For three weeks, several Lux Living readers have been complaining about the lack of clean water in their
Stuyvesant Town apartments.Could excessive construction on the complex be causing the third world water conditions? An annoyed tenant at 622 East 20th Street writes:
"Does anyone know anything about the EPA and the last three weeks of dirty water? [In the past] I have had brown hot water because of Stuyvesant Town's hot water heating system, lack of maintenance (blowing down the line) and old pipes but this is the cold water. I just called 311 AGAIN. They said they had no information as to when the problem would be resolved.
I am going broke trying to live with this. Now not only do I have to drink with and cook with bottled water, I have to wash my salads and vegetables with it as well. We are showering in it, washing dishes in it and laundering our clothes with it. An inspector told me it wasn't the EPA doing their "routine maintenance." It was all the construction on the complex that was causing it. Someone is lying. I e-mailed the mayor's office. As usual, I have received no response. I cannot believe I am still living with this. "
I have to buy bottled water for drinking and have a cooligan filter in my shower and a brita filter in my bathroom sink. Even when the water looks clear, most of the time it has a brownish sediment. I wish we would get compensated for the expense of buying bottled water and for the filters.
That's not dirty water! It's iron fortified! Drink up, you'll thank us later
I can only use the water for coffee...otherwise the brown color turns my stomach.
ST/PCV is filled with health, safety and heating violations. Where is the NY Post when when need it?
NYC apparently offers a free Residential Drinking Water [at the tap for lead and perhaps other contaminants] Testing Program thru the NYC Department of Environmental Protection. One can call the 311 "helpline" to request a free test kit. The 2007 NYC water quality report can be found at http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/wsstate07.pdf. There is a description of the reasons for brown water--rusty pipes, construction, etc--on page 16 of the report.
Complaints to NYC's 311 helpline often seem to disappear into the ether, thus it might be useful to contact other entities with an interest in the safety of drinking water. Although the water supplied in Stuy Town originates from NYC's reservoirs, I seem to recall reading a while ago that Stuy Town is considered as a community water system and may be, therefore, subject to federal Safe Drinking Water (SDW) Act regulations; I'm not sure whether they are required to report on quality of drinking water that they distribute. The US EPA has a SDW hotline [1-800-426-4791); however, I haven't tried it as yet.
Update: The EPA hotline has recorded messages only rather than live people; seems fairly useless. I did contact their safe drinking water office via e-mail to ask if the landlord's distribution system is subject to federal regulation and required to provide reports to consumers. I will post again if and when I receive a reply. I also spoke with a person at the New York Public Interest Research Group, a non-partisan, non-profit body, that sometimes takes on issues that are being ignored by government. The person at NYPIRG suggested utilizing the free testing kits to see if the brown water violates drinking water regulations and then pursuing the issue further if the water does not meet standards. Lead in drinking water is a particular concern, especially for those with young children. I suggest that readers of this blog call 311 for the free test kits and follow up with city agencies if the tests indicate there are problems.
Thanks for the info Anonymous. It's getting so bad I can't tell the difference between the toilet and the sink.
Tishman Speyer has some balls allowing this to go on.
I would be good to know what the regulations are for the content of sediment and particulate matter in drinking water.
Talk about a labyrinth...federal drinking water regulations would stump even Ariadne! I am not an expert on the ins-and-outs, but know that there are primary regulations that cover such things as bugs, chemicals, certain metals, etc. The rules that govern these chemicals are usually set by contaminant, eg, lead, E. coli, and PCBs; compliance with these regs is mandated. There are secondary regulations that are not mandated but can be adopted by water suppliers; these cover aesthetic factors such as taste, odor, or color. The water could be brown but meet standards as long as the primary standards are met. That's why testing water at the tap is necessary. That brown water could have a lot of lead from old pipe fittings or it could just be sediment that might not not fall under the regulations. Here is a link to some FAQs on EPA's website that you might want to explore if you have time: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/faq/faq.html. Warning, they can make your hair hurt.
Is this the new signature apartment series sponsored by Tishman Speyer? Let me guess - this the Howard Hughes OCD bathtub full of urine suite? Awesome.
I just called 311 AGAIN. They said the EPA's "routine maintenance" that was causing the cold water to be brown this last 4 weeks is over. My cold and of course my hot is still brown this morning. I just called Theresa at Service. She said they "need to blow down the line." For 14 years I am listening to this. For years I have had to call and put in a request for the plumbers to do their job. They are almost as disgusting as the water they supply. They should have been blowing down the line all along.
I still have filthy water. Both hot and cold are still running dirty. 311 says it is the landlord. The landlord says it is the city. I haven't received a response from the Mayor's office. It appears the city is helping TS drive people out.