West Monroe Will Remove Brown Color in Water
By: Meagan Fitzgerald
Updated: January 22, 2010
Mindy Lancaster lives in West Monroe and has been living with brown water for years.
Lancaster said, "We have a white bath tub so when you run water in it to take a bath it has a dingy brown looks like you already washed a load of clothes in it."
That dingy brown color is exactly what the city is working to remove.
Terry Emory is the environmental quality manager for West Monroe. She says the water quality from the Sparta Aquifer, which is where the city gets its water, is getting worse.
Emory said, "We've found that at a couple of our wells the color has doubled in the last two years so it seems pretty obvious that the quality could be deteriorating with the quantity. "Right now, at this point, the water goes straight to chlorine to this tank and out to the system."
But, soon the water will be taking a different path.
"The water will travel through these 5 sand filters where it will help remove some of that yellow color then it will go to this white tank where it will be treated and then it will make its way through your pipes and instead of being brown, it'll be clear."
The city insists, despite the color, the water is still safe.
Emory said, "The water meets all the regulations, it's perfectly safe right now, but most people don't like any hint of color in their tap water."
Especially folks like Lancaster. She says shes been waiting for clear water her entire life.
Lancaster said, "It's very exciting to actually be able to take a bubble bath and actually feel like I'm not having to put so many bubbles in it to keep the brown covered up."
Lancaster said, "We have a white bath tub so when you run water in it to take a bath it has a dingy brown looks like you already washed a load of clothes in it."
That dingy brown color is exactly what the city is working to remove.
Terry Emory is the environmental quality manager for West Monroe. She says the water quality from the Sparta Aquifer, which is where the city gets its water, is getting worse.
Emory said, "We've found that at a couple of our wells the color has doubled in the last two years so it seems pretty obvious that the quality could be deteriorating with the quantity. "Right now, at this point, the water goes straight to chlorine to this tank and out to the system."
But, soon the water will be taking a different path.
"The water will travel through these 5 sand filters where it will help remove some of that yellow color then it will go to this white tank where it will be treated and then it will make its way through your pipes and instead of being brown, it'll be clear."
The city insists, despite the color, the water is still safe.
Emory said, "The water meets all the regulations, it's perfectly safe right now, but most people don't like any hint of color in their tap water."
Especially folks like Lancaster. She says shes been waiting for clear water her entire life.
Lancaster said, "It's very exciting to actually be able to take a bubble bath and actually feel like I'm not having to put so many bubbles in it to keep the brown covered up."
