Reprinted with permission of the Dallas Morning News, Aug. 11, 1988
By Julie Mason
Staff Writer of The Dallas Morning News
State inspectors have found widespread violations in the Tawakoni Water Utility Corp.'s water treatment process and have recommended the utility notify its customers that a health threat exists and that they should take precautions before drinking the water.
The warning letters went out this week, but many of the utility customers in the unincorporated areas around Lake Tawakoni say both the state Department of Health and the attorney general's office have known about the hazard for at least two years and did not alert residents to the danger.
"We've been drinking the water all this time, and the state knew it wasn't up to quality," said Bob Knight, a resident of the affected area in northeast Texas. "I'm just wondering why no one told us."
Harry K. Myers, owner of the utility, has consistently responded to criticism by saying that he is in the process of making improvements to bring his facilities into state compliance.
Spokesmen for both agencies said that although the utility's lack of compliance with state standards is well documented, it is the responsibility of the utility to inform customers of possible health threats. And once the state recommends that the utility notify customers, there is no deadline by which it must comply.
The state recommended notification of the utility's approximately 3,000 customers on the southwestern edge of Lake Tawakoni on Aug. 4.
"We issued a boil-the-water recommendation and it was up to him (utility owner Myers) to do something about it," said Mike Smith, an assistant attorney general who is representing the Health Department in litigation with the utility.
"His facilities are out of compliance, have been out of compliance for some time," he said. "The results are nothing new, but his taking action is."
Myers was sued by the state attorney general's office in 1986 and faced nearly $35,000 in fines if he failed to upgrade his facilities extensively. So far, state investigators say, he has failed to do so and has paid part of the fine.
Irvin Turner, regional engineer for the Health Department in Arlington, said his office conducted inspections of Myers' operation last week and found the utility's treatment of Lake Tawakoni surface water poses an immediate danger to consumers.
"He's out there pulling water out of an old rock quarry, and I'll tell you that doesn't begin to meet our requirements," Turner said.
The state has previously cited the utility for using rusty holding tanks and exposed pipes – some reaching into swampy areas and gravel pits.
Myers said that his facility has been unable to keep up with changing state regulations, and that before now he did not anticipate having to notify customers of a health threat.
"We're trying to straighten out a lot of problems," he said Wednesday. "But our own chemical analysis so far has shown there's nothing wrong with the water."
The Tawakoni Water Consumers Association, composed of residents served by the utility, says Myers finally admitted his water was unsafe to drink after an Aug. 7 story in The Dallas Morning News regarding the utility's lack of compliance with state regulations.
"We've been after him for 13 years to do something," said association president Jim Campbell, referring to his group's dealings with Campbell since he bought the utility in 1975.
Officials familiar with the state investigation in the case speculate Myers hoped to delay notifying customers of a health risk until after the state Water Commission approved a pending rate hike for the utility.
Myers and his attorney acknowledged the utility's facilities do not meet current state standards. But Gary Lott, Myers' attorney, denied the rate hearings were related to a delay in notifying customers of the health hazard.
"We were notified last week that inspectors found an environment existed at our treatment plant that could pose a threat to human health," Lott said. "We had the letter to customers drafted and sent out right away."
Myers also recently instituted a rationing program strictly curtailing the hours customers could water their lawns and gardens. His plan received a terse reprimand from state officials who said the program violated several provisions of state rationing regulations.
"My rose bushes are dead, and this has hurt a lot of elderly people who subsist on their vegetable gardens," said Charlie Sittig, a retiree who has fought the utility in court and before the Water Commission.
Many of Myers' customers in the Tawakoni area have installed filters on their taps to improve the quality of the water. But Lott and Health Department officials said such measures may not make Myers' water safe for consumption.
"I would not trust water put through a filter at this point," Lott said. "I would hope that all customers in the affected areas boil their water as per the instructions in the letter."
The Health Department recommended Myers instruct his customers to bring water to a brisk boil for three minutes, add five drops of bleach for each gallon and let it stand an hour before drinking.
"This just opens up a can of worms as far as I can see," Campbell said. "If you can't drink it, how can you bathe in it? What are we supposed to do now? That's what I want to know."
Issue: Drinking water providers must keep customers informed of the source, quality, and any contamination of their drinking water.
How would you make sure that the people drinking water in your community are kept informed?
Consumers of drinking water from public water supplies have a right to know about the quality of that water. Therefore, the U.S. Congress has instructed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to require public water systems to:
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency currently enforces federal notification requirements.