Kotzebue Water Plant

The city collected water samples from 10 homes during a routine check in August. Two came back above the Environmental Protection Agency’s lead action level of 15 parts per billion, which triggers extra testing, public notice and a review of how the water is treated.

On Friday, the City of Kotzebue issued a health advisory for manganese levels in the community’s drinking water.

“It feels as though there's a never-ending stream of problems with the water supply here,” Deb Lawton said. “We are one of the richest countries on earth, and I am gobsmacked by the fact that we cannot get our collective act together to provide drinking water to people.”

According to the city officials, Kotzebue’s water treatment plant is not “reliably and consistently” removing manganese below the maximum contamination levels.

Residents blame the city’s new treatment plant. State regulators point to another possible culprit: routine fire hydrant flushing.