Tag: utilities

City of Bloomington exceeds allowed E. coli levels four times in 30 days, report to state required

Four times in the last 30 days, the City of Bloomington’s waste water treatment plant on Dillman Road was putting too much E. coli bacteria into Clear Creek.

R Map annotated ecoli exceedenceEcoli exceedencexxxxTesting is done daily by water treatment plant staff, and it’s allowed for the E. coli limit to be violated three times in a 30-day period, department of utilities public affairs specialist Holly McLauchlin told The Beacon.

But if the E. coli limit is exceeded a fourth time, the city has to report it to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), she said.

The City of Bloomington announced the fourth E. coli violation, and its report to the IDEM, in a press release on Friday afternoon.

According to the press release, the daily limit for E. coli is 235 colony-forming units (CFUs) of E. coli bacteria per 100 ml.

Updated on Aug. 5, 2019 with additional information from the form received by IDEM from Bloomington: The level of E. coli  CFUs  measured by Bloomington, on July 23, was 365 CFUs per 100 ml, or 130 CFUs greater than the limit. Remedial action to be undertaken by Bloomington includes: relocation of two of four pumps; repairing the contact chamber rapid mixer; and investigating the departments sampling techniques location and process. According to IDEM Director of External Relations, Sarah Bonick,”IDEM is monitoring the situation and will ensure that the facility comes back into compliance.” Continue reading “City of Bloomington exceeds allowed E. coli levels four times in 30 days, report to state required” →

2019 on pace to be a big year for Bloomington water main breaks

Not counting any of the half dozen water main breaks in July, the city of Bloomington has tallied 44 breaks so far in 2019.

Is that a big number? Yes, based on the number of breaks over the last six years that are logged in the dataset posted on the city’s B-Clear data portal.

Cropped busted pipe IMG_9574
The broken water main from the intersection of Kirkwood Avenue and Washington Street  lay on the pavement Monday morning. July 22, 2019 (Dave Askins/Beacon)

The 44 breaks in 2019 so far, through the first six months of the year, are at least 12 more breaks (37 percent more) than in the first half of any of the last six years. So this year looks like it could be on course to match or exceed the 88 breaks tallied in 2016, which is the biggest number for a whole year since 2013.

Causes for breaks recorded in the dataset include ground movement, defect in the pipe, improper bedding, a contractor, temperature changes, and water hammer, among others. Water hammer is a sudden increase in pressure caused when the momentum of all the water flowing in a pipe is brought to a sudden stop.

A dramatic water main break last Sunday, at the busy four-way stop at Kirkwood Avenue and Washington Street downtown, put Bloomington’s drinking water pipes in the news. Continue reading “2019 on pace to be a big year for Bloomington water main breaks” →