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The color of the tap water in Sierra Madre has been off-puttingly yellow in recent months, and residents are sick of it.
The L.A. Times reports that the city has been borrowing water from the Metropolitan Water District, who disinfects the water via a combination of ammonia and chlorine. When that mixture combines with the rust from the water pipes, the water turns yellow. The water only turns clearer when the faucet is left running for a period of time.
The city switched to the MWD water back in September after their usual source of water was running low. City officials have said that the water is completely safe to drink, but local residents have obvious qualms over the disturbing color.
"It tastes the same, but it's embarrassing when people visiting look in our toilets," Sierra Madre resident Maurene Nelson told the L.A. Times. "I tell them we actually don't live like that. I scrub the toilets, but it collects back so rapidly you can't keep up."
