All Rapidan Service Authority water advisories lifted in Orange County

ORANGE COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — All water advisories issued by the Rapidan Service Authority (RSA) and Virginia Department of Health (VDH) have officially been lifted as of Tuesday, with Orange-area customers now cleared to resume normal water usage.

Since Aug. 22, a number of water-related advisories were jointly issued by the RSA and VDH regarding the Rapidan River and the Wilderness Water Treatment Plant — where reports of an unknown, “objectionable odor” were being investigated.

This included a “do not use water” advisory that stated the about 13,000 affected customers were to avoid all contact with water — with the advisory later downgraded to a “do not drink water” advisory after a number of days. This was in addition to a swimming advisory for the river.

According to a RSA and VDH joint press release issued Tuesday, Aug. 27, the final of those advisories that still remained in effect — the “do not drink water” advisory — has officially been lifted.

Multiple days of testing conducted by the VDH found that the drinking water “fully complies with federal and state drinking water standards,” according to the release.

“VDH’s daily inspections of the water treatment plant and distribution system confirmed that the objectionable odor in the drinking water is no longer present at the water treatment plant and had sufficiently dissipated in the distribution system to no longer be a concern,” the release reads. “Despite best efforts from multiple state agencies to identify the source or cause of the odor, it could not be determined. Certified laboratories were unable to identify any contaminant that would have explained the odor. VDH ODW will pursue any new development that would warrant investigation or follow-up.”

If you continue to notice an odor in your tap water, the RSA and VDH recommend flushing your taps . If that does not resolve the issue, submit a report with the RSA online .

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