Verner has a problem with discoloured water, an issue “ongoing for a long time, that appears to be getting worse,” explained Nancy Jennings, who has lived in Verner for about 12 years.
Usually, discolouration occurs in warmer months. However, Jennings is noticing the water flowing brown much more frequently, even in the cool of Autumn.
“Brown water has been an ongoing problem for residents of Verner,” Mayor Joanne Savage acknowledges, one more visible in “warmer weather.”
See: Verner’s ‘brown water’ cleared up – for now
“The cause of the problem is manganese in the water source,” she said, adding that the source for the water treatment plant is the Veuve River.
The federal government explains that manganese “is an essential nutrient found naturally in the environment,” which can be present in air, food, water, soil and rock.
Manganese gets into drinking water “when water dissolves minerals that contain manganese.”
In Canada, levels are “usually low” within treated drinking water. The government has established a “guideline value for manganese in drinking water of 0.12 milligrams per litre.”
The municipality has been working “to treat the water” to “reduce or eliminate the manganese,” Mayor Savage explained, “however from time to time, brown water has been a recurring problem as per info shared by residents.
“Not all households experience problems” with discoloured water, she added. But some do, and the brown water has become a persistent problem for residents like Jennings.
“You’ll get one day of clear water, then four days of dirty water,” she said, noting there appears to be no rhyme or reason as to who will be affected. “My house could be brown, but the next house could be clear.”
It led her to question whether the town’s pipes are the issue, that perhaps rust was the culprit rather than manganese?
A reasonable suspicion, but “all pipes in Verner are PCB plastic,” explained councillor Dan Roveda.
Roveda also mentioned that recently the municipality flushed the system “as a proactive measure” and “everything looked good.”
Everything is “working well” at the water plant, too, he added.
The municipality encourages residents with discoloured water “to report it to the municipality for it to be investigated,” Mayor Savage said.
Jennings admitted she did not bother reporting her water issues this time around, having grown frustrated by the process.
“I know other people have, and it hasn’t gotten them anywhere,” she said, noting the municipality tells them “we’re working on it.”
“And our water bills are high,” she said, “three hundred and something every three months. That’s not right when your water is dirty 70 per cent of the time.”
As the water remains safe for consumption “definitely not appealing for consumption” but safe, Mayor Savage noted, the municipality does not offer compensation or rebates to residents.
In 2019, there was a “provision for bottled water” for affected residents, the mayor explained.
Jennings remembers that well, as 2019 was the year Verner hosted the International Plowing Match.
“The only time they actually cared about the water here was when that IPM was here,” Jennings said.
“That was the only time we saw them giving out free bottled water,” she said. “They were basically trying to make the town look good.”
“And they did take $20 off our water bill” at the time, Jennings remembered.
Permanent solutions are in the planning stages, Mayor Savage explained, as the municipality is currently working to pipe water in from Cache Bay to Verner’s water treatment facility.
That would involve building a pipeline down the CPR rail line. The project is in the design phase, and the municipality is currently dealing with the CPR to advance the plan.
See: Cache Bay waterline to Verner in the works
“It’s a lengthy process,” Mayor Savage acknowledged, involving “many steps and approvals by different authorities.”
In total, the project is estimated to cost 12 million, she added, and if all goes well construction would begin in 2023.
“I hope they resolve this,” Jennings said, “there are a lot of lives here” affected.
“There’s stuff floating in that water,” it leaves “rings around my tub,” and “stains clothes,” Jennings said, adding she spends a small fortune on bottled water for herself and her pets to drink.
“I won’t give that to the animals, so I’m going through bottled water like crazy.”
“Everybody feels like we’re being pushed aside” by the municipality, Jennings said, “and they say stuff just to shut us up.”
For residents dealing with discoloured water, Mayor Savage encourages them to report the problem by email to [email protected], or call 705-753-2250 during regular business hours or 705-753-1170 outside of business hours.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
