That “earthy” odor and taste you may have noticed in the water downtown lately is nothing to worry about, city officials say.

Calling it a “temporary condition” that is “an infrequent result of seasonal changes in surface water sources,” Suffolk officials said Wednesday that city water is still safe to drink, even if it isn’t very palatable lately.

“Suffolk officials advise the taste and odor is the result of recent environmental factors in the lakes that feed into the City of Portsmouth Lake Kilby Water Treatment facility, which provides potable water to the downtown and southern areas of the City,” Suffolk spokeswoman Debbie George said in a press release Wednesday morning.

George attributed the taste and odor to temperature changes that have caused an inversion of the lake’s layers and an increase in the growth of algae.

The city of Portsmouth has been notified of the problem and has begun taking corrective action, she said in the release.

The objectionable smell and taste should go away during the next few days, she said.