Superintendent: ‘There’s no quick fix to everybody’s problem’
By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com
* Aug. 7: End in sight to Hamlet’s water woes
* July 14: ‘No health issue’ with Hamlet water
HAMLET — On Aug. 7, Robert Brown said it appeared the earthy taste experienced by many of the Hamlet water system’s 10,000-plus customers was coming to an end.
He was wrong.
On Tuesday at the Hamlet City Council’s monthly public meeting, Brown said the root problem does appear, in fact, resolved.
“The problem’s in the lines,” Brown said of the city’s system that is more than 100 years old. “It’s fixed at the plant. It’s all out in the system. There’s no way to fix everybody’s problem. The system is well over 100 years old. A lot of the odor is trapped in these older lines, with all the buildup that’s in these pipes.
Brown acknowledged in August that he made the decision to use a liquified form of copper sulphate to manage algae growth in Water Lake instead of the granulated used in prior years. Brown said the dosage of the liquid concoction wasn’t correct and that resulted in the smell and earthy taste. In early August, Brown and city workers began flushing the water lines — starting from the “hub” of the system, the water treatment plant, and working their way outward much like the spokes of a bicycle wheel.
Brown reiterated Tuesday he believes that part of the problem was resolved, but the old water lines have so much build-up — 6-inch pipes could actually have 3 inches of room because of it — that there is no clear, direct answer.
Councilman Jesse McQueen said he continues to receive complaints from city residents. Others in the chamber room said they’ve also been hearing complaints. McQueen asked Brown about purchasing water from the city of Rockingham or Richmond County governments. Brown said neither was an option.
Rockingham, he said, doesn’t have the capacity or the water. In fact, that city’s water is being supplemented by the county.
The issue, McQueen said, has “dragged on a little longer than I thought.”
Brown noted that purchasing water elsewhere “is not the quick fix, or fix-all.” But that’s exactly what McQueen sought.
“We need something to happen fast,” McQueen said. “Could you think of anybody we could call to check our lake?
Brown said he’s been in contact with a state agency that has promised to take samples but as of Tuesday, that hadn’t yet happened. It’s out of his hands, Brown said.