SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla.,None — Seminole County is thinking about adding ammonia to the county's drinking water. The county says it will better protect residents, but according to some, the chemical might not be safe for everybody.
Right now, Seminole County uses chlorine to disinfect water for its 130,000 customers.
But water utility officials said adding ammonia to the mix will bring the system into compliance with new federal water laws and save tens of millions of dollars over other options.
But when ammonia mixes with the chlorine that's already present, it forms a compound called chloramine and some worry about its effect on some people, especially those with sensitive allergies like Mee Chaney.
"What they think is good collectively is not always good individually," Chaney said.
From Pennsylvania to California, groups have created websites and gathered signatures to oppose chloramine. Activists said it can cause a slew of health problems.
Dr. Steve Durenceau has designed water treatment plants for 25 years, and he's now a professor of environmental engineering at UCF. He said the fears about chloramine are unfounded.
"Absolutely it's safe. The EPA sets the regulations to ensure the water utilities make it so," he said. "It's a good thing to have it in the water because it protects you from pathogens or viruses."
According to the EPA, one in five Americans already has chloramine in their water. That includes customers in Oviedo, Cocoa and Melbourne. Durenceau said it only causes problems for a very small number of people.
Chaney said she wants utility officials to make sure chloramine won't affect people like her when they hear more from water experts and the county commission next month.
"What proof are they offering up or are they offering any?" Chaney said.
In 2008, Seminole County considered eliminating fluoride from the drinking water, also to lower costs. But because of public outcry, the county decided to keep it in the water. Fluoride is added to water to help prevent cavities.
WFTV
