A pheasant is the top suspect as officials look for the cause of a cryptosporidium outbreak in Lancashire, Great Britain. The early-August outbreak ran up a compensation bill of £25 million — nearly US $38 million — with 300,000 homes affected by contaminated water coming from the Franklaw Water Treatment plant near Garstang.

Although water workers in the area believe a dead pheasant stuck in a water pipe is the culprit behind the contamination, two British water authorities — United Utilities and the Drinking Water Inspectorate — refuse to confirm the theory.

Scientists have been testing to identify the type of cryptosporidium, which would indicate which animal it came from. Sheep and rabbits have also been suspected, the Lancashire Evening Post reports.

Source: Lancashire Evening Post

Cleveland Approves $51M in Sewer, Water Repairs

The City of Cleveland, Ohio, will invest more than $51 million to clean, repair and replace miles of its water and sewer pipes after the Cleveland City Council approved the spending on Nov. 30.

The city’s Division of Water Pollution Control identified 27 percent of its sewer system that has exceeded its life expectancy, WKYC reports.

Work is scheduled to take up to five years and includes rehabilitating four water works plants, replacing main lines and constructing a pump station.

Source: WKYC

Calgary Seeks Next Manhole Cover Design

Calgary is decorating its streets with locally made artwork — artistic manholes.

By spring 2016, the city will install 2,000 of these specially designed manhole covers, says Teresa Byrne, superintendent with arts and culture at the city.

“They’re going to be unique to Calgary,” she says. “They will reflect the thoughts and feeling of the city.”

Byrne says there is a reason behind the manhole artwork.

“Anytime you’re creating a vibrant and interesting city, you need to have those interesting elements to discover and explore,” she says. “Why do we paint our houses? And why do we plant flowerbeds? It’s because we want to make our spaces interesting, and I think these various manholes encourage us to get out and see the world around us.”

Source: Metro News

Texas Water Authority Unveils Billion-Dollar Water Supply Project

The West Harris County Regional Water Authority is planning to spend $1.126 billion in bond funding to upgrade the area’s surface water supply to keep up with the region’s growth.

Four water pipeline projects to be completed between 2015 and 2019 will help the authority reach surface water usage goals mandated by the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District.

According to the mandate, the water authority must convert the water it pumps to 60 percent surface water by 2025 and 80 percent surface water by 2035, Community Impact reports.

Source: Community Impact