Town staff working diligently on analysis and assure residents water supply is safe
HIGH RIVER, ALBERTA – As with other municipalities across Alberta and Canada, the Town of High River has received notification about Provincial and Federal guidelines to assess lead hazards in drinking water and develop management plans on behalf of residents.
“These guidelines from Alberta Environment and Parks provide a new mandate for municipalities and the Town will work diligently to follow the process,” said Mayor Craig Snodgrass. “In the meantime, it is important for our residents to know our drinking water is safe.”
Town staff regularly assess High River’s water supply including raw water and drinking water and report sampling results to Alberta Environment and Parks (AEP) on a monthly basis. The new Lead Management Guidelines have established an acceptable limit of 0.005mg/L in drinking water. The Town’s water sampling shows that any evidence of lead is well below this limit, and regularly less than 0.002mg/L.
AEP’s guidelines outline a four-year process that will begin in January 2020. All Alberta municipalities must identify potential for some leaching of lead into residential drinking water. This will usually be associated with older underground pipes that carry water into homes and businesses. In most cases filtration and flushing will be the first options. Flushing means to let tap water run to flush out stagnant water if there is not a great deal of water use in the home. More tips and answers to common questions can be found on the Alberta Health Services website: https://myhealth.alberta.ca/Alberta/Pages/Common-questions-about-lead-and-drinking-water.aspx
“The Town will keep its residents informed early in the new year as we begin to follow the process outlined by AEP,” adds Mayor Snodgrass. “The safety, health and wellbeing of High River residents is a priority, and this includes the security of our water supply.”