Frustrated community near Yuma wants more to be done to fix unsafe water
YUMA (AZFamily) — Residents of Wellton, a farming community east of Yuma, are frustrated about their drinking water being unsafe despite ongoing efforts to fix the problem. The town has been working to improve water quality for over a decade, but many residents say it’s still not enough.
Town leaders have issued several water notices informing the public about the poor water quality, which has tested high for contaminants. Since 2013, they’ve been working with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality to make improvements at their water treatment plant.
The town has also violated drinking water standards by failing to properly monitor the water. They issued another public notice stating they failed to monitor the water in February, with zero samples taken for the month.
Failure to monitor the water now has residents even more concerned. “By law, they have to test the water every month, but they’re not doing that,” said Gerald Shannon, a Wellton resident.
Shannon said he’s been dealing with the water issues for five years. That’s when he moved to Wellton. “People would always tell me not to drink the water; my neighbors would tell me the water was not very good water,” he said.
He immediately began buying drinking water from the water kiosk in town, but since February, the water has been free. The town of Wellton received a grant from the Water Infrastructure Financing Authority which has allowed them to give free water to residents.
There are now three water kiosks where residents go daily to fill up their gallons of water. While it’s a small win, some residents struggle with having to refill and transport water. “It’s very frustrating. You have a bunch of elderly people, and we have a bunch of friends in the RV park who have cancer; they can’t come and get the water. So we’re having to come and get it for everybody,” said Angela Boyer, a Wellton resident.
Shannon doesn’t believe town leaders are doing enough. “If they wanted to really solve the problem, they would invest in a city-wide osmosis system,” said Shannon.
Having given up on local leaders, Shannon has now invested in his own filtration system at home, which cost him about $400. He also has to replace the filter every month, with each one costing him about $50.
While it may be expensive, he says it is necessary. “Well, it’s for my health. You got to do it. There’s a lot of people in town who probably would be too expensive for them to do and they rely on the water of this town. I stopped relying on them a long time ago,” said Shannon.
Arizona’s Family has tried reaching the town’s manager about their water issues, but have not heard back.
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