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Barnesville officials, consultants address brown water after lake turnover as residents press for fixes
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Summary
City water experts told the council a lake turnover, elevated manganese and distribution-system disturbance caused recent brown water; residents at the July meeting demanded faster transparency and pipe repairs. The city said treatment at the plant is clear and is pursuing aeration, flushing and communication improvements.
Mayor Kelly G. Hughes and city staff faced robust public criticism in July after residents reported persistent brown or black tap water and visible sediment in homes. Consultants from ESG, including Don North and project manager Heath Jarriel, told the council the system experienced a lake turnover that raised manganese levels and disturbed biofilms and sediments in the distribution system, producing discolored water.
The consultants explained that a turnover can mobilize naturally occurring manganese and organic material from the reservoir. Jarriel said the treatment plant water was clear at the point of treatment after aeration and that the utility had been flushing the distribution system and installing aeration equipment to address the source. “We are treating at the plant and flushing the lines; aeration was added to reduce dissolved manganese,” Jarriel said.
Residents at the July 7 meeting pressed for faster action and more transparent reporting. Victoria Dadi told the council, “The discoloration is unacceptable — safe, clean drinking water is a basic human right,” and urged monthly test results be mailed with utility bills. Several others — including Mary Rooks and Randy Farley — described brown water lasting for days and asked whether old service lines or mains were causing the recurring problem.
Water and Sewer Superintendent Jerry Moats and the ESG team said flushing and aeration had improved water quality at the plant and that only a few customer calls were being received on the day of the presentation. Don North cautioned that distribution-system sediment can be stubborn and that the City may need to evaluate replacing aging pipe in some neighborhoods if discoloration persists. The City committed to clearer, earlier public communication about water events and to continued operational work (aeration, flushing and targeted sampling) to lower manganese and sediment in the system.
The council did not take emergency legislative action at that meeting; instead, officials said they would continue treatment and report results. The City later included water-system improvements in a successful FY2025 Community Development Block Grant application (see separate article) that officials said will fund targeted water and sewer infrastructure upgrades in affected neighborhoods. The next procedural steps: continue distribution flushing, publish water-sampling results to customers and assess the need and funding for pipe replacement in the most affected areas.