2016 Water Suppliers Forum

PRESENTATIONS:

Emerging Contaminant Discussion: Jesse Goldberg, Miller Environmental

Jesse Goldberg will lead a discussion on Reading Area Water Authority's efforts to understand the existence/impact of emerging contaminants in their source water area. This topic relates to sampling work performed by Vicki Blazer of USGS that concluded that smallmouth bass populations within the Schuylkill River watershed have been impacted by these compounds and its potential impact on future regulations. This discussion will also update water suppliers on discussion with PA DEP on monitoring strategies and will explore the feasibility and applicability of establishing an Emerging Contaminants sampling program in the Schuylkill River, which may include both water quality and electrofishing.

Miller Chemical Fire Case Study: Brian Moore, PA DEP

On June 8th, 2015, a fire at Miller Chemical, the manufacturer of fertilizer, led to an emergency situation in New Oxford, PA and a significant source water pollution event for the New Oxford Municipal Authority. The blaze took fire crews more than 12 hours to extinguish, caused contamination to leak in the nearby Conewago Creek, and killed more than 10,000 fish. As a result, the water supply for the community was unusable and remained offline for nearly 3 months. Brian Moore will provide a case study of what was one of the most significant source water pollution events in recent Pennsylvania History. This presentation will both describe what went wrong and explore ways that it could have been prevented.