Chemical used in treatment made brown water worse, report says

Excess levels of manganese are to blame for recurringbrown water problems in Winnipeg -- and achemical used to treat the water supplycould be exacerbating the problem, a city-commissioned report has found.

An independentreport released Thursday blamed the naturally-occurring metal, which is found in groundwater, while city officials stressed there are no health issues.

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Im not an expert, said Mayor Sam Katz. I can tell you, I sat in a room with an expert Dr. Richards, and we were told our water is safe, period.

"Yes, the water is safe," confirms the report, which notes the manganese levels haverisen slightly over the years in Shoal Lake, Winnipegs water source.

However, the primary source of the increase in manganese is ferric chloride, used in one of the key treatment processes (coagulation) at the drinking water treatment plant, the report states.

The materials used to manufacture ferric chloride contain manganese.

The report also said the problem could be worse because the city switched types of ferric chloride last year.

"... a change in chemical supplier in 2013 resulted in a product with higher concentration of manganese, although the chemical product does meet industry standards for water treatment use, the report said.

Despite the increased presence of the manganese,the levels have remained well below World Health Organization and Health Canada guidelines, said DianeSacher, the city's director of water and waste.

The consultants who wrote the report provideda number of recommendations for the city, and "we are already putting these recommendations in to action," said Sacher.

The solution

To get the buildup of manganese out of reservoirs and water mains, we are ramping up cleaning schedules, said Sacher

The citys 2,500 kilometres of water mains will be flushed and cleaned within two years, a process that would normally take six years, said Sacher.

Winnipeggers should expect to see some difference this summer since were starting this work immediately, she said.

The city is also looking to replace the type offerric chloride used in drinking water treatment plants across North America with a new water treatment product that contains lower levels of manganese.

The city will alsochange its water treatment process to better filter manganese.

Until now, we havent been able to pinpoint the cause of increased occurrences of discoloured water, said Mayor Sam Katz.This report gives us the answers we need. Now we can get on with implementing solutions.

The city will also hire an independent consultant to monitor the implementation of the recommendations at a cost of $500,000.

Brown water compensation

Thousands ofWinnipeggershave complained about discoloured tap water in some cases, as dark as coffee showing up sporadically since last summer.

A number of Winnipeggers have had their clothes and other property ruined as a result of brown water, and the city has provided some compensation to them.

On Thursday, officials released a breakdown of claims and payouts since January 2013.

A total of 21 people successfully filed compensation claims related to brown water, totalling a city payout of about $1,318.14.

The following is a breakdown of how the city has handled the requests for reimbursements:

• Average Settlement was $63
• 69 claimants chose to withdraw their claim
• Six claims are still pending
• 54 people who filed did not receivecompensation