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Utility warns customers about water quality
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The water is safe to drink for customers of the West Warren-Viola Utility District who recently received a letter telling them their utility had violated federal drinking water standards.
“I drink it, my children drink it. It’s safe,” said West Warren-Viola representative Tim Pelham. “There is no hazard.”
His comments come after a letter was mailed to their 5,300 customers advising them the utility, between July 1,2012 and June 30, 2013 was slightly above the limit for haloacetic acid. The exact level was .062 when the top allowable level was .060 mg/L, meaning they were .002 of a percent above the maximum level.
Haloacetic acids are byproducts of water chlorination. Water is chlorinated to minimize microbial life in drinking water. The Environmental Protection Agency says people who consistently drink water high in haloacetic acids have an increased risk of getting cancer.
“The actual risk has been identified as being one out of 10,000 people may get cancer if they drink two liters of water each day for 70 years,” the letter from the utility read.
Pelham said there is no risk of a person drinking that amount of water with high haloacetic acid for that period in the West Warren district, especially since the reading reported by the EPA was the exception rather than the rule.
Pelham revealed the sample which caused the high reading came from the Barren Fork River and was pulled from Beech Grove, which is the furthest point from the main plant. He also said it had been raining right before causing the water to be muddier and more prone to organics. Pelham noted his most recent draw revealed the amount to be .032, well below the limit of .060.
However, even though the high level reported to the EPA was not the norm, Pelham said the utility is doing its due diligence to make sure it stays within legal parameters.
“We take this very seriously,” said Pelham, noting the utility has purchased new equipment to aid in its testing to further ensure all drinking water remains well within state and federal standards.
Ricky Morton of the McMinnville Water Department, which draws its water from the same river, stands by West Warren noting that stricter federal regulations hold utilities to a higher standard.
“We have never had a violation here,” Morton said of McMinnville Water Plant, noting they would have to send out notices to customers just like West Warren if there was a violation.
With that said, Morton defended the drinking water in Warren County.
“I think we have the best water plants in the state,” Morton said. “Our utilities take what they do very seriously.”

Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community