Brian King is the Public Works Supervisor for the Town of Yadkinville. Last week he continued flushing the town's water line to rid it of algae that created an unpleasant odor and taste. The water was declared safe to drink by the state.
Yadkinville Town Manager Joseph Sloop said Tuesday morning that the water was back to its former quality.
“We haven’t had any more major problems,” he said. “Everything looks to be neutralized and stabilized over at the reservoir. The water is back to normal.”
Last week, reports surfaced that Yadkinville's water had an unpleasant odor and taste. Yadkinville town officials, with the help of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, found the town's water supply had been affected by an algae bloom in the newly-commissioned reservoir being used by the town its for water production.
Yadkinville water works employees, with oversight by DENR, began treating the town's reservoir with algae-killing compounds.
During the period when the town's water smelled and tasted off, state and town officials assured the public it was safe to use and drink.
"Most algae is not harmful in itself, but it can produce byproducts, and it can produce tastes and odors. And that's objectionable. It's not harmful from a health standpoint. Nobody wants to taste it and smell bad water," said Lee Spencer, an inspector with the public water supply division of DENR.
Spencer said during incident that algae blooms are no unusual for town water systems, especially with newly-commissioned reservoirs.
"It got away from them. This is not the first time it's happened to small towns. We've even had blooms in the Yadkin River a few years ago. They had never had it before. It can happen in a river," Spencer said.
The Town of Yadkinville's website offered an explanation, last week, for the water's taste and smell.
"Due to the rise in water temperature at the town's reservoir, a blue-green algae has formed in the reservoir. This is not an uncommon problem with towns that have reservoirs. They town is working with NCDENR and our engineer on correcting the problem. The water still meets all state requirements and is safe to consume."
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