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Bad odor, taste in water means wells for Elgin, Aurora

A bad odor and taste to the drinking water pulled from the Fox River has led Elgin and Aurora to temporarily turn to wells.

An outgrowth of algae in the river started the problem about 10 days ago. Also affected are Sleepy Hollow, which gets all its water from Elgin, and Bartlett, which gets about half its water from Elgin.

The water is safe to drink, but it's unpleasant enough that action was taken this week, officials said.

Aurora, which typically uses 60 percent river water and 40 percent well water, has completely switched to wells, said Dave Schumacher, superintendent of water production. Elgin, which doesn't have enough wells to do that, is blending river water with 57 percent well water, the maximum possible, Water Director Kyla Jacobsen said.

Who to blame? Mother Nature, Jacobsen said. "It's just an unpredictable, natural fluctuation in water quality," Schumacher agreed.

Dozens of residents have complained, and some have wondered if the water is safe to drink.

Elgin resident Jennifer Phillips said the smell and taste are so bad that she, her husband and her mother are only drinking bottled water. She thinks the river water might have caused some gastrointestinal problems for her family earlier this week, she said.

Local officials say the problem compound - 2-Methylisoborneol, or MIB - caused by the algae bloom is not harmful.

It imparts "a musty-earthy odor to drinking-water, which, although unpleasant, is harmless," according to the World Health Organization.

The water routinely is tested for safety several times a day at multiple locations in Elgin and Aurora, Schumacher and Jacobsen said. Both said they continue to drink tap water.

"The water is 100 percent safe to drink," Schumacher said.

Jacobsen echoed that. "I have two glasses here right now."

Bartlett Public Works Director Dan Dinges said the village has received several complaints about the water's odor, which primarily affects the northwest part of town. "It's not harmful, that's what we tell everybody," he said.

The same is happening in Sleepy Hollow, Village President Stephan Pickett said. "I have faith in the technicians at the Elgin water system."

Elgin and Aurora initially tried a powder-activated carbon treatment that didn't help much. Both towns said they'll keep drawing well water as long as needed, but hope that won't be too long. Besides being cheaper, drawing Fox River water is better for the environment because underground aquifers don't get depleted.

A similar problem happened in 2013, when elevated levels of a different, but also safe, compound called geosmin affected taste and smell of water, Schumacher said. The worst in Elgin was in 1996, when the problem lasted more than three weeks, Jacobsen said.

Not everyone can detect a difference in the water. Among the lucky ones is Elgin resident Rich Wagner, who's said he's been OK with the water at his downtown business and east side home.

Problems caused by algae growth routinely happen in the 500 or so communities nationwide that draw water from rivers and lakes, Schumacher said. "At this point in time as a society we can't scientifically predict when it will happen and when it will go away," he said.

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