Decatur officials cite lake turnover, intake depth as cause of recent bad-tasting water; plant capacity limits noted

Public Works Director Greg told the City Council workshop on Nov. 3 that recent spikes in complaints about water taste, odor and discoloration are linked to natural lake turnover and the city—s intake location at the bottom of the reservoir.

Greg (Public Works Director) said the treatment plant—s rated capacity is 3,000,000 gallons per day; the system is currently averaging about 1,330,000 gpd. He said the lake level was about 3.5 feet low as of Oct. 17 and that the plant—s intake is drawing from deeper, low‑oxygen water that releases foul odors and gases when mixed to the surface. He told the council that Tarrant Regional Water has a valve that in prior years helped flush poor-quality water downstream but that valve is not operational at the moment.

The presentation noted the city—s wastewater permitted annual average flow is 1,200,000 gpd and that the current annual average is about 778,000 gpd (64% of permitted annual average). Greg apologized to council and staff who receive constituent complaints and said staff are pursuing plans and equipment upgrades to improve treatment and billing reliability.

The director also reviewed related work: replacement of cellular water meters (2,951 meters in system, 1,773 upgraded so far, 1,178 remaining), an issue with newly delivered meter units that were not assigned to the city (causing billing hold-ups), and routine work orders (718 in Q3). He asked for council patience as staff complete meter onboarding and other upgrades.

Ending

Council did not take action beyond receiving the report. Staff said they will continue to monitor lake levels, coordinate with Tarrant Regional Water where possible, and pursue planned treatment/plant improvements.