Seventeen days later, Slate Falls was back under a drinking water advisory.
Today, Slate Falls is under a new drinking water advisory that’s been in place since Aug. 29.
But Slate Falls isn’t the only First Nation to rescind its long-term advisory, only to have a new advisory issued within weeks or months.
In Slate Falls, the 14-year-old drinking water advisories were actually lifted on Feb. 5, 2018, a month before Philpott visited the community for the opening ceremony.
Indigenous Services said it has provided $325,000 to Sachigo Lake for water system maintenance, including the truck haul system.
Webequie First Nation, which had its long-term advisory lifted four days after Sachigo Lake’s, has also been under an advisory since October.
The First Nation has two reserves, each with its own water treatment plant.
Indigenous Services says that was caused by an equipment failure, but was extended because of “irregular water quality monitoring by the community.” But Chief David Masakeyash said there have been no major repairs to the older treatment plant for years, and some of the equipment is rusting.
“It just can’t go on like this.” Masakeyash said even brief power failures can cause problems, because if the plants are down for even a few hours, they can end up with an advisory in place for a couple of weeks while they test the water and wait for results.
And the government maintains it will lift all long-term advisories on reserves by March 2021.

ANN ARBOR, MI – Ann Arbor officials are expressing confidence the city’s water is safe to drink, despite being contaminated with PFAS chemicals that have links to cancer and other health problems.
Ann Arbor is installing new carbon filters at its water treatment plant to try to reduce PFAS levels in the water residents drink.
The city is doing well metrics-wise when it comes to drinking water safety, argued Council Member Julie Grand, D-3rd Ward, who has a doctorate degree in public health.
“People are concerned about the water,” he said.
At least seven types of the so-called “forever chemicals” have been detected in Ann Arbor’s drinking water and the levels have been as high as 88.1 parts per trillion in recent months.
Multiple council members suggested there may come a time for the city to take more action.
“My entire life here in Ann Arbor, we’ve been watching the plume spread, and now we have all kinds of situations,” he said, expressing hopes there will be new enforcement action against the polluter.
Promote responsible economic development.
Provide opportunities for organizations and residents to actively participate in local government in ways that engage the community to enhance community quality of life.
They expressed hopes the city can partner more with the University of Michigan and leverage university resources and expertise to advance shared priorities, such as in the areas of pedestrian safety and housing.

With water one of life’s necessities, Kevin Kennedy and Cassandra Gibb have been touched by the story coming from the Walgett community who are currently living with a short supply of drinking water.
The community has been on level five restrictions for four months and the town’s bore water supply was knocked out of action when it was hit by lightning in a storm.
With connections to Walgett – Mr Kennedy moved from the town to Dubbo a few years ago, and Ms Gibb has family living in the community – the duo decided something needed to be done to help.
“I heard from the community about their lack of access to fresh drinking water, and I saw a person from Walgett was getting donations together,” Ms Gibb said.
Currently we are up to $6500 and it will all go towards cartons of water for the people of Walgett,” Ms Gibb said.
Big W have also donated two pallets of water, 20 cases have been donated by Woolworths Orana Mall plus they are assisting Ms Gibb and Mr Kennedy with purchase of the water at sale price, and 10Telco have donated a pallet of water.
“It’s been a really great response for the limited amount of information that we have been able to get out there.
But now we want more people to know what we are doing, to get some more donations for this community.
Not being able to rely on going to the tap for a drink, or brushing their teeth, simple things like that.” “This is a crisis.
In 2019 one of our communities should not face not having fresh drinking water.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States Department of Agriculture, USDA, is investing $1.2 billion to help rebuild and improve rural water infrastructure for 936,000 rural Americans living in 46 states.
“Under the leadership of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, USDA is committed to being a strong partner to rural communities in building prosperity through modern water infrastructure.” “Investing in infrastructure benefits the rural economy and the well-being of our environment for future generations to enjoy,” Denise Lovelady, USDA Rural Development State Director for Maryland and Delaware, said.
“Rural Development’s programs are designed to help rural communities address their infrastructure needs and forge a path towards greater prosperity.” USDA is providing financing for 234 water and environmental infrastructure projects through the Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant program.
Below are some examples of the investments USDA is making in Maryland: • Queenstown is receiving a $1,828,000 loan and $1,358,000 grant to make improvements to its water system.
The existing water tower will be replaced, the disinfection system will be upgraded, and a new well and treatment facility will be built.
• The Town of Oxford will use a $493,000 loan and $1,735,000 grant to cover additional costs related to upgrading its wastewater treatment plant.
• The Somerset County Sanitary District Inc. will receive a $83,000 loan and $2,970,000 grant to construct a wastewater treatment plant for the Smith Island communities of Ewell, Rhodes Point and Tylerton.
Additional funding for this project includes an existing $30,000 USDA SEARCH Grant, a $6,117,341 investment from the State of Maryland, and an applicant contribution of $61,941.
• Worcester County will use a $170,000 loan and $80,000 grant to cover a cost over-run to construct a pipeline from the recently upgraded Mystic Harbor wastewater treatment facility.
Increasing investments in rural infrastructure is a key recommendation of the task force.

Winter storms have blanketed California’s Sierra Nevada in snow, but the drought-prone state is still off to another drier-than-normal start to the crucial wet season, state officials said Thursday.
California water managers said Thursday the Sierra snowpack is only 67 percent of normal in this winter’s first manual measurement.
As snow in the Sierra melts in the spring and summer, it flows into reservoirs for storage and provides drinking and agricultural water for much of California.
The snowpack supplies about 30 percent of the state’s water needs, according to the Water Resources department.
Precipitation has bounced up and down as the state continues to recover from a devastating drought that led to tight water restrictions for residents and farmers.
Persistent drought has also dried out trees and brush, contributing to severe wildfires.
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Jerry Brown declared a formal end to a three-year drought emergency in 2017, but said water conservation efforts must continue.

A day after researchers reported that 42 percent of tested wells in southwest Wisconsin were contaminated, state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he would create a task force to study state water quality.
Vos’ announcement Thursday was prompted by formal requests from lawmakers in areas plagued by drinking water that is tainted by pollutants from agriculture and faulty septic systems that can cause illness or death.
Conservationists have complained that Vos, Gov.
Scott Walker and their fellow Republicans who have controlled the Legislature since 2011 have failed to answer pleas from residents around the state whose well water is contaminated by hazardous pathogens and toxic nitrate.
“It comes as no surprise that Representatives (Travis) Tranel and (Todd) Novak are quickly responding to the needs of their Assembly districts,” Vos, R-Rochester, said in a statement.
Laeser said the state’s water problems were an urgent public health issue that demands science-based collaboration among state officials and all who have a stake in cleaning up Wisconsin’s water.
“We look forward to working with everyone to find real solutions to these problems,” Laeser said.
The 42 percent contamination rate is higher than in some other parts of the state that have gotten more attention.
And data have long been available showing high rates of contamination in southwest Wisconsin well tests obtained independently by homeowners over the last 25 years.
And last year the DNR didn’t heed conservation groups that argued southwest Wisconsin’s vulnerable drinking water should also be covered by the rule’s stricter limits.

LAS VEGAS (AP) After a three-year battle to keep their underground job site from flooding, a construction crew at Lake Mead is ready to let the water win.
Workers will shut off pumps keeping the water out and allow it to fill a cavern they have carefully excavated from the rock more than 500 ft. beneath the shore.
The move will mark the latest milestone for the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s low-lake-level pumping station, a $650 million safety net for a region of 2.2 million residents and more than 40 million tourists that draws 90 percent of its drinking water from the Colorado River reservoir behind Hoover Dam.
The pumping station, on track for completion in early 2020, will let Las Vegas keep drawing water even if the drought-stricken lake shrinks another 200 ft. to "dead pool," the point at which Hoover Dam can no longer release water downstream.
"This project is drought-driven," Erika Moonin, project manager for the Las Vegas-based authority, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal during a recent final media tour of the underground pump station forebay.
Once those pumps are off, the space should flood within three or four days.
"There aren’t very many projects like this in the world," said Jordan Hoover, project manager for Montana-based Barnard Construction Co., general contractor for the pump station.
The completed facility will be able to draw up to 900 million gal.
"In combination of depth and flow, they are the largest in the world," Moonin said.
It takes four to five truckloads to deliver a single pump.

The city of Melbourne has declared a beachside boil water alert for residents and businesses from DeSoto Parkway in Satellite Beach northward to the Pineda Causeway in South Patrick Shores.
Wochit The city of Melbourne has declared a beachside boil water alert for residents and businesses from DeSoto Parkway in Satellite Beach northward to the Pineda Causeway in South Patrick Shores.
Crews isolated the broken pipe by 4 p.m., and repairs were expected to begin about 5, Mall said.
The boil water notice is affecting 5,000 to 6,000 households and businesses, Mall said.
Satellite Beach City Manager Courtney Barker said "we have gotten calls all morning" from residents reporting low water pressure, starting at about 7 a.m. "As a city, we worry about our businesses with these boil water notices.
And that area’s the lowest elevation in the city, by South Patrick Drive — especially the north Satellite Beach area.
Melbourne supplies drinking water across to an estimated 170,000 residents across southern Brevard, including Melbourne, West Melbourne, Melbourne Beach, Indialantic, Indian Harbour Beach, Satellite Beach, Palm Shores, Melbourne Village and adjacent unincorporated areas.
Text of Melbourne’s notification: "Water pressure in the area has dropped below the minimum system requirements as work is underway to search for the cause.
For questions or to report anything unusual, beachside residents should call Melbourne’s public works and utilities administration office at 321-608-5000 (daytime) or 321-255-4622 (after-hours).
Rick Mariani, vice president of the South Patrick Residents Association, noticed the water pressure drop while gardening about 8 a.m. Thursday.

A day after researchers reported that 42 percent of tested wells in southwest Wisconsin were contaminated, state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos announced he would create a task force to study state water quality.
Vos’ announcement Thursday was prompted by formal requests from lawmakers in areas plagued by drinking water that is tainted by pollutants from agriculture and faulty septic systems that can cause illness or death.
Conservationists have complained that Vos, Gov.
Scott Walker and their fellow Republicans who have controlled the Legislature since 2011 have failed to answer pleas from residents around the state whose well water is contaminated by hazardous pathogens and toxic nitrate.
The Wisconsin State Journal first reported Wednesday on initial findings of a study that found the pollutants in 301 randomly selected residential wells in Grant, Iowa and Lafayette counties.
Laeser said the state’s water problems were an urgent public health issue that demands science-based collaboration among state officials and all who have a stake in cleaning up Wisconsin’s water.
Nitrate in drinking water usually comes from fertilizer.
But state geologist Ken Bradbury said the rate wasn’t surprising.
It’s no secret that southwest Wisconsin has areas of thin topsoil and porous bedrock that allow surface pollutants to reach groundwater relatively easily.
And data has long been available showing high rates of contamination in southwest Wisconsin well tests obtained independently by homeowners over the last 25 years.

Veolia and its subsidiary Birdz have selected Orange Business Services to digitise its water services.
The two will digitise their water metering by connecting over 3 million water meters using a LoRa network over the next ten years.
The goal to read more than 70% of the meters remotely by 2027 follows a suceessful 12-month pilot in Toulese.
“Birdz has chosen Orange Business Services to help it make a strategic shift from a technology requiring deployment of a radio network infrastructure to a solution that is open, interoperable and reversible and also a solution which meets the needs of our customers,” according to a statement.
The network currently covers 30,000 municipalities and 95% of the population of Metropolitan France.
The smart water meters project will help reduce consumer bills by giving them access to real-time water usage data which they can use to identify potentials to enhance water efficiency.
For Veolia and Birdz, the project will help improve water management to ensure sustainable management of water resources and to enhance revenue collection and reduce non-revenue water through quick detection of water leaks and fraud.
The LoRa network will allow Birdz to focus on their core business and develop new services.
Birdz will also rely on Live Objects, the object and data management platform of Orange Business Services, to collect the mass of information from the meters.
Frédéric Van Heems, CEO of Veolia Water France, stated: “This project with Orange Business Services illustrates Veolia’s goal to digitalize our businesses and services.