The Town of Shaunavon, in a press release issued Friday afternoon, said they have been receiving calls about a strong chlorine odor in the water.

The Town's water system is treated with sodium hyprochlorite to meet disinfection requirements set out by the Water Security Agency. These requirements are in place to ensure the safety of the water for consumers. The Town of Shaunavon is required by the WSA to monitor the chlorine levels 365 days of the year to ensure levels are within safe limits.

The Town water supply is within all limits and is safe for consumption.

There is a maximum Usage Limit for the sodium hypochlorite that is not to be exceeded. The odor is the naturally occurring ammonia in the wells reacting with the sodium hypochlorite and causing a chemical reaction.

The naturally occurring  ammonia levels in the well water fluctuate occasionally, which can change this reaction and make the odor more noticeable.

There are no health concerns directly related to ammonia levels in the ground water.

The release says that the Town is currently doing a pilot project on well #5 to add the process of ultraviolet disinfection to the water before it enters the distribution system.

The addition of UV should change the disinfection requirements from WSA and allow the Town to reduce the chlorine levels in the system, which may help address the odor.

The construction of the pilot project is expected to be complete towards the end of January and will then be inspected by the WSA before it is brought online. Once it is operational and online, testing will begin to ensure that the process is meeting its objectives. If this pilot project meets the objectives, the Town is planning to add UV to each of its wells in the future.