WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — It's hard to forget the frustration that led to so many, stocking up on bottled water, after blue-green algae tainted the drinking water supply last summer.
WPTV's Chris Gilmore sat down with veteran reporter Kimberly Miller of the Palm Beach Post about her report tapping into what caused the water crisis and potential solutions.
"So one option that West Palm Beach has, and they did use one option to help dilute the algae that was in Clear Lake, is they have some emergency wells that they can tap in sort of a shallow aquifer, but they can only use those in emergency situations,” said Miller.
Miller reports the city is asking the South Florida Water Management District to loosen the reigns so Clear Lake and Grassy Water Preserve, which draw from other bodies of water, can stay at higher levels and aren't as susceptible to drought and contaminants.
But two factors still threaten to upend progress, climate change and a population to drought and contaminants.
"In the future as the town grows and it is growing exponentially, they're considering looking into the Floridan aquifer, which is much deeper so they would have to do a desalinization plan or reverse osmosis plan to use that water," said Miller.
With maybe 30 to 60 days left before the heat really sets in, West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James said recommendations from a special task force are being studied closely.
"As we enter the season for algae infestation for the weather, we will be testing more frequently, but the results of this stuff will be put on our website so the public can monitor that directly," said James.
To read the full report by the Palm Beach Post, click here.
