Marla Lickers runs Marla's Place in Steelton. Last week she got a letter saying there were contaminants in the drinking water. "I was drinking the water never knowing there was a problem with it so yes it was scary to me," said Lickers. So what exactly contaminated the water? Something called disinfectant byproducts. "A water treatment plant will add chlorine to the water. That Chlorine bonds with other compounds in the water and you have a disinfection byproduct," said DEP Spokesperson Amanda Witman.
That's what happened in Steelton, but Witman said the water is now safe to drink and there are no short term health risks. "Thankfully the levels are at an acceptable level at this point. The Department has been working very closely with Steelton Water Authority to correct this issue," said Witman. The partnership comes after the DEP slapped the Steelton Water Authority with a $55 thousand dollar fine back in 2013 for not treating the water properly and falsifying reports. "They have stepped up their monitoring efforts for the disinfection byproducts to ensure that this does not occur again," said Witman.