Residents may notice an unusual chemical taste or odor to local drinking water. This is normal due to the seasonal ice melt and spring runoff on the Missouri River. “Spring runoff causes the water to have a more earthy, musky smell to it,” according to Brian Young, superintendent of the Bismarck Water Treatment Plant. This places a bigger demand on the city’s treatment process to purify the water. The ratios of the different treatment chemicals the City uses must be adjusted during the spring river melt. The higher level of organic material in the water during the spring runoff causes the odor when it reacts with some of the chemicals the city uses to treat the water.
The City of Bismarck’s drinking water is tested regularly and continues to meet all EPA and State standards of quality and safety.