply) and that is what brought forward the odour and the taste,” said Benoit.
“We use activated carbon to scrub those odours and the taste out however, because of this aggressive changeover, we’ve had to increase the amount of activated carbon.”
The Oct. 20 media release stated that tests for the treated water have confirmed the town’s water is safe.
Drought years can affect the water quality.
The Town of Westlock took immediate action to test the water quality and take actions to address resident’s concerns.
This flushing process should eliminate any further challenges.
The Town of Westlock asks residents that are still experiencing issues with their water quality after Nov. 9 to contact 780-349-4444.
