Well No. 98 still closed

Torus Tammer

FOUNTAIN VALLEY -- Huntington Beach Well No. 98 remains closed after the

Orange County Water District discovered above-normal levels of a chlorine

byproduct in the water.

According water district spokesman Ron Wildermuth, water is now being

imported from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California to

compensate for the well, which closed May 24 because of unacceptable

levels of N-nitrosodimethylamine, also known as NDMA.

The chemical is a regulated carcinogen found naturally in beverages such

beer and milk and food such as processed meats, as well as in the air and

soil.

“We have tested the other eight active wells in Huntington Beach, and

they are all safe,” Wildermuth said.

Wildermuth said the Orange County Water District has been diligent about

monitoring the levels of chemicals in the water, especially Well No. 98.

“We tested Well 98 for carcinogens twice in 1999, and in neither of those

tests was there any level of carcinogen that could be considered

dangerous or above the legal limit of 20 [parts per trillion],” he said.

To correct the problem, the well needs to be treated with ultraviolet

light, Wildermuth said. The treatment, which is about six months away,

must first be approved by the Huntington Beach City Council.

Nevertheless, the water district believes that the water supply is safe.

“To be affected by the NDMA-contaminated water, one would have to drink

two liters of water a day for 70 years to have a one in a million chance

of developing some form of cancer,” Wildermuth said.