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Pinal County residents remain skeptical after drinking water tested high for nitrate

Posted at 6:21 PM, Dec 07, 2016
and last updated 2016-12-08 00:59:55-05

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality conducted it's own testing of the drinking water in Pinal County.

ADEQ told ABC15, the drinking water is meeting standards. This, after they issued a ban on the drinking water on Dec. 2 due to high levels of nitrate. 

"I was scared, I was nervous." said Tabetha Garcia, who is expecting her first child.

Garcia and her husband have tried for years to get pregnant along with fertility treatments. 

"It wasn't easy getting to this point and so anything that threatens the baby that's inside of me...it's a frustration," Garcia explained.

She and her neighbors are upset Johnson Utilities never notified it's customers of the water issue.

"We weren't notified so we can't take counter measures," said Tania Ginn, who suffers from Kidney Disease. 

Ginn avoids nitrates in her food product as a way to stay healthy for her family. 

"I have three kids and my life is basically their livelihood. So if I'm not given the opportunity to take the precautions that could be detrimental," Ginn said. 

Johnson Utilities produced test results to ADEQ on Tuesday, Dec. 6 getting them to lift the ban.

But ADEQ chose to run it's own expedited tests. 

Which was a relief to Garcia and her neighbors. But they still want more done.

San Tan Valley resident Tammy Watts would like to sit down with the owner of Johnson Utilities to discuss how they solve future issues and get better notification. 

"I'm very skeptical, I'd like to see an actual method by which we are all notified anytime there is an issue," Watts said.

Test results were returned to ADEQ on Wednesday from a test performed on December 5. The test results came back as the nitrate level in the water from Johnson Utilities meeting the federal drinking water standard. 

"This test result independently re-confirmed that the Johnson Utilities nitrate drinking water problem reported Fri., Dec. 2, 2016 is resolved. Due to Johnson Utilities' nitrate levels in drinking water, ADEQ now is requiring they monitor for nitrate more frequently," s statement from ADEQ read.