IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR DRINKING WATER
Tests Show Coliform Bacteria in the City of Columbia Falls Water
Our water system recently violated a drinking water standard. Although this is not an emergency, as our customers, you have a right to know what happened, what you should do, and what we are doing to correct this situation.
We routinely monitor for drinking water contaminants. We took 5 samples to test for the presence of coliform bacteria during November 2009. Three of our samples showed the presence of total coliform bacteria. The standard is that no more than 1 sample per month may do so.
What should I do?
- You do not need to boil your water or take other corrective actions. However, if you have specific health concerns, consult your doctor.
- People with severely compromised immune systems, infants, and some elderly may be at increased risk. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers. General guidelines on ways to lessen the risk of infection by microbes are available from EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.
What does this mean?
This is not an emergency. If it had been you would have been notified immediately. Total coliform bacteria are generally not harmful themselves. Coliforms are bacteria which are naturally present in the environment and are used as an indicator that other, potentially-harmful, bacteria may be present. Coliforms were found in more samples than allowed and this was a warning of potential problems.
Usually, Coliforms are a sign that there could be a problem with the treatment or distribution system (pipes). Whenever we detect coliform bacteria in any sample, we do follow-up testing to see if other bacteria of greater concern, such as fecal coliform or E. coli, are present.. The lab did not find any of these bacteria in our subsequent testing.
What is being done?
The City is increasing sampling for coliform bacteria to help determine the source of the contamination. The Water Department staff will be completing flushing and chlorination of the water system during the next 2 weeks (November 9 – November 20, 2009.)
The City is still detecting coliform bacteria. The City will inform you when our sampling shows that no bacteria are present. We anticipate resolving the problem within 1 – 2 weeks ( November 20, 2009)
For more information, please contact LORIN LOWRY, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS at 892-4430 or 130 6th St W Rm A, Columbia Falls, MT 59912
Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.
This notice is being sent to you by the City of Columbia Falls
State Water System ID#: MT0000181.
Date and Method Distributed: Letter sent by first class mail on 11/6/2009
| Water System Class: Public Community | Monitoring Period: November 2009 |
| County: Flathead | Violation Date: 11/3/2009 |