~ Water Resources Association ~

Water Resource Associations of the Delaware River Basin

Spring '10

Aqua PA Solar Project Recognized

Aqua Pennsylvania, Inc. (Aqua) is among a select group of companies chosen by the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC) that received the Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence at a ceremony held on April 20 at the Sheraton Harrisburg Hershey Hotel. Aqua was selected to receive the prestigious award for its recent construction of a 1.1 megawatt photovoltaic solar farm at its Ingram's Mill Water Treatment Plant in East Bradford Township, which serves drinking water to the West Chester, Pennsylvania area.

The Governor's Awards for Environmental Excellence are presented each year by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to highlight the best in environmental innovation and expertise throughout the Commonwealth. The awards are the highest statewide honor bestowed upon businesses and organizations for environmental performance and innovation from cleaning up watersheds, saving energy, and eliminating pollution, to reducing waste and more.

Aqua's Ingram's Mill renewable energy project uses high-efficiency panels to convert sunlight into useful power, thereby reducing the region's power generation requirements. The $6 million project was partially funded with a $1 million grant through the federal stimulus program which is administered through the Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority (PEDA). The 4.5-acre solar farm is the second largest solar installation on the East Coast. Among the benefits of the new facility are that it:

- offsets the need for 3,000 barrels of oil each year; or
avoids the equivalent of 2.6 million car miles each year; or
reduces CO2 emissions by 1.4 million pounds each year.

- avoids the equivalent of 2.6 million car miles each year; or

- reduces CO2 emissions by 1.4 million pounds each year.

"We are extremely honored to be selected by the state to receive this award," said Aqua's Chairman Nicholas DeBenedictis. "We are very proud to employ cutting edge green energy technology to support our ability to provide one of the world's most valuable and sustainable resources--drinking water," said Aqua Chairman Nicholas DeBenedictis. "Our 125-year-old company was created out of concern for the environment and public health so it makes perfect sense to have a sustainable clean energy source to power our water treatment plant."

WRA Chairman Dennis Palmer congratulated Aqua at a recent WRA Board of Director’s meeting. Dennis stated that “the Aqua Solar One Project raises the bar for water and wastewater utilities in developing and applying ‘green’ energy solutions that truly make a difference”.

Aqua serves 420,000 water and 13,500 wastewater customers in the state and is based in Bryn Mawr, PA. Aqua has been a supporting member of WRA since 1962.
Excerpts for this article are taken from Aqua’s April 15, 2010 News Release

DRBC Proposes New Regulations for Natural Gas Well Pad Projects

The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) at its May 5, 2010 public business meeting directed commission staff to draft regulations for natural gas well pad projects in shale formations in the Delaware River Basin. The Commissioners will consider specific natural gas well pad applications after the new regulations are in place.

“The drafting process is already underway, so it made logical sense for the development of new regulations to move forward in advance of any individual project decisions,” DRBC Executive Director Carol R. Collier said in describing the action taken yesterday by the commissioners representing Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and the federal government. The rulemaking process will include public notice and a full opportunity for public comment before the Commissioners adopt the regulations.

The DRBC has already conducted a public hearing and received over 2,000 written comments regarding a proposal previously submitted by Stone Energy Corporation for the Matoushek #1 well located in Clinton Township, Wayne County, Pa. The commissioners’ decision to rule upon this and other pending and future specific natural gas well pad project applications after the new regulations are adopted is consistent with many of the public comments submitted.

Commission review of pending or future proposed water withdrawals to be used to supply water to natural gas extraction projects, including Stone Energy’s proposed water withdrawal from the West Branch Lackawaxen River in Mount Pleasant Township, Wayne County, Pa., will proceed in accordance with existing DRBC regulations. The written comments that the DRBC received during the comment period that closed on April 12 pertained to both Stone Energy’s proposed water withdrawal project and its proposed natural gas well drilling project. The earliest that the Commission could vote on the Stone Energy proposed water withdrawal project would be its next public business meeting scheduled for July 14, 2010.

The extraction of natural gas from the Marcellus Shale formation in Pennsylvania and New York has stirred considerable controversy among Basin residents who have turned out in force at Commission hearings and workshops. Although DRBC’s jurisdiction is narrowly limited to surface water and groundwater withdrawals and discharges and their impacts, the residents are asking the Commission to look at everything from truck traffic issues to road construction in evaluating a permit application. Residents also cite problems with individual projects located in the adjacent Susquehanna Basin and the degradation of water supply wells and headwater streams. The potential number of projects and their cumulative impact on the Basin’s water resources is also of concern. Although natural gas development is an attractive alternative to coal and oil development it does have its own set of problems. It remains to be seen whether the gas industry can effectively address all of these concerns and minimize their impacts on the Basin’s water resources and the communities in which they are located.

Excerpts of this article were taken from a DRBC news release
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WRA Editorial: DRBC Proposed Increase In Water Use Charges

On April 13, 2010, the Delaware River Basin Commission held a public hearing to receive comments on their proposal to double current water use charges imposed on post-compact surface water users beginning January 1, 2012. The added revenues would be credited against their Water Supply Storage Facilities Fund with a percentage transferred to their general operating fund to offset a portion of their labor related expenses. WRA offered comments on their proposal at the hearing.

The core issue embodied in their proposal goes back to Section 3.7 of the Delaware River Basin Compact and the ability of DRBC to establish rates and charges for the use of facilities it owns or operates and for “products and services rendered thereby”. When the charges program was originally established in the early 1970’s there was a fear by water users that it could become a source of funding for all sorts of miscellaneous activities not necessarily related to those activities that the Compacts signatories intended when they drafted Section 3.7. These fears were assuaged when the Commission, following two “marathon” public hearings in 1973, issued a clarifying document addressing these issues and outlined their response in the 1974 DRBC Annual Report.

That was then, this is now.

Current shortfalls in federal and state funding of the Commission’s annual budget, understandably, has led them to find other means to sustain their work-plan and created the need for this proposal. In WRA’s opinion, however, the current work-plan has moved away from the reservoir focused one that was reminiscent of the Commission’s early days to one that is more diverse and benefits a greater population of water users that live, recreate, and enjoy the Delaware River. To this end, WRA position is that the federal government and states need to step up and fund the programs and activities they are committing to and not always look to major water users to always “foot-the-bill” for the greater good.

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Chairman’s Message

Your WRA recently held the Annual Recognition Dinner and celebrates its 51st year as an organization serving water users, facilities and managers in the Delaware River Basin. Congratulations to those recognized this year and on behalf of my Authority I would like to thank the awards committee and the organization for selecting us for the 2010 Special Recognition Award. A key item was missing this year, that being the announcement of the John Buzzi Scholarship winner. A small portion of each ticket purchased at the dinner goes to support this award. We are still looking for a great candidate and if you know of an applicant, please direct them to the WRA website for further information.

One of the key items I like to pursue with our members as your chair is the value added portion of your membership. Prior to the dinner, our Board of Directors meet for a business meeting as well as a short technical session that was open to all members to attend. The presenters were Robert Tudor executive Director of the DRBC with a program update on their organization’s activities. Also, Marc Gold from Manko, Gold, Katcher & Fox LLP gave an update on the PCB TMDL issue from the perspective of their industry coalition. For the past several years, at both the December General Membership meeting and the April Board meetings your WRA has provided an informative and useful technical session on a timely water resources issue or program. As always these sessions are a great networking opportunity that shouldn’t be overlooked by non-members who might want to get involved. Keep this in mind later this year when the December meeting is announced. It is also not too soon to give Bob ideas about a fall conference.

This year also saw a major effort to provide well thought out and supported testimony on the proposed increase in the water use charge by DRBC. I believe the testimony provided raised valid concerns and reasonable request for reconsideration, given the history and facts presented by our organization on behalf of all our members. We look forward to further discussions with the agency as to the levels of any fees increase and the specific and identifiable costs for which any funds raised are applied. This was a significant value added activity for our members and the water user community at-large. Please give us a call if you would like more information on this issue or are thinking of becoming a member of our Association.

-Dennis Palmer, P.E., Chairman