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Covert contamination: when organizations have failed to notify the public of drinking water issues in Alabama

The ability to trust that our basic needs are met is the foundation of a healthy psyche, according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. These needs include access to food, water, shelter, and other physiological necessities. When we cannot fulfill those needs, items and tasks that appear higher on the hierarchy, like freedom, friendship, self-esteem, and self-actualization, become more difficult or impossible to achieve.

Unfortunately, even in a developed country like the U.S., our drinking water is not always safe. Instances like lead contamination in Flint, Michigan, water treatment plant failures in Jackson, Mississippi, and a Navy fuel storage facility leak in Honolulu are all evidence of some of the issues and dysfunctional systems that can lead to unsafe water. All of those instances are now public and either resolved or in the process of being resolved; however, despite its illegality, organizations in charge of ensuring clean, potable water for their constituents aren’t always transparent about the state of their product, thereby violating federal law.

The Government Performance and Results Act requires all federal entities to produce performance reports that include relevant statistics about their work. Part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s reports contain data about a wide variety of water quality violations, including which organizations have failed to comply with public notice rules for water contamination that they discover.

Using the EPA’s GPRA Violation Report for public notice violations, Stacker compiled a list of the largest organizations in violation of the law requiring the public to be notified of contaminated drinking water between January and June 2022. Organizations are ranked by the size of the population they serve. Ties were broken by the number of public notice violations incurred.

Read on to see which organizations in your state have incurred the largest violations.

#16. Swan Creek Community (Royce Swan, Llc)
– Population served: 321
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#15. Town of Gordon
– Population served: 414
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#14. Mt Andrew Water Authority
– Population served: 660
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#13. Columbia Water Works
– Population served: 1,188
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#12. Star-Mindingall Water Authority
– Population served: 1,962
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1

#11. Wise Metals Group, Llc (Constellium)
– Population served: 2,400
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1

#10. Lexington Water Works And Sewer
– Population served: 2,910
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1

#9. Pluris Alabama Llc
– Population served: 3,287
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1

#8. Gordo Wtr Gas & Sewer Board
– Population served: 3,630
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1

#7. Marion Water Department
– Population served: 4,188
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#6. South Marengo Co Water & Fire Pro Auth
– Population served: 4,410
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#5. Eutaw Water Department
– Population served: 4,764
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1

#4. Snead Water Works
– Population served: 5,958
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#3. Thomasville Water Works & Sewer Board
– Population served: 6,897
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1

#2. Satsuma Water Works
– Population served: 7,248
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 2

#1. Saraland Water Service
– Population served: 13,827
– Number of violations from January-June 2022: 1