The question is whether such activity could have damaged the Whitney Portal spring or has it been from structural failure over time?
I was told the spring's "developed" concrete box structure (that I did not see myself) had dried up and the filter/screen was clogged. When or where the water sample was obtained I do not know: downstream at a spigot, swiped off the clogged screen, somewhere else? There is talk of installing an intake higher up. Meanwhile, visitor volume has dropped because of the hysteria.
So far we have from someone at the Portal, apparently, (1) the spring changed course, (2) the concrete box dried up and (3) the the filter was clogged. Leaving aside the question of whether any of these even makes sense, none of the above have anything to do with the reasons given by Inyo County the agency that actually shut the system down: detection of e coli etc at the source. I know you are not making this stuff up, Harvey, but somebody is:
August 17, from Inyo NF, USFS:
"The water system at Whitney Portal has been ordered to be shut off.
The system’s source has tested positive for both E. coli and total coliform. The cause of the contamination is unknown at this point and therefore cannot be corrected."
August 24, From Inyo County"
"The Whitney Portal water source is a developed spring located on the hillside above the day use parking area. We think the spring construction has recently been compromised and now has allowed surface contamination to get in to the spring source. This is not acceptable for a public drinking water source and hence the discontinuation of the spring for their drinking water system.
Since E coli is naturally occurring in our environment, you should always assume that all surface water has E coli contamination. Because of this, it is advisable to always properly treat surface water before drinking, cooking, etc. You should not assume any surface water is safe to drink without the proper treatment.
Kathe Barton, REHS, Interim Director
Inyo County Environmental Health Services
Small Water System Local Primacy Agency
207 W South Street, Bishop, CA 93514
tel: (760) 873-7865 fax: (760) 873-3236
email: kbarton@inyocounty.us "
Moving spring, dry box and clogged filter, my ass.
