We reported on 21 June on the problem of contaminated water and temporary shortages in Gmina Warta Bolesławiecka (in the localities of Warta Bolesławiecka and Raciborowice). We notified Gmina Warta Bolesławiecka about the matter. Both the President of the Management Board of Zakład Komunalny w Lubkowie Sp. z o.o., which supplies water to the municipality’s localities, and the Wójt of Gmina Warta Bolesławiecka explain that the main cause of the water problems is its illegal collection from hydrants.
Radosław Palczewski, President of the Management Board of Zakład Komunalny w Lubkowie Sp. z o.o., on the contaminated water and shortages:
(...) We are dealing with such a situation, for example, during the illegal collection of water from a hydrant or when water pressure returns after a failure. During pressure changes associated with a sudden or substantial withdrawal of water, such sediment breaks away from the walls of the water pipes, causing water contamination. Tiny particles, most often rust-red or brown in color, may appear in the water, or the water may change color completely. This situation particularly affects consumers located near the site of the theft or failure, as well as those at the end sections of the water supply network.
Mirosław Haniszewski, Wójt of Gmina Warta Bolesławiecka:
(...) According to the preliminary information I received from the company’s President, the drop in pressure and increased water turbidity are connected with high water consumption on hot days for watering gardens, as well as with water being taken from fire hydrants by unauthorized persons—which, I remind you, constitutes theft. Each activation of a hydrant and intensive water withdrawal causes sudden pressure drops in the water supply networks and changes in water quality. Water withdrawal from hydrants causes sediment accumulated in the water supply network—naturally precipitated iron and manganese compounds—to break loose. The disturbance of this sediment causes water contamination among consumers. For years, we have been taking steps to identify those responsible for unauthorized water withdrawal from hydrants; however, without residents’ support or reports, detecting it is essentially impossible.
Meanwhile, more readers are reporting problems with water availability. In Raciborowice, interruptions in the water supply usually occur in the evenings and typically last several hours.
One of the residents of Raciborowice wrote to us:
(...) Every day, on average from 5:00 p.m. to midnight, there is no water, yet we have to pay—only what for?