Drinking water here is safe but has dissolved minerals that are tough on plumbing, state and local officials said Thursday at a meeting with some of the 130 utility customers who raised concerns this winter about water quality.
Water from Valley’s two well fields has been hard since the day the 133-year-old utility first tapped into those sources.
Several said the water coming out of their taps is cloudy, has an off- taste and smells.
The residents said they buy and drink bottled water.
Keith Merwin of Shuttlemeadow Road said people are sick of spending money for replacement appliances and for bottled water to drink.
"It’s frustrating to hear people say that they can’t drink the water," Lori Mathieu, chief of the state health department drinking water section, said.
"I’ve lived her all my life and the water has always been hard," she said.
Options could include new treatment equipment to remove dissolved minerals from raw well water or purchase of soft surface waters from nearby water utilities to dilute Valley’s harder water.
The company will explore options to reduce levels of dissolved minerals and tell customers the findings and what the cost will be.
This particular issue would be outside the normal supervision of state utility regulators who usually set rates, Vaughn said.