The level of radium in DeKalb’s water supply now is compliant with the Environmental Protection Agency’s acceptable standards.

“We don’t have a problem,” said Jerry Bever, the assistant director of Public Works for Water Resources.

The city of DeKalb installed five water treatment plants that have lowered the levels of radium to acceptable levels, while at the same time softening the water for DeKalb’s citizens, Bever said.

The cost of the entire project was $12,285,000 of which federal funds covered $2.3 million.

Public Works received a letter of compliance from EPA saying DeKalb has been in compliance for six months, Bever said.

DeKalb has worked with the EPA to treat the problem of radium in the water supply in a timely manner.

“There is no danger from radium, but to remove all of it would be costly,” said Brett Hanson, acting manager of the Illinois EPA in Rockford.

DeKalb had to operate the plants for a full year to meet the EPA’s standards for radium removal, even though the plants brought the levels down well before the year was complete.

DeKalb brought its last water treatment plant up in May 2001, and since then it has met standards, Bever said.

An added benefit of the radium treatment for the residents of DeKalb is that the water is softer and will, in turn, leave less staining and corrode piping less, Bever said.

“It has been a long road, and a lot of money spent,” Bever said. “It is not cheap to operate five plants but it served its purpose.”

Hanson said that DeKalb was able to use some federal funds to ease some of the cost in installing the improvements in the water treatment process.

“It looks like it is a good long-term asset for the city,” Hanson said.