The City of Toledo did not test for microcystin in its drinking water supply on Wednesday, the first time it did not test for the toxin since the city’s August water crisis.
The city has tested the water coming into and leaving its Collins Park Water Treatment Plant daily since it issued a do-not-drink advisory on Aug. 2, when microcystin was detected at unsafe levels in tap water for the 500,000 customers who drink water treated at the plant.
Microcystin is a toxin produced by blue-green algae, microcystis, which is actually a bacteria that mimics algae.
The Ohio EPA’s guidance says that city’s can stop daily testing for the toxin when lake levels are below 5 parts per billion and tap water levels are undetectable for three straight days, said Kelly Hancock, public relations supervisor for Hart Associates, which works with the city.
The city actually waited five days of those testing levels before deciding to scale back its testing regiment, Ms. Hancock said. The EPA’s guidance also calls for cities to test twice a week, but Toledo is testing every other day, she said.