Resident tests her own water

INDIAN LAND, S.C. -- Drinking water from the faucet, taking a shower or filling up the pool -- rarely do we give them a second thought. But folks in Indian Land are doing just that, and one woman is so concerned that she took her household water to a private lab.

A report released last week warned water customers in Indian Land that levels were too high of a chemical known to cause liver and kidney problems. The Catawba River Water Plant assured residents that there's no immediate threat and they're fixing the problem.

But one resident tells WCNC she wants more answers.

"I was washing some blueberries, but then thought, I'm washing them in contaminated water," said resident Meta Wasson."I was washing some blueberries, but then thought, I'm washing them in contaminated water," said resident Meta Wasson.

The May water bill from the Catawba River Water Plant told Wasson and her neighbors that the Department of Health and Environmental Control found high levels of Trihalomethanes, or THM, in their water.

"We're drinking bottled water... I'm even giving the dogs and cats bottled water," Wasson said.

Even though the plant director told us there is no need for people to change their habits, the notice also said that over long periods of use, it could produce kidney cancer.

"My husband has kidney cancer and had a kidney removed," Wasson said.

Meta took water from her kitchen and two bathrooms to a private lab and compared the results to Environmental Protection Agency standards.

".08 is the highest acceptable level... and the report came back with .12 for our home," Wasson said.

The water plant told her and our cameras last week that they're trying a new chlorination process and will get it fixed.

Meta says her frustration is not with the plant, but with DHEC. She wants to know why testing was done in September, but neighbors weren't notified until May.

"We drank this water for 6 to 8 months assuming it was all good, then to find out it hasn't been and we weren't notified, it is almost criminal," Wasson said.

The water plant director still says you don't have to change anything you're doing, but he has suggestions if you want to reduce THM: Put a charcoal filter on the faucet, freeze your water into ice or boil it on the stove.

The plant is still working on a long-term solution.