Tap water crisis dents public trust in government

Bottled mineral water is stacked at a retail outlet in Seoul, Monday. Demand for mineral water and shower filters have surged in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province recently following recent reports of insect larvae in tap water. Yonhap

By Bahk Eun-ji

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun ordered the environment ministry, Monday, to “quickly investigate the cause of insect larvae discovered in tap water,” but the authorities are unlikely to find answers anytime soon.

In an emergency press briefing, an official of the joint investigation team created by the Ministry of Environment and Incheon Metropolitan Government said it would not easy to find exactly where the larvae came from and why they were in the tap water.

“There have been very few reports of foreign substances such as insects or worms in tap water, but this time it's not yet clear why suddenly hundreds of cases are taking place simultaneously across the country,” a city waterworks official said. “There are no findings that have been studied enough to determine the link to the recent occurrences of particular insects due to global climate change.”

The Seoul Waterworks Authority said Tuesday a resident living in multiplex housing at Yangcheon-gu, southwestern Seoul, reported finding an insect larva in his bathroom.

"I turned on the water for about a minute before I took a shower because of the news that larvae are coming out of tap water these days. I took a shower as it seemed to be okay,” the resident was quoted as saying by Yonhap. “Then I found a wriggling black larva about one centimeter long while I was cleaning the bathroom floor.”

On Sunday, the city's water authority received a report that a worm-like organism had been found in a studio apartment in Jung-gu, Seoul, but concluded that it was unlikely the organism entered through water pipes.

There have also been a series of similar reports in Daejeon; a resident at a multiplex housing unit in Goejeong-dong reported that she found an insect larva in the drain of a sink, Monday. The city's waterworks authority estimated that the larva was from a moth fly, rather than a midge as had been reported in other cases, and it was assumed to have come from a drainage pipe below the sink, not from a water supply pipe.

In addition, two similar reports were filed in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the same day, but they were confirmed as insects found on vegetables while cleaning them.

Despite such explanations by the government and local waterworks authorities, residents in Gyeonggi Province, Incheon and Seoul continue to distrust the quality of tap water. Some large discount stores in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, said they have run out of shower filters.

“I went to a large supermarket to buy a shower filter last night, and there were only a few left,” a resident of the region said. “The local authority said the larvae came out of the drain, but in fact, I don't understand how such a small bug crawls up to the sink.”

Another resident said, “Even after taking a shower, I feel like my skin itches just thinking of the larvae. The government should really come up with measures rather than avoiding responsibility.”

In regard to the issue, the environment ministry, in charge of the inspection of water-purification facilities nationwide in cooperation with local governments, said if it is finally confirmed that the insect larvae have traveled through the water pipes due to some problems in the facilities, they will discuss with experts how to improve the water supply system as well as renew guidelines for water purification plants.