Study shows notorious Kentucky water district meets regulations, but needs improvement

A new study of water quality in Martin County shows county’s notoriously unreliable water system was in compliance with overall Environmental Protection Agency regulations, although improvements are still needed to build citizens’ trust and reduce high amounts of contaminants during the summer and early fall.

The Community-Engaged Drinking Water Health Pilot Study, conducted by the University of Kentucky, found that the overall average for disinfection byproducts in the water system was under the EPA’s guideline, although almost half (47%) of samples had at least one contaminant that exceed the U.S. EPA regulatory guidelines. The maximum contamination levels (MCLs) for disinfection byproducts, which occur when natural organic matter interacts with chlorine during the water treatment process, were found in the summer and early autumn, typically when its warmer and the Tug Fork River and Crum Reservoir levels are low.

There were no metals from coal slurry discovered in the samples tested. In 2000, 306 million gallons of toxic coal slurry spilled into the Tug Fork River.

From Dec. 26, 2018 to Dec. 19, 2019, tap water was collected from 97 Martin County households. The results were released last week and discussed during a presentation by the Martin County Concerned Citizens group Thursday night.

The county’s water district has received state and national attention in recent years for failing to provide clean and reliable drinking water to its customers as it flirted with financial collapse. It also has one of the highest water rates in the state, although 40 of Martin County’s residents live in poverty.

UK College of Agriculture professor Jason Unrine said excessive disinfection byproducts are the most common drinking water violation in the U.S., affecting 11 million U.S. households.

“In terms of just the disinfection byproducts, they’re meeting EPA regulations for the most part,” Unrine said. “However, we showed in the study certain times of year, they can exceed the MCLs. For some of the health effects like cancer, it’s really the long term average that matters.”

Unrine addressed the health concerns, particularly with bladder cancer and heart birth defects. Martin County has a slightly higher rate of bladder cancer compared to the U.S., but is average compared to the state. Bladder cancer shows after long exposure times of more than 40 years and researchers don’t have information of that length of time. With heart birth defects, it would take more than a decade to show a trend, he said.

Unrine said it is probably fine to drink the tap water in Martin County, but the study didn’t look at every contaminant. The study revealed only 12% of respondents used the tap water for drinking.

He does question if women during their first three months of pregnancy should drink the water in the summer and fall. He also said exposure to the chemicals can come from showering and cooking, not just drinking the water.

Lindell Ormsbee, director of the Kentucky Water Research Institute, said households can use carbon filters, run vent fans while cooking, and let water run for a bit before showering while running a bathroom vent fan.

Ormsbee listed off improvements that could be made to the water system, such as reducing organic and inorganic compounds at Tug Fork River, reducing algae blooms at Crum Reservoir, controlling water chemistry and changing the disinfectant, decreasing water age in storage tanks and distribution systems and fixing water leaks and repairing pipes.

Nina McCoy, a member of Martin County Concerned Citizens, said the water system needs improvements to limit pipe breaks and water loss, which could decrease the amount of disinfectant needed in the system.

“It is very expensive to run a water system,” she said. “The upgrades haven’t been maintained. ... The rate payers of this county can’t necessarily afford to fix everything here. We need help from the outside.”

The researchers also asked participants their sentiments about the water. Almost all (99%) of participants said they had a problem with their tap water, listing low pressure (74%), excessive bubbles (66.7%), bad odor (65.6%), discoloration (51.0%), particle/cloudiness in water (43.8%), bad taste (36.5%), irritated or burned skin (24.0%), oil/grease in water (16.7%), skin has odor after bathing or showering (14.6%), high water pressure (13.5%), water feels sticky or oily (8.3%).

McCoy said it’s important for citizens to speak up about the problems they have with the water system, and not “quarrel about it in your living room.”

Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center deputy director Mary Cromer said she is not in favor of filing a lawsuit against the water system because it would divert money from improving the system.

“This is the community’s water system,” Cromer said. “This water system belongs to Martin County. It doesn’t belong to the water board. It doesn’t belong to Alliance (the company running the water district). It belongs to everyone.”