The community of Seville has received good news: its residents can finally drink their tap water.
With the help of Tulare County and state emergency funding, the unincorporated community last month drilled a new well for its 500 residents—and tests just confirmed that its water is potable.
The community had been struggling for years with high levels of nitrates and leaky pipes. Ryan Jensen with the Community Water Center says water pressure is also a problem: when it’s too low, contaminants can get in.
Jensen: "Over the course of this summer, as the water capacity started declining mostly because of the drought and the drawdown in the water table, the pressure in the system wasn't high enough so they had to start issuing boil water notices all summer long."
Jensen says the community is still hoping for a planning study and construction grant to provide a more long-term solution.