Florida Residents Urged to Stop Drinking Water in One County

Residents in the RiverCamps neighborhood of Bay County, Florida, have been warned not to use potable water for drinking, bathing, or washing due to potential contamination. Bay County Utilities said the problem may have stemmed from a private sanitary sewer line being mistakenly connected to the county’s potable water line three weeks ago. While the utilities team confirmed the issue has been resolved, residents are advised to refrain from using the water until further notice. Newsweek has contacted Bay County Utilities for comment via email. Why It Matters The quality and safety of drinking water in various parts of the U.S. is of growing concern. Drinking water can contain contaminants like lead, Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and other chemicals, which have been linked to cancer, learning delays in children, kidney disease, and other health problems. A household tap. Residents in one county in Florida have been issued with an alert over their drinking water. A household tap. Residents in one county in Florida have been issued with an alert over their drinking water. AP What To Know A November federal government study estimated that PFAS may be contaminating drinking water for up to 70 percent of Americans who draw water from the nation’s aquifers via private or public wells. PFAS are a group of synthetic chemicals widely used in industrial and consumer products since the 1940s. They are sometimes referred to as “forever chemicals” because they break down very slowly and persist in the environment, as well as in the human body. They can end up in water sources through several pathways, primarily due to their widespread use in industrial processes, consumer products, and their resistance to breakdown. The highest levels of exposure to potentially contaminated water in private wells were found in Michigan, Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ohio. Meanwhile, California and Florida had the highest population levels potentially exposed to PFAS in water drawn from public wells. Up to 98 percent of the population in Massachusetts and 87 percent in Connecticut who relied on public wells may have had contaminated water, a study found. Contaminants like arsenic and lead have also been found in drinking water. In Sunland Park, a small New Mexico city, illegally high levels of arsenic have been found in drinking water annually for the past 16 years. In 2016, levels reached five times the legal limit. In Flint, Michigan, lead was found in drinking water after the city switched its water supply from Detroit’s system to the Flint River to cut costs. The river water was not properly treated, causing lead from aging pipes to leach into the water supply. Residents were exposed to dangerously high lead levels, leading to severe health risks, especially for children. What People Are Saying Matthew Lindeworth, chief of Bay County Emergency Services told NewsChannel 7 on Monday: “We’ve got a distribution point for water currently set up. We’ve had about 85 cases of water so far taken. We’re gonna be out here all night for the residents and we’ll be out here tomorrow.” What Happens Next Bay County Utilities stated they are actively flushing the water system and conducting testing until bacteriological sample results are available.