ST. MARY PARISH — The St. Mary Parish Water & Sewer Commission #4 has issued a 'Drinking Water Advisory' for the Town of Baldwin. They say rising salt levels in the Charenton Drainage and Navigation Canal led to the advisory.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not classify this as a "primary containment," meaning it is not a threat to residents's health; however, the Louisiana Department of Health recommends those on low-sodium diets or on dialysis consult with healthcare providers.
Commission board member Camile Punch says there's no set date for when this advisory will be lifted.
"It comes and goes," Punch explains, "[the salt] is going to dilute itself into the system, but it exceeded the regular amount so we had to report it."
The EPA's secondary maximum containment level for salt is 250 mg/L; the exact current salt level was undisclosed.
