March 2004 

Dear Customer: 

As part of "spring cleaning" for the District's water supply, the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (WASA) has started the annual system-wide flushing program of water mains throughout the city. In addition, the Washington Aqueduct, which treats Washington's water, will temporarily switch the distribution system disinfectant from chioramine to free chlorine, from April 2 to May 7, 2004. 

The flushing program, which consists of opening fire hydrants and flushing water through water mains, occurs from 10 pm to 6 am, Sundays through Thursdays until November 2004. Flushing removes sediments that may accumulate in water mains and enhances circulation in the distribution system. Routine maintenance is also performed on the valves and hydrants as they are opened. 

Your water supply will not be shut off while crews flush the water mains. You may experience some temporary water discoloration immediately after the flushing procedure. If this happens, open the tap and allow the water to run slowly until the water flows clear. 

A notice with information about when WASA crews will flush the mains in your neighborhood will be placed on your door approximately 48 hours prior to the flushing. The flushing schedule will also be posted on the WASA website, www.dcwasa.com 

You may notice a slight chlorine taste and odor during the five weeks when the Washington Aqueduct, the supplier of water to District homes, switches its disinfectant. This is normal and poses no health risk. The Washington Aqueduct began using chioramine in November 2000. This disinfectant switch was done in the spring of 2002 and 2003. This is a common industry practice for systems that use chloramine and is accompanied by the water main flushing program. 

The implementation of chloramine as a distribution system disinfectant has resulted in a significant reduction of regulated disinfection byproducts and has also provided an added benefit of improving the taste of drinking water. The temporary disinfectant change to chlorine and flushing of the distribution system mains will have an overall beneficial effect for the chemistry changes the Washington Aqueduct plans to make later this year. However, this temporary disinfectant switch is not connected with the ongoing studies that address water chemistry changes to reduce lead leaching from service lines. 

If you have any questions, please call the WASA Water Quality Office at 202-612-3440 from 8 am to 4 pm, or the WASA 24-hour emergency line at 202-612-3400. 

Sincerely,

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