When residents in Cadiz turn on their tap, the water that comes out isn’t always clear.
“We’ve been under several boil orders,” Cadiz resident Andrea Tomer-Lewis said. “We’ve been told to boil our water and a lot of us have a hesitancy to drink the water because of the discoloration in it.”
She hasn’t noticed discolored water at her home, but she has noticed cloudy, turbid water at her workplace and she’s heard reports from other residents of orange or yellow-tinged tap water. They’ve all been drinking bottled water instead, which the village has been providing on and off since it first declared a boil water advisory in the summer of 2025.
A year later, it doesn’t appear a solution is near-at-hand.
Last week, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency found several violations of the Ohio Revised Code and the Ohio Administrative Code at the Cadiz Village Public Water System. It found, among other infractions, sludge that had not been removed from the system. Regulators say that could prevent the system from completely pulling out sediment from the water.
In a Notice of Violation sent to Cadiz Mayor Kevin Jones, the agency noted water samples collected from the system over the past month were substantially more cloudy – or turbid – than state law allows. On July 1, in particular, the water's turbidity reached more than seven times the state limit.
The notice also warned the mayor that the Cadiz Village PWS is missing basic operational data.
Previously, the village also found a spike in manganese in the water supply. The Ohio Department of Health says the mineral is safe and a small amount is necessary for the human body to function, but some residents are still worried. A report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says that high exposure to manganese could hinder brain and nervous system development in young children.
Possible paths forward
At a town hall meeting in July, the Ohio EPA laid out recommendations for three possible plans to address the water issues. The village could build a new facility, which would take several years and would cost an estimated $20 million.
Or Cadiz could fix the issues at its current facility. The state agency did not have a clear estimate for the repairs, but said it could be a lengthy process and would likely cost millions.
The third and cheapest option: The village could connect to another water system like Tri-County Rural Water in nearby Washington County.
Amy Klei, the Ohio EPA division chief of drinking and ground waters, says connecting to another source is becoming more common in the state, as aging water infrastructure is costly to repair. The Ohio EPA says that in the state there are 140 public water systems which sell water to other municipalities.
“These plants are 50, 60, 70 years old,” Klei said. “These plants have a lifespan and a lot of them are reaching it. We’ve had a lot of deferred maintenance. A lot of bills are coming due and it's a tough decision for communities like Cadiz right now.”
Problems continue
The boil order in Cadiz was lifted three days after the town hall meeting. Just a week later, a new one was issued. It was later lifted too, but the frequency of the orders has left people like Andrea Tomer-Lewis wondering why they are paying for water they can’t use.
“This is my water bill for the month. I want you to pay attention to this number right here,” Tomer-Lewis said, pointing to an amount of $159 due for the month of June. “Considering it’s just me and my husband that live here, we have two dogs and two cats, that seems kind of excessive to me.”
Tomer-Lewis did say her home recently had a leak, but still, she and some of her neighbors think the cost is too high. The financial and safety concern led Tomer-Lewis to attend the Ohio EPA town hall, but she doesn’t feel it informed the community of anything new.
“I felt like there was still a lack of transparency about what’s going on,” Tomer-Lewis said.
What happens next is up to Cadiz. The EPA’s plans are only suggestions, so the village must decide how to resolve the ongoing issues.
It has 30 days to fix the violations noted by the EPA on Aug. 6.
The village administrator, mayor and the water treatment plant did not respond to a request for comment.