West Nipissing council has a consultant in place to help find a permanent solution to the discoloured water situation Verner residents face.
Mayor Joanne Savage says virtually all options are on the table including “if the water has to be supplied from another source (like) Sturgeon Falls”.
Council held a special meeting Tuesday night to discuss the water situation and the elected body was told the consultant should have the completed study in council’s hands by the end of September.
Savage says once the study is turned in, council can start looking at “what the options are for a permanent fix”.
The water is discoloured because of higher than normal levels of manganese in the municipal water supply system.
As for what caused the high levels it’s due to the very hot summer coupled with very little rain which has affected the Veuve River.
Despite the water’s appearance, the Mayor says it’s safe to drink.
“However it may not be appealing for those that want a glass of water and either the water is yellow or brown,” Savage said.
Savage says the staff is also looking at treating the water system with a new chemical process.
But test results will take seven to 10 days and steps must be taken to ensure the water is still safe to drink after the new treatment.
In the meantime, Savage says residents will be supplied with bottled water and in cases where more water is needed, staff will be providing water trucks.
The municipality is also increasing the two cases of bottled water limit per household to four cases.
The clean water truck will allow residents to fill jugs or containers with water.
Both the bottled water and water truck will be at the Verner Fire Hall from 9:00am to 7:00pm on Thursday while bottled water is available at the fire hall until 7:00pm this evening.
The municipality is applying a $20 credit to the water bill of Verner residents to cover the cost of incidentals homeowners have incurred like taking their clothing to a laundry mat because they don’t want to do their wash in discoloured water.
Savage says one other measure the municipality is taking is turning off the water fill station at the Verner arena until further notice.