COLUMBIA, S.C. — After several weeks of unpleasant water, Columbia Water said it is quickly returning to normal.
For weeks, area residents have complained about an earthy smell and taste.
"I feel like it's unhealthy," one resident said. "I wouldn't even feed my dogs the water."
Robert Yanity with Columbia Water said the source of the problem is the Columbia Canal's main source of water.
“Water that we treat here at the canal plant is from the Broad River, and that’s where we’ve been seeing those issues with algae bloom and the increased levels of geosmin," Yanity said.
In an effort to eliminate the bad taste in the water, and for additional filtration, the Columbia Water says it has added activated carbon into its treatment of the water. Yannity said the carbon treatment is the same as in the carbon filtration system found in refrigerators.
“Carbon is essentially a sponge that sucks up the geosmin, the other algae type particles in there, so it’s something that’s used commonly in the water industry," Yanity said.
Columbia Water said it had to take extra measures as this situation was more extreme than in past years.
“We saw geosmin get up to over 900 parts per trillion, something we had never seen before," Yanity said. "We tested two days ago, we got those results and it’s under 2. It's about 1.7 parts per trillion.”
"That makes me very happy because I don't have to leave my house to get water, I can drink it at home," one resident said.
Columbia Water said the water will take time to distribute throughout the city. While some residents already have the improved water, for others it may take longer.