Living without clean, safe water is not an option. Not in this country.

Living without clean, safe water is not an option.

Not in this country.

But, too often, we are seeing the ill effects of faulty infrastructure or faulty people. In Flint, Mich., aging pipes caused lead to leach into the drinking supply. In Sebring, Ohio, former water superintendent James Bates is charged with failing to notify residents of high levels of lead and copper in the water.

Now, in our own backyard, the village of Scio is battling high levels of manganese in its water supply.

So how bad is manganese?

It's bad enough. Residents can't cook with the contaminated water. They can't wash their baby's clothes and bottles in it. They are being asked to limit bathing. And, of course, they can't drink the murky stuff.

Harrison County Health Commissioner Charles Fisher said manganese is "similar to lead, but not as bad."

Sadly enough, some village officials and residents do not seem bothered by this fact. "We've survived," one longtime Scio resident said while picking up her daily ration of water from the Scio Fire Station. She told Times-Reporter staff writer Jon Baker on Thursday that the water has tasted bad for years.

Residents began noticing the water took "a turn for the worse" in July. WTOV Channel 9, a news partner of The Times-Reporter's, reported that the water in Scio was brown and making people sick.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency also released results in July indicating high manganese levels were discovered in the water supply. Why did it take until Aug. 17 to get folks fresh drinking water?

Part of the problem, may be the "it's good enough" mentality. Jake Tubaugh, Scio's village administrator, told The T-R he thought the water was actually getting better. In the 1970s and 1980s, it was much worse, he said.

There's nothing "good enough" about having subpar water.

The Times-Reporter's editorial board urges village officials and residents to get upset about this unacceptable problem. The village must work with the state and county commissioners to discover and fix the root cause.

They must ask the questions:

• What is the status of a grant to bring the village's water plant up to standards?

• Does the village need a new water treatment plant?

• Does the village have an adequate supply of water? (Think: the 2013 fire that depleted the village's water supply and left homeless a family of five who were living in a house right next to the Scio Fire Station.)

• Will the oil and natural gas industry step up to help a village that has greatly benefitted it?

Safe, drinkable water is crucial for the big business, as well as small business owners and village residents. If Scio want to excel beyond its current status, it starts with not accepting "good enough." It starts with expecting the best. And that starts with the basics:

Good, clean water.