The San Luis Obispo County Department of Public Works is temporarily changing how it disinfects water in the South County after residents were put under a boil water notice late last week. Around 50,000 residents in the Five Cities area were told on April 30 to boil their water before use after a sample from the Lopez Lake water system tested positive for E. coli, the county said. It was the first time such a sample had prompted a boil water notice for the distribution system, which feeds much of the South County region. … Now, Public Works is expected to temporarily change the disinfectant used in the Lopez Project distribution system from chloramine disinfection — which uses a blend of chlorine and ammonia — to free chlorine, according to a news release.

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• County of San Luis Obispo: News release: Conversion of drinking water disinfectant to free chlorine for the Five Cities area