RC&D Helps 'Water Buffalo' Roll into Georgia Community

Community spirit took on a whole new look last week when a 500-gallon tank full of clean water rolled into Bean Creek, a small community that has been struggling with a contaminated water supply.

"At least we know we can drink it," resident Clarence Trammell said Saturday morning as he looked at the camouflage-painted tank parked at Bean Creek Missionary Baptist Church.

On loan from the National Guard Armory in Gordon County, the water buffalo is the concerted effort of the White County Commission members, who urged local leaders to find a potable water source; Chestatee-Chattahoochee Resource Conservation and Development Council Coordinator Angie Billups, who contacted the Georgia Emergency Management Agency to find a source; White County Emergency Management Director William Wright, who found the water buffalo in Gordon County; and White County Water Authority Executive Director Gary Howe, who had the tank disinfected and is providing water to the residents.

The arrival of the mottled green water tank marks the first time the community has ever had a centralized source of clean drinking water. It also underscores the severity of the water problem that plagues this community of about 75 people who are dependent on private wells.

The water supply came under suspicion last summer after Friends of Bean Creek President Andy Allen joined the growing list of residents suffering with serious, debilitating or life-threatening illnesses. Allen was diagnosed with sarcoidosis, a systemic inflammatory disease that affects the lymph nodes, lungs, liver, eyes, skin and/or other tissues. The cause of the disease is unknown.

Seeking to understand why so many of their own were sick, residents began to test their wells for contaminants. "They tested my water first, and it was off the chart (for lead, e.coli and coliform)," Allen said. "It was tested at the well, so it was not in the house pipes. They said if it was a swimming pool, they would close it down. That was my drinking water."

About 32 wells have been tested and are similarly contaminated. In response, the White County Water Authority and the Friends of Bean Creek have sought grant funding to put in a community water system.

The outcome of the grant applications will not be known until later this summer.

The water authority will continue to monitor the tank, keep it clean and fill it with water when it needs it.

IMAGE: R.T. Trammell fills his container from the tank community leaders are providing to Bean Creek residents until they can secure a source for clean drinking water.

Story and image by Catherine Gibbs, White County News Telegraph.