Tyler Mayor Addresses Local Water Safety Concerns

TYLER — Tyler Mayor Martin Heines says he’s asked the city manager to hire an independent, third party expert to evaluate the facilities and protocols of the city’s water department. In a letter made available to the public, Heines points out that the firm, Enprotec/Hibbs & Todd, Inc. has never done work for the city of Tyler. Heines presented the letter at a Wednesday news conference in the wake of accusations from activist Erin Brockovich that the water isn’t safe — and that city officials are lying to residents. According to Heines;s letter, “We expect the independent review to take approximately two weeks. The firm will begin work starting on Monday, Nov. 9. Upon completion of their assessment, we will review the findings and make them available to the public. Our goal is to continue our long history of transparency and openness in local government.”

The concerns were raised by a surge in haloacetic acids in the Tyler system. The letter also reads, “Staff informs me that they continue to work on decreasing the haloacetic acids in our water supply and that it will take time. We will continue to send quarterly notices until the situation is within required parameters. I would like to stress that I remain confident in the Tyler water system. Every month the department tests the water at 117 locations for elements that could cause acute illnesses, such as E.coli. The results of these tests are available to the public.” To read Heines’s letter in its entirety, go to http://www.cityoftyler.org and click on the “News” tab.