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Chlorine concerns in Port Clements

Port Clements started adding chlorine to its troubled water system Monday (June 21) on the orders of Northern Health, a move which the health authority said should lead to the lifting of the boil advisory that's been in place since March.Colin Merz, environmental health officer for Northern Health, said Port's recent problems with its water system are not unusual and that adding chlorine is the easiest and most effective way to make sure the water is safe to drink.However, the decision to chlorinate is causing concern for several Port residents. Judy Hadley, who started an anti-chlorine petition that has gathered about 50 signatures so far, said she will not be drinking water that has been treated with it."Chlorine is not a good substance, it's poison," she said. "For 33 years we've been opposed to it."Ms Hadley said the chlorine issue has come up many times in Port and the village has always rejected it. For a while, Port treated its water with an ozonator, but Ms Hadley said the village wasn't able to afford the new technology to keep the system up to date.While residents who want to avoid chlorine can let drinking water sit for 24 hours (the chlorine will dissipate), Ms Hadley said it's impossible to get rid of byproducts like trihalomethanes, formed when chlorine reacts with organic matter in the water. Trihalomethanes, also known as THMs, have been associated with an increased risk of cancer in lab animals.Ms Hadley said she'd like Northern Health officials to come to Port and explain exactly why chlorine is needed."There's no proof that our water is bad," she said. "This is strictly a bureaucratic policy decision... There is no way we need to have poison in our water."Port residents Wendy Quinn and Brigid Cumming came to Monday night's council meeting (June 21) with similar concerns.Mr. Merz said Northern Health will hold a meeting in Port once the chlorine levels have been stabilized and it has received water test results.While there are some health concerns about chlorine, Mr. Merz said, it's generally accepted that it's far riskier to drink untreated water than it is to drink chlorinated water. Northern Health will be measuring and monitoring the level of THMs in Port's water, he said, to make sure they are in line with guidelines."We anticipate they will be well under the guidelines," he said, because previous testing has shown that Port's water does not have high levels of the organic material required to form THMs.