Half the city's water tanks haven't been cleaned for nearly 12 years - seven years longer than the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency recommends.
Tight budgets have forced Athens to comply with the agency's regulations before addressing its recommendations, which include power-washing the tanks every five years, said Crystal Kynard, manager of Athens' Water Treatment Plant. The city regularly tests the water, which is safe to drink, and the one serious water violation recorded last year by the agency wasn't related to the tanks.
Some things have just taken a higher priority over that
Kynard said.
State Sen. Jimmy Stewart, R-20, said he hopes to change that with a new bill, which will clarify existing law to emphasize that water treatment plants may hire contractors for cleaning work.
The hope is that by making the law clear, more plants will schedule routine maintenance instead of paying for cleaning work all at once, Stewart said.
When school is in session, the city's plant serves more than 22,000 people, Kynard said. Public water is treated at any of the three well fields before being sent to the city's 10 storage tanks. Those include three standpipe, two elevated and five underground tanks. The standpipe tank located at The Ridges was cleaned in August 2005, but the five underground tanks have not been inspected since 1997, she said.
During the EPA's last evaluation in October 2008, investigators noted several of the city's tanks had not been inspected in the past five years, which the EPA recommends as the longest time between cleanings.
Kynard said the investigators were referring to the five underground tanks, adding that the tanks do need structural work, but that the water poses no health risks.
Budget appropriations for the plant this year totaled nearly $1.6 million, according to the city's annual appropriation ordinance. The money comes mainly from utility bills, grants and loans, said Mayor Paul Wiehl.
It costs about $2,500 to clean a tank, said Bob Mattey, who works in Chauncey for Utility Service Co., Inc.
The company specializes in maintaining water storage tanks, and cleaned the standpipe at The Ridges in 2005, Mattey said. Employees drained and power-washed the tank to remove debris, he said.
Although the cleanliness of water storage tanks is a concern, the condition of the city's water pipes is as well.
In 2008, city water had six violations, according to the EPA, but only one was serious. The EPA found coliform bacteria in pipes serving Athens' east side, which Wiehl said was a result of stagnant water in the pipes.
The city will spend $800,000 in stimulus money to repair the pipes under Curtis Street and Mulligan Road, Wiehl said.
But Stewart says not enough is done for water maintenance. When it comes to environmental problems, nothing is more basic than the water we drink every day, he said.
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Laura Service
