HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — West Virginia American Water put a plan in place Thursday for a temporary backup water supply to its Huntington water treatment plant due to increasing algal bloom activity in the Ohio River.
WVAWC was notified late last Friday by ORANSCO that blooms had been detected in the river upstream of Huntington. Since then, the company has been following the EPA’s recommendation to monitor water quality and enhance treatment techniques.
No advisories are in effect, and the system is currently meeting all drinking water standards. There is, however, elevated levels of microcystin, a product of blue green algae. Forecasted weather conditions could cause the levels to increase and require additional action.
“West Virginia American Water initiated this contingency plan today after reviewing testing results and considering the time required to construct a temporary alternate intake,” said Jeffrey McIntyre, president of West Virginia American Water. “We consulted with our environmental regulatory agencies and made this decision with careful consideration of technical feasibility, current and predicted risk to the water system, and time necessary to execute the plan.”
The plan includes running large, temporary raw water lines from the Guyandotte River and tying them into the company’s current raw water line.
More information on algal bloom impacts on water quality can be found on the EPA website.