Important Information About Your Drinking Water
Published on oaklandmd.gov October 17, 2026. This notice is also being mailed to Oakland Water customers on, Monday, October 19, 2026.
Our water system recently violated a drinking water requirement. Although this was not an emergency, as our customers, you have a right to know what happened, what you should do, and what we did and are doing to correct this situation.
We routinely monitor your water for turbidity (cloudiness). This tells us whether we are effectively filtering the water supply. Water samples for September 2026 showed that 5.3 percent of turbidity measurements were greater than 0.3 turbidity unit. The standard is that no more than 5 percent of samples may exceed 0.3 turbidity unit per month. The turbidity levels are relatively low; however, their persistence is a concern. Normal turbidity levels at our plant are below 0.3 turbidity units.
What should I do?
There is nothing you need to do. You do not need to boil your water or take other actions. We do not know of any contamination, and none of our testing has shown disease-causing organisms in the drinking water.
If you have a severely compromised immune system, have an infant, are pregnant, or are elderly, you may be at increased risk and should seek advice from your health care providers about drinking this water. General guidelines on ways to lessen the risk of infection by microbes are available from EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800- 426-4791.
What does this mean?
This is not an emergency. If it had been, you would have been notified immediately.
Turbidity has no health effects. However, turbidity can interfere with disinfection and provide a medium for microbial growth. Turbidity may indicate the presence of disease causing organisms. These organisms include bacteria, viruses, and parasites which can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and associated headaches. These symptoms are not caused only by organisms in drinking water. If you experience any of these symptoms and they persist, you may want to seek medical advice.
What has been and is being done?
The Broadford Plant was taken offline for 12 days to evaluate and service the filtration system, including the clarifiers and filters. The clarifiers were partially drained, cleaned, and the chemical used for coagulation in the clarifiers was switched from aluminum sulfate to DelPAC (polyaluminum chloride). Core samples of the filter media were compared with the engineering designs and additional media was added. Updated turbidimeters were installed on the filter effluent and are scheduled to be added into the SCADA system for continuous monitoring. New continuous turbidimeters have been purchased for the clear well finished water and will also be connected to SCADA.
Timeline
On October 1, the Oakland Water System contacted the Maryland Department of the Environment Engineering and Technical Assistance Division (ETAD) to report non-compliance for September 2026 caused by ten turbidity readings between September 29 to September 30, 2026, exceeding 0.3 NTU. On October 2, ETAD conducted an on-site evaluation to assess the situation and identify the underlying cause of the elevated turbidity. On October 3, due to high turbidity levels, the Oakland Water Department shut down the Broadford Plant. Evaluation and servicing of the Broadford Plant filtration system began. Water was supplied by the Bradley Water Plant while the Broadford facility was offline.
On October 9, a distribution system issue caused customers on the eastern part of the system to experience severely discolored water. During emergency planning to determine if part of the Oakland Water system could be served from the Garrett County Mountain Lake Park system, the Oakland Water Department exercised a valve at the intersection of Dennett Road and Broadford Road. That caused an unused extension to leak and led to a rapid loss of water at the intersection. The extreme pressure changes caused scouring of buildup of the water mains near there.
On October 13, in response to continued discoloration for some customers and at the advice of MDE, the town issued a boil advisory. Additional consultation with MDE led to a revised opinion that a boil advisory was not warranted because no infiltration of the system had occurred. The town subsequently recalled the boil notice. Additional flushing of the distribution system continued until the discoloration was resolved.
On October 16, bacteriological tests passed and turbidity tests measured within the legal limit at the Broadford Plant, and it was brought back online with approval from MDE. It is now serving customers again. Turbidity levels, and all required testing, continue to be monitored closely and the plant operations will be adjusted accordingly.
We want our customers to feel confident in their drinking water. The Town of Oakland is committed to meeting federal and state standards for safe drinking water and keeping the public informed.
For more information, please contact Mayor Andrew Sauder by email at [email protected], by phone at 240-321-7283, or by mail at 15 South Third Street, Oakland, Maryland 21550. If the mayor is unable to take your call, please leave a voicemail with your name and number and he will return it.
This notice is being sent to you by the Town of Oakland
State Water System ID#: MD0110008
Date distributed: October 17, 2026