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Foul Smell in Burnsville Drinking Water
People living in Burnsville say there is foul odor in their drinking water. The city got so many complaints they brought in a water consultant to figure out what's causing the problem.
"It smells like chlorinated dirty smelly scumy pond water," said resident Deb Moran.
Moran got so concerned she took a sample of the water to a pool supply shop for testing.
"The chlorine was off the charts. And they wondered why we're putting so much chlorine in our spa. And it wasn't from our spa, it was from our tap," said Moran.
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS took its own sample to a pool expert who confirmed chlorine at .7 parts per million. That's about the same as a swimming pool.
In a written statement the city told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, "we expected start up issues but not to this extent" and "please be assured that our drinking water is safe."
Wednesday, they said the smelly water problems seem to have started when a new surface-water treatment plant came online in August. That plant treats water from a Burnsville mining company that would otherwise get dumped into the Mississippi.
Officials say the cause is build up of algae organic compounds.
"In treating the algae with some additional chemicals like chlorine, it's given us a stronger chlorine flavor in our water than we're used to," said Burnsville City Council Member Dan Kealey.
Council members say the city is working on the problem.
"It's like going to chemistry class. They've got to play with all kinds of ingredients and variables to try and eliminate the odor and back off on the chlorine taste and, unfortunately, it can't happen overnight," said Kealey.
Officials say as bad as the water might smell, it doesn't pose any health risks.
"It's perfectly safe to drink. There's no concerns with that. You might not like the smell or the taste at this time, but it is getting better," said Burnsville City Council Member Dan Gustafson.
He says the city council plans to discuss the issue at its meeting on Tuesday. Savage also buys water from the new Burnsville plant. so far, Councilman Kealey says he hasn't heard any complaints from people there.
