WINTER HAVEN, Fla. — Winter Haven resident Jacqueline Johnson said the water that comes out of her faucets has a foul odor. "It’s a stinky odor, more or less like sewer.”
The smell is so bad she’s afraid to drink it.
“I drink bottled water. Cooking, I'll use it for cooking but not to drink,” Johnson said.
Despite the odor, experts said the Winter Haven water supply is safe to drink. Scientists at Florida Polytechnic University are conducting a research project focused on eliminating the unpleasant odor.
“Most of our water resources come from underground. There are a lot of microorganisms and they sometimes produce unnecessary gases. One of them is hydrogen sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide usually has the smell of rotten egg,” said Dr. Jun Kim, Florida Poly assistant professor of environmental engineering.
Using advanced treatment processes, researchers are working to identify how to remove the hydrogen sulfide producing the rotten egg smell. The study includes collecting and analyzing samples from the city’s water treatment plants.
“We can measure levels, such as PH, dissolved oxygen, as well as just measuring other contaminants in the water, as well as particulates,” said Nolan Nguyen, student research assistant.
Removing hydrogen sulfide from the city’s water supply will reduce the formation of disinfection byproducts that at certain concentrations can be cancerous.
This research could not only benefit other cities that struggle with elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide in the water supply but find new solutions for removing harmful “forever chemicals.”
“As we go further into this research, it can be applied to disinfection byproducts and PFAS known as "forever chemicals" and can help treat those in the water as well, so that water becomes safer,” said Sabrina Roggero, student research assistant.
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