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Milford schools will stick with Milford Water Company water, after school test results were found to reflect town samples in containing acceptable levels of a contaminant.
Town and company officials agreed to remove bottled water from most schools earlier this month, after a round of quarterly test results at five locations in town revealed the contaminant — Total Trihalomethanes — had fallen to levels considered safe by the state Department of Environmental Protection.
The contaminant, called TTHMs, is produced when drinking water that is pulled from surface waters is disinfected. Company officials say the problem will be resolved when a new water treatment plant is introduced in 2013, but that interim steps — including a new carbon filter — have helped this year.
Parents complained to the town's Board of Health, saying they wanted school results. Those results, returned last week, indicate all of the public schools were well below the limit of 80 parts per billion (ppb), said Paul Mazzuchelli, Milford's health agent.
Individual results included: Memorial Elementary School, 49 ppb; Middle School East, 60 ppb; Stacy Middle School, 65 ppb; Woodland Elementary School, 70 ppb; Milford High School (tests taken in November), 71 ppb; and Brookside Elementary School (tests taken in November) 75 ppb.
The Poland Spring water was introduced to schools in October, after several rounds of tests revealed elevated levels of the TTHMs. The Water Company paid for the bottled water.
Lisa Vasile
7:47 am on Tuesday, January 24, 2012
This is great news. HOWEVER, the levels always decrease in the winter with less organics. Organics mixed with chlorine cause the TTHMs. Will they continue to test the water regularly, especially once the winter ends, snow melts, more rain and warmer weather?
Mary MacDonald
7:51 am on Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Hi Lisa,
Yes, they are required to test at the five locations at least on a quarterly basis, but as for the school sites, I am not sure if they are going to continue to be tested. I'll ask.
Lisa Vasile
7:32 am on Wednesday, January 25, 2012
I don't think quarterly is enough after everything Milford Residents have tolerated. We should not have to wait for 90 days to find out that what we HAVE ALREADY DRANK exceeds limits of safety. Even though the levels are lower, they are still close to the highest acceptable/safe limits. Would be nice to have documentation of these levels staying below this level (or getting even lower) on a more proactive and consistent basis.
Keep in mind the schools and town hadn't considered testing the schools until we pushed them to do so.
UglyHat
8:59 am on Wednesday, January 25, 2012
I agree Lisa. They should be subject to much more frequent testing based on past results. And I think your point about lower levels in winter is brilliant. Now that you’ve mentioned it, it makes perfect sense but I wouldn’t have thought of it.
Milford Water Co., if they are confident in their new systems and looking to regain consumer confidence, should initiate more frequent tests especially as the snow melts and the animals return. And they should release results as quickly as possible so that people can make informed decisions.
David Nolta
9:20 am on Wednesday, January 25, 2012
I have been to the Water Company site and looked, but I don't see any comparative data. Does anybody know what the statistics are for surrounding towns, or comparably-sized towns, or the country in general? I'm curious to have an idea as to where we fit into a larger picture.