High Level Water Quality could be Improving

Staff at the Town of High Level’s Water Treatment Facility have been testing new water treatment products that they hope could lead to improved water in the community and lower costs overall.

For the past two weeks, one of the three treatment units at the facility has been using a series of new coagulation chemicals to test whether they could be more effective than the current water treatment process.

Residents need not worry, the water being tested isn’t going into the taps.

During the testing process, the water is discharged to the waste collection system that’s used to dispose of typical waste material generated at the facility.

These tests are a normal thing.
As new opportunities or technologies arise, the Town conducts these new processes, in hopes of avoiding the rising costs associated with the chemicals that are currently used.

This time around, the test chemicals are expected to be more efficient at removing organic compounds.  These compounds are produced from the natural decay of algae and other plant life that’s found in the Footner Lake water source.
The Town deals with extremely high levels of organic material in its source water, leading to significant challenges and costs to continue to produce safe potable water.

The current testing looks very positive in its initial phases, however more time is required before a decision to change can be made. Testing of the new products will continue until all the possible combinations of dosages and injection points are investigated, and water testing requirements have been finalized.