A notice issued by the Virginia Department of Health Monday to Richmond officials raised further concerns around a brief, accidental increase in fluoride at the City’s wastewater treatment plant last month.

The notice of alleged violation stated there were no public health risks as a result of the temporary increase, which occurred after new fluoride pumps were installed at the plant on April 23, echoing a statement made by Richmond officials on April 28.

However, VDH and the Office of Drinking Water observed other problems after investigating the accident, and the notice includes multiple alleged violations of state law and regulations. This is the second notice of alleged violation VDH has issued to Richmond this year, and comes as officials continue to address issues related to the multi-day water crisis in January.

“ODW remains concerned that lessons that the City’s Department of Public Utilities should have learned since the January water crisis have not been adequately addressed,” the notice reads.

“Although communications and coordination with DPU Executive Management and City Administration has improved, more cultural changes are necessary to ensure transparency, communication, collaboration and trust in the drinking water system.”

State officials were first alerted to the incident days after it occurred on April 27 by a “third party,” according to the notice, leading state officials to alert regional water partners about the incident.

An ODW investigation into the plant found that staff were unprepared to properly maintain the fluoride equipment, which had been damaged during the water crisis. In addition, the measuring equipment at the plant could only detect fluoride levels up to 2.0 mg/L, and workers lacked the training to measure higher concentrations.

These issues appear to also have led to an underestimation of the accidental increase. Fluoride data from the water supply at Chesterfield County on April 25 showed a peak of 3.86 mg/L, below the 4.0 limit imposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency but higher than the 2.67 DPU measured and reported.

VDH noted the work done by DPU to improve plant operations following the incident, and recommended better communication alongside further training, labeling and equipment installations to avoid similar accidents.

“DPU will continue to evaluate further enhancements,” the City of Richmond said in a statement after the notice was issued. “The City appreciates the partnership and remains committed to working with VDH and regional partners to ensure it meets its mission to deliver safe and clean drinking water to the region.”