Water quality advisory continues for Casselman, Ont. tap water

CASSELMAN, ONT. -

A water quality advisory remains in effect for the municipality of Casselman, Ont., due to high levels of manganese in the drinking water.

For weeks now, residents have been dealing with yellow or brownish-looking water. The cause of the discolouration is the level of manganese in the water, which is a type of mineral found naturally in the environment.

The Eastern Ontario Health Unit says the water meets drinking water standards, but the advisory recommends residents use bottled water or another source of water for preparing baby formula for infants and food or drinks for young people.

"I’m not bathing my grandchildren when they come over and I have to have bottled water," Casselman resident Jocelyn Butler-Rohland said on Sunday.

"I haven’t given them tap water in months because I didn’t feel it was adequate."

The tinted water means she’s constantly buying bottled water to cook or for drinking water.

"I spent about $10 a week and I live alone, so that’s a lot of water and that’s a lot of money," Butler-Rohland said.

The Eastern Ontario Health Unit says the water is safe to drink, but it recommends an alternate source of water be used to prepare infant formula for babies less than six months of age, who are exclusively formula fed.

The health unit says boiling the water will not lower the manganese level, but insists showering and bathing with the water is safe.

A spokesperson from the health unit was not available for an interview. In an email to CTV News Ottawa on Sunday, the medical officer of health said, "The levels for the last five days have returned to below or very close to the Health Canada maximum acceptable concentration for total manganese in drinking water, which is 0.12 mg per litre."

The health unit says Casselman is looking at measures to prevent such increases of manganese in the future.

"It’s been yellow all year and it’s been yellow off and on in this town for as long as I’ve lived here," said Butler-Rohland. "I’ve only been here five years and it is time that the town do something about it."

In a statement on its website Monday, the municipality said flushing in the distribution started this week as Manganese levels lowered.

"The process will continue next week. Full distribution network flushing occurs twice annually in May and October, while dead ends are flushed routinely from June to September. Your water quality is our priority," the municipality said.