If you’ve noticed that your tap water doesn’t taste very good right now, you’re not alone.
Thief River Falls Water Treatment Plant staff explained that the poor taste is due to a couple of factors. On Sept. 12, a carbon feeder at the plant went down. That has since been addressed. At roughly the same time, water that had been released from Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge reached the community. The release is part of their annual management activities. Because of drought conditions this year, however, the “swamp water” or geosmin (an organic compound with a distinct earthy flavor) was especially concentrated.
Water Treatment Plant officials said it’s very difficult to take the taste of swamp water out of the water, but when a carbon feeder goes down, it becomes impossible. 
The carbon feeder is back online. Officials said the water is and has been safe to drink, and the taste is beginning to improve. Because of the amount of water in the system in Thief River Falls it will take some time before it's entirely flushed from the system.