The Provincial Council of Lleida will pay, urgently, the costs of supplying drinking water to the town councils of Alt Àneu and Baix Pallars affected by the appearance of nonylphenol in their distribution networks while the new analyzes are carried out and it is certified that the water is suitable for human consumption.
The two towns that have been alerted to the appearance of this chemical component, linked to industrial detergents, Sorpe (Alt Àneu) and Peramea (Baix Pallars), are from Pallars Sobirà. The Water Service of the Diputación de Lleida is in charge of collecting water samples from the distribution networks which, after being analyzed, are communicated to the Department of Health of the Generalitat and the councils.
This Wednesday, at the request of the mayors, new samples have been taken at the entrances and exits of the Sorpe and Peramea deposits, which have been sent for analysis while awaiting the results of a counter-analysis that took place on the same Tuesday. was sent to the laboratory.
Residents of Sorpe and Peramea were alerted on Tuesday that they are prohibited from drinking water by mouth, both for human consumption and cooking, until further notice.
The deputy for Public Health, Òscar Martínez, has contacted the mayors to make himself available, since “we are obliged to guarantee the health of our neighbors and we understand that in the face of this urgency we must be able to accompany the councils in an expense that arises during the days that it is prudent and advisable to avoid consuming that water.
Likewise, Martínez has contacted the Ministry of Health of the Generalitat to monitor the analysis process and coordinate the search for the origin of this chemical agent.
Nonylphenol is a chemical component associated with industrial detergents that since last September has been included in the analyzes due to a new water control regulation that expands the spectrum of analysis with four nine emerging contaminant parameters (two associated with drugs and two other cleaning products).