Water system exceeded HAA drinking water standard; no immediate action required.

WYOMING COUNTY

PUBLIC NOTICE



IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR DRINKING WATER

Haloacetic Acid (HAA) MCL Violation at Village of Attica Water System



Our water system recently exceeded a drinking water standard. Although this incident was not an emergency, as our customers, you have a right to know what happened and what we are doing to correct this situation.



We routinely monitor for the presence of drinking water contaminants. Testing results from November 2025 and February 2026 show that our system exceeded the standard, or maximum contaminant level (MCL), for HAA. The standard for HAA is 60 µg/l. It is determined by averaging all the samples collected at each sampling location for the previous 12 months. The average level of HAA at our system for the fourth quarter of 2025 was 69.1 µg/l. The average level of HAA at our system for the first quarter of 2026 was 65.9 µg/l.




What should I do?

 * There is nothing you need to do. You do not need to boil your water or take other corrective actions. If a situation arises where the water is no longer safe to drink, you will be notified within 24 hours.
 * If you have a severely compromised immune system, have an infant, are pregnant, or are elderly, you may be at increased risk and should seek advice from your health care providers about drinking this water.




This is not an emergency. If it had been you would have been notified within 24 hours.




What are haloacetic acids (HAAs)?

HAAs are formed in drinking water during treatment by chlorine (the most commonly used disinfectant in New York State), which reacts with certain acids that are in naturally-occurring organic material (e.g., decomposing vegetation such as tree leaves, algae, or other aquatic plants) in surface water sources such as rivers and lakes. The amount of HAAs in drinking water can change from day to day, depending on the temperature, the amount of organic material in the water, the amount of chlorine added, and a variety of other factors. Drinking water is disinfected by public water suppliers to kill bacteria and viruses that could cause serious illnesses. For this reason, disinfection of drinking water by chlorination is beneficial to public health.




Some studies suggest that people who drank chlorinated drinking water containing disinfection by-products (possibly including HAAs) for long periods of time (e.g., 20 to 30 years) have an increased risk for certain health effects. These include an increased risk for cancer. However, how long and how frequently people actually drank the water as well as how much HAAs the water contained is not known for certain. Therefore, the evidence from these studies is not strong enough to conclude that the observed increased risk for cancer is due to HAAs, other disinfection by-products, or some other factor. Studies of laboratory animals show that the individual HAAs, dichloroacetic acid and trichloroacetic acid, can cause cancer following exposure to high levels over their lifetimes. Dichloroacetic acid and trichloroacetic acid are also known to cause other effects in laboratory animals after high levels of exposure, primarily on the liver, kidney, and nervous system and on their ability to bear healthy offspring. The effects reported in studies of laboratory animals occur at exposures much higher than exposures that could result through normal use of the water. The risks for adverse health effects from HAAs in drinking water are small compared to the risk for illness from drinking inadequately disinfected water.




What does this mean for you?

At present, the water is suitable to drink, cook with, and bath in. Some people may wish to take additional practical measures to reduce their exposure. We do not consider these measures necessary to avoid health effects, but they are provided as options. These include using bottled water for drinking and cooking purposes, or using water pitchers containing an activated carbon filter or a tap-mounted activated carbon filter. These filters are readily available in many grocery and home improvement stores. Ventilating bathroom areas (e.g., using exhaust fans or opening windows) when showering or bathing can also help reduce exposures from chemicals released into the air.




The sampling location for the Village was selected because it was believed to be the location that represents the highest levels of HAA of any drinking water in our system.




What is being done?




The Village of Attica is considering increased flushing of the water mains, and Village of Attica has begun the process of constructing a new treatment plant that should reduce the levels of haloacetic acids.




For more information, please contact Matt Durfee at 585-591-0040 or Andy Meyer of the Wyoming County Health Department at (585) 786-8894.




*Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.*




This notice is being sent to you by the Village of Attica. State Water System ID#: NY6000607

Date distributed: ______.