Utilities staff urges residents to report brown water; wastewater digester lining passes monitoring

Utilities and public-works staff briefed the Board of Works and Safety on Oct. 28 about recent water-quality and wastewater updates and asked residents to use official reporting channels rather than social media to report brown or discolored water.

A utilities staff member said incidents of brown water often appear on social media without location details, which prevents crews from responding. “If you have a groundwater concern, call the utility office. (260) 248-5100,” the staff member said during the meeting.

Staff reported that Spectra Tech completed the lining of the wastewater digester and that the facility’s annual biomonitoring report passed at 100% on monitored parameters, including ammonia. The transcript noted that IDEM (Indiana Department of Environmental Management) had visited and asked follow-up questions while staff continued to investigate the source of intermittent ammonia readings.

Contractor Grey Wolf is scheduled to return Nov. 10 to install a new cover and panels on the digester; staff warned that scaffolding and some odors may persist during that work. The board congratulated Brian Thomas on passing his Class 3 wastewater treatment exam.

No formal actions were taken on these updates; staff said additional information will be included in the monthly report and that crews will continue investigation and remediation work.