Boil water order lifted at Loring Commerce Center

LIMESTONE, Maine — After more than a week, the Maine Rural Water Association lifted its boil water order at Loring Commerce Center on Friday.

The association issued the order last Tuesday after Loring's water system tested too high for amounts of "nephelometric turbidity units," which measures the concentration of suspended ps within water, including soils, silt, organic matter, algae and microscopic organisms.

There was no health or safety risk but the order was issued out of caution so that the association could conduct further testing, said Kirsten Hebert, executive director of the Maine Rural Water Association.

From late September to mid October, an influx of organic materials came into Loring's water system through its main source, the Little Madawaska River and three tributaries, which discolored the water, Hebert said.

Forty businesses and residential customers were impacted. The order was lifted shortly after many customers voiced concern after what they viewed as a lack of proper communication from Loring Development Authority.

Circle B Farms, owned by Tom and Gina Ayer of Caribou, recently expanded their broccoli crop production at Loring, but said in the authority's board meeting Thursday that they weren't immediately aware of the order.

"We made 121,274 tons of broccoli Tuesday and Wednesday, using 1,000 to 2,000 gallons of water, that we had to throw out," Tom Ayer said. "Our farm is held to high food safety standards from the USDA. If the water is unsafe, we have to issue a food safety recall."

Kristie Moir, director of Loring Job Corps, said that the boil order notice initially went to the center's dining hall staff, not to leadership. The order prompted them to buy more than 500 water bottles from local stores for students and staff.

Loring Development Authority CEO Jonathan Judkins said that the authority has been collecting tenants' contact information, including emails and phone numbers, and will soon be testing a new alert system.

Last week's boil water order was the first such order that happened in the commerce center's 30 years, Judkins noted.