CAÑON CITY, Colo. (KOAA) — The Cañon City Water Department is working to find solutions to a frustrating issue for residents: water that tastes and smells bad.
According to the department, they've received several water quality complaints due to an "earthy/musty" taste and smell of the city's water.
The city says that the smell and taste are associated with Geosmin and Methyl-Isoborneol, naturally occurring compounds associated with algae in water during the summertime.
Algae growth has increased due to the river's low flow and high temperature, but they say that Cañon City water is safe to drink.
Since there are drought concerns, officials say that there has been an effort to conserve water and an emphasis on keeping the system's reserves full in the event of a river call. This means the water remaining in the system has increased 'water age,' which contributes to the smell/taste issue.
The two compounds are said not to have any adverse health effects.
To address the issues, the city has increased water treatments to potentially help with the smell/taste issues. They are also adjusting water storage tank levels to get them to empty and fill more often to maintain more fresh water in the system.
Residents are also encouraged to install water filters with activated carbon to further fix the issues.
For more information on this situation, visit the Cañon City Water Department's web page.
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