The residents of Prince Rupert, British Columbia, are under a boil-water advisory after city officials found elevated levels of the parasites cryptosporidium and giardia in its water samples.
The city claims the contamination was caused by the extreme weather experienced in the region this year. A dry summer followed by a storm surge carried debris into the water supply.
The 12,000 residents of Prince Rupert are advised to boil water for a full minute before consuming it.
Earlier this year at tpomag.com, we published a story on the dangers of cryptosporidium as Milwaukee remembered a major outbreak from 25 years ago.
Worker Dies in WWTP Construction Incident
A construction worker at the Back River Wastewater Treatment Plant in Baltimore, Maryland, died after being hit by an excavator, according to the Baltimore Sun.
The worker, Transito Rodriguez Cruz, 36, worked for a company hired by the city for a construction project at the plant and he was working in a trench when the bucket of an excavator hit him.
Cruz was later pronounced dead at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. OSHA is investigating the incident along with the Baltimore Environmental Police.
This marks the second trench-related worker death in Baltimore this year, after a 20-year-old construction worker was killed in a trench collapse while working on a sewer line in June.
Florida County Temporarily Bans Biosolids Use During Investigation
Indian River County (Florida) commissioners recently enacted — and may extend — a ban on biosolids application as state officials investigate whether its use on local farmland is contributing to algae blooms in a nearby lake.
Scientific research in the area indicates that stormwater runoff from a nearby ranch that uses the biosolids is possibly contributing to the nutrient pollution problem.
The current ban expires in mid-January, but the commissioners are looking at extending the ban another six months.
Cougars Spotted On Security Footage at Utah WWTP
In lighter news, security footage at a water treatment plant in City Creek Canyon, Utah, recently showed three mountain lions walking to the facility.
Salt Lake City Public Utilities shared the footage on Twitter, along with a link to some safety tips about encountering the big cats from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.
