Authority says 'nothing about violation was related to water quality’
File photo/Megan Horn/The Clayton Tribune.
Rabun County Water and Sewer Authority (RCWSA) customers received a public notification in their May bills about their drinking water, citing water requirements were not met for the Rabun County Water System because sampling was not completed in a timely manner.
The RCWSA recently advised customers about being cited for a violation by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, although “nothing about the violation was related to water quality,” according to a press release from Blake Spurney, public information coordinator for RCWSA.
The notification that went out to customers read, “Our Community Water System (CWS) violated drinking water standard. Although this is not an emergency, as our customers you have a right to know what happened, what you should do, and what we are doing to correct this situation.
“We are required to monitor your drinking water for specific contaminants on a regular basis. Results of regular monitoring are an indicator of whether or not our drinking water meets health standards. We did not properly complete the required monitoring or testing for Disinfection By Products (TTHMs and HAA5s) during the January 1-March 11, 2024 compliance period and therefore cannot be sure of the quality of our drinking water during that time,” according to the public notification. According to the notice, customers do not need to take any action. Sampling began April 1 and continues through June 31, according to the public notice.
Tricia Taylor, water system manager, said during the May 14 RCWSA meeting that the violation stemmed from the Lake Rabun Water Treatment Facility not receiving a sample cooler via mail in a timely fashion. Consequently, the water authority was unable to return samples back to the state lab in Norcross within the required timeframe, according to Spurney’s press release.
Taylor reiterated that the water authority did not receive a violation related to quality and they were required to send out notices to customers after the violation was received.
“We went through the process with the EPD violation, and we’re good to go,” Taylor said.
Authority member John Joyce said that was good news compared to some of the misleading information circulating on social media.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy acknowledged the delays plaguing Georgia postal customers since the U.S. Postal Service opened a new processing and distribution center earlier this year in Palmetto during his testimony before a U.S. Senate committee hearing in April. First-class mail has seen a 36 percent decline in on-time delivery since the changes were implemented in late February. The water authority is just one of many that have been affected by postal delays.
Authority Chairman Sam Beck said the authority couldn’t create sampling kits itself, but rather had to use those shipped by the state, according to the press release.
Joyce suggested having an authority employee go to Norcross to pick up the sampling kits. General Manager Brendan Thompson said the water authority received a good rate from the state lab, but he agreed that Joyce’s suggestion was a good idea if postal delays continued to occur.
“Shipping the material is what dinged us,” Thompson said.