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“It is true that people, particularly adults, can drink spring water for long periods of time without ill effects,” Tenney said. “But they can also get serious sickness, particularly children. There are a number of diseases caused by animals defecating on the ground above, and the pathogens contaminating the water source.
Giardia lamblia, for example, is an intestinal parasite spread by both people and animals, Tenney said. He called it “mean,” and its victims get “very ill.” Other disorders, including salmonella, can be spread by birds, racoons, foxes and other animals whose waste contaminates the surface water which eventually mixes with the spring water before it reaches the roadside outlet.
Those people who claim to have drunk the water for years without ill effects are “very lucky,” he said. “Maybe the water doesn’t have pathogens in it most of the time.” But, if they’ve had intestinal illnesses during that time it could have been caused by the water, without them realizing it.
“If they want to keep drinking it, that’s their problem. If people want to drink from springs, streams or ponds, that’s their business . . . People are free to drink whatever water they want ... I can’t stop them,” Tenney said.
“But you are asking me to certify a water supply as safe, and I can’t do that,” the health director added. “I’m a health officer, charged with protecting the public health. I’m not going to tell anybody that water is good to drink.
“I’d do it again,” he emphasized. “That spring is not a safe source of drinking water. ”
The signs are ineffective, he said,
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