By Nik Nadeau

Drinking water at St. John’s will contain a hint of chlorine over the next few weeks.

A mass e-mail sent Monday notified the CSB/SJU community that state-mandated water testing revealed the presence of total coliform bacteria, which indicates that “other, potentially-harmful, bacteria may be present” in St. John’s drinking water. To disinfect the system, the university began to flush the water system and add chlorine on Tuesday, and plans to reduce chlorine levels to zero by November 19.

Tom Vogel, Chief Engineer at St. John’s Power Plant and conductor of the sampling, said he was unsure about why an abnormal amount of coliform bacteria showed up in samples this month.

“It’s possible (the coliform’s presence) may be related to the extent of rain we’ve been getting, but it’s more likely due to a plumbing system that’s getting aged, ” Vogel said. “There are areas where you don’t always have good flows, so you can have some stagnant water.” Vogel said he detected no coliform bacteria in the two wells which provide the university’s source water.

Above-normal levels of coliform bacteria last appeared in September 2003, Vogel said. The university chlorinated the water and removed shallow wells from the system, which solved the problem until now.

Terry Loso, the CSB Power Plant director, said no problems exist with the St. Ben’s water supply, and said it would be nearly impossible to pinpoint the location of harmful bacteria.

“There’s a thousand different ways for that bacteria to get in there, ” he said.

Total coliform bacteria are commonly found in soil and animal intestines. Most coliform bacteria present no harm to humans, except Escherichia coli (E. coli), which is found in the digestive tract of cattle and can cause intestinal illness.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) mandates water chlorination if coliform bacteria appear in more than one drinking water sample per month. Vogel said added chlorine levels will pose no health threat.

“The (Minnesota) Department of Health guidelines say I can chlorinate up to four parts per milllion, ” he said. “My intent is to chlorinate at two parts (per million), and a half part at outlying areas. ”

The e-mail notice recommends that St. John’s students let faucets run for a few minutes to flush discolored water, and that students with fish tanks “find a different source of water … or use commercially available chemicals that neutralize the chlorine. ”

Vogel said he has not seen “any red water” in the system and it is unlikely that chlorination will discolor students’ laundry.

Water main breaks at St. Ben’s

CSB students and staff experienced a temporary water shut-off after an underground water line broke around 8 pm Tuesday in the south side of Corona Hall.

“It was an underground water line that through stress and old age just cracked and broke, ” CSB Power Plant director Terry Loso said. He added the break is only the second he’s seen since a similar break occurred in the early 1980s.

Loso repaired the pipe yesterday afternoon, and said it may take a few days for water to resume its original clarity.

He said the majority of debris was flushed out Wednesday night.

Filed under: News by Justin Roth