I-Team: EPA warned Baltimore officials about water parasite risk in May
DPW: Immunocompromised people should take precautions with water after low levels of parasite found in testing
DPW: Immunocompromised people should take precautions with water after low levels of parasite found in testing
DPW: Immunocompromised people should take precautions with water after low levels of parasite found in testing
UPDATE (Oct. 3): Baltimore City Department of Public Works officials said the latest parasite test results came back negative.
Officials said the water remains safe for the general public to consume, but out of an abundance of caution, people with severely weakened immune systems should drink bottled water or boil water for one minute before consuming.
ORIGINAL STORY (Oct. 2): The Environmental Protection Agency warned Baltimore City officials about water parasite risks at the city's uncovered water reservoirs, the 11 News I-Team has learned.
The Baltimore City Department of Public Works on Monday said drinking water is safe for the general population.
This comes after the discovery last week of low levels of a parasite at Druid Lake Reservoir. DPW announced low levels of microscopic Cryptosporidium were discovered during routine testing on Sept. 19. The reading was too low to infect the general population, officials said.
| LINK: What is Cryptosporidium?
But residents who are immunocompromised should either boil their water for one minute, drink bottled water or use a specific type of filter labeled to ANSI/NSF 53 or 58 standards, or a filter designed to remove objects 1 micron or larger. These may be labeled "absolute 1 micron" (i.e., not Brita-type filters).
A water advisory is in effect for portions of central Baltimore City and Baltimore County, as well as southwestern Baltimore County and a small portion of northeastern Howard County.
| LINK: Interactive map shows areas affected by water issues
At a news conference Monday morning, interim DPW Director Richard Luna said another sample of water was taken and sent to the lab to test for the parasite.
"We anticipate those results will be returned to us before Wednesday," Luna said.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said the general population has nothing to worry about, but he did urge immunocompromised people to boil water or drink bottled water.
"They should take the extra precautions for themselves," Scott said. "We're going to continue to push that information out, but I also think it's critically important for everyone to know that this is a new thing that even the EPA didn't have guidelines for this one because they just recently required us and some other places to test for."
There have been no cases reported so far.
2 city water reservoirs are uncovered
The EPA is divided into regions, and in the region covering Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, D.C., only two reservoirs remain uncovered: Druid Lake Reservoir and Ashburton in Baltimore City.
Dr. Wilbur Chen, an adult infectious disease physician-scientist at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said the parasite likely entered the treated water via bird or deer droppings.
"Especially now that it's migratory bird season, we're probably seeing a lot of water fowl that are landing in the reservoir," Chen said. "It's the immunocompromised (people) that we would be concerned about. But for a healthy person who's not immunocompromised, I think these levels are very, very low and a very low risk."
But the I-Team has learned that the EPA has been trying to get Baltimore City to cover the Druid and Ashburton reservoirs for years. An EPA administrative order issued in May predicted much of what's currently happening. The order reads, in part: "An uncovered reservoir used to store treated drinking water is susceptible to contamination from animals, such as birds or insects."
| LINK: Read the EPA order
The order notes that if parasites infect the water, the immunocompromised will be especially vulnerable: "EPA/(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the risk of infection by Cryptosporidium and other microbial contaminants are available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline."
When the I-Team asked the EPA about the recent drinking water testing showing low levels of Cryptosporidium, EPA spokesman Neil Shader responded, saying, in part: "EPA was aware of the possibility of Cryptosporidium and believed that sampling would be prudent. EPA is in close contact with (the Maryland Department of the Environment) on further developments."
The Ashburton Reservoir is scheduled to get underground tanks to hold the water by Nov. 30, and the Druid Lake Reservoir is scheduled to get underground tanks installed by Dec. 30.
