No need to fear the water

Yuba County authorities on Monday began trying to tamp down residents' concerns at the Linda mobilehome park where tests have revealed methane gas in the water supply.

Officials with the county Environmental Health Department tried to reassure about 35 people at Castlewood Mobile Home Park they could continue to use their tap water, despite tests Wednesday that showed trace amounts of the potentially flammable gas in the park's well system.

"The air is safe to breathe and the water is safe to drink," Tejinder S. Maan, county environmental health director, said during the 45-minute forum.

The issue came to light when county and state environmental officials measured levels of the colorless, odorless gas up to 1.3 percent when running showers or sinks at the park for up to 12 minutes at a time. Tests of tap water in a jug produced levels of 20 percent — above the 5-to-15 percent where the gas becomes combustible. Levels above 15 percent can cause asphyxiation in a sealed, poorly ventilated space.

But Paul W. Donoho, a county environmental supervisor, called the risks to homeowners largely theoretical, saying dangerous amounts of the gas could build up only if the water were run for several hours and all the windows shut. Otherwise, he said, ventilation and normal plumbing use will quickly dissipate the methane before it can build up in amounts large enough to ignite.

Castlewood's owner, Western Management Services, will be required to correct the methane problem but will be allowed to choose the method, officials said. The owner could install an aerator or scrubber to release the gas from the well water, or could connect the park to the Linda County Water District — a step that would require nearly a half-mile pipe connection and cost about $500,000.

"This is a first," Donoho conceded. "We have no idea what the costs will be."

Castlewood's residents have often complained about poor-tasting water caused by minerals, but rarely worried about gases, said Lois Kerwin, who attended the meeting. Still, she was open to paying her share for steps to solve the methane problem without taking the costlier step of switching to district water — and possibly making the park too costly to run.

"I wouldn't mind paying it in my rent, if it was a choice between paying for an upgrade and the owner closing the park," said Kerwin, who moved to the park three years ago.

Another Castlewood resident, Jeremiah Westman, was more skeptical. With no clear cost estimate for controlling the methane and no timetable for a fix, he worried the problem might languish unless a fire or accident strikes one of the homes.

"The issue needs to be resolved, but I don't think it'll be as fast as people think," he said.

Contact Appeal-Democrat reporter Howard Yune at 749-4708, 458-2121 or hyune@appealdemocrat.com.