The Franklin Water System issued the following statement Tuesday, which announces that the city for two months did not properly monitor a variable that could interfere with proper disinfection of the water.
Because of this, the boil order that started in mid-August will continue - until the system has been following the rules, the statement reads.
State health officials collect data on water systems and publish grades for them; to see Franklin's most recent report card, scroll down.
Here's the full statement that was issued Tuesday:
Our water system is in violation of drinking water requirements. As our customers, you have a right to know what happened, what you should do, and what we did (are doing) to correct this situation.
We are required to monitor your drinking water for turbidity (cloudiness) on a continuous basis (every 15 minutes) and report such results to the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH). This tells us whether we are effectively filtering the water supply. The Surface Water Treatment Rule (SWTR) requires our treated water to meet 0.349 Nephelometric Treatment Units (NTUs) or less in 95 percent of the measurements per month and never exceed a maximum allowable turbidity limit of 1.499 NTUs at any time.
During the July 1, 2024 through August 31, 2024 compliance monitoring periods, the Franklin Water System was in violation of the Surface Water Treatment Rule. The violation occurred because the treated water turbidity was not monitored continuously (every 15 minutes) as required and the turbidity exceedances were not reported to LDH. Upon investigation by LDH, the Franklin Water System treated water turbidity level exceeded the maximum allowable limit of 1.499 Nephelometric Treatment Units (NTUs) multiple times in July 2024 through August 2024. Additionally, the violation occurred because the treated water turbidity level exceeded 0.349 NTU in over 5% percent of the treated water monthly measurements in July 2024 and August 2024.
What should I do?
Based on these violations, the Boil Water Notice issued on August 19, 2024 will remain in place until the water system demonstrates compliance with the SWTR requirements.
If you have specific health concerns, consult your doctor. If you have a severely compromised immune system, have an infant, are pregnant, or are elderly, you may be at increased risk and should seek advice from your health care providers about drinking this water. General guidelines on ways to lessen the risk of infection by microbes are available from EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.
What does this mean?
Tests taken during the timeframe of the violations did not indicate the presence of bacteria in the water.
Turbidity has no health effects. However, turbidity can interfere with disinfection and provide medium for microbial growth. Turbidity may indicate the presence of disease-causing organisms. These organisms include bacteria, viruses, and parasites that can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and associated headaches. These symptoms, however, are not just associated with disease-causing organisms in drinking water, but also may be caused by a number of factors other than your drinking water. EPA and LDH has set enforceable requirements for treating drinking water to reduce the risk of these adverse health effects. Treatment such as filtering and disinfecting the water removes or destroys microbiological contaminants. Drinking water which is treated to meet EPA and LDH requirements is associated with little to none of this risk, and should be considered safe.
What is being done?
Action has been taken to present this violation from recurring. As of August 26, 2024 the Franklin Water System turbidity monitoring equipment has been recording turbidity data on a continuous basis (every 15 minutes) and being reported to LDH and a local engineering firm.
For more information, please contact Mayor Eugene Foulcard at PO Box 567, Franklin, LA 70538.
Here's the state report card:
