Summer at last! We see children running through sprinklers, friends tubing down one of Pennsylvania's scenic rivers, and families casting fishing lines in their favorite creek.
But summer also brings more visibility to pollution in our waterways. Many of us are worried, however, that pollution risks will rise if legislation being considered in Harrisburg needlessly turns back the clock on a proven approach that allows local governments to make smart decisions on how best to manage our water services. Sewage Facility
I had the honor of leading the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) under Gov. Tom Ridge and know firsthand that Pennsylvania communities must be vigilant and make ongoing, smart investments to ensure safe drinking water and maintain healthy waterways.
Our "pipes 'n pumps" are aging and will require billions to modernize and effectively address public health threats from "forever chemicals" and other contaminants.
In fact, the American Society of Civil Engineers estimates that Pennsylvania will need to invest $18.6 billion in the state's water and wastewater infrastructure over the decade. This will require both government and private investment to cover this staggering, but necessary amount.
Traditionally, the money has come from the federal government and the ratepayers — meaning all of us, when we pay our water bill.
In 2016, Act 12, passed with strong bipartisan support, and added a new source of funds: private capital. This law permits a local government, hard pressed with ongoing (and rising) costs, deferred maintenance, and delayed projects, to tap the value of their water treatment assets and avoid heavy debt.
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It relieves officials from the always difficult task of raising rates. However, Act 12 still requires the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) to set rates for private systems, keeping a critical consumer safeguard intact.
This doesn't mean that citizens and ratepayers need to be less vigilant about our water rates — but it has given local leadership important new tools and protections. When rates are raised to address deferred maintenance, system expansion, environmental risks and emergencies, or strengthening the system for the long term, there is always strong pressure to delay or kill the raise. This is an understandable and long-term problem and it's why we have come to need $18 billion to get on top of these issues. These new tools — private capital, private sector capacity to make quicker business decisions, to find and use new technology, and to plan for longer term system viability, will save money in the long run.
Ongoing discussions about bill affordability should continue. But they need to be informed by the things that elected leaders don't want to say out loud: it costs money to have clean drinking water and sanitation. Often overlooked in conversations is the environmental consequences of not making these investments. And unfortunately, when emergencies happen, the consumer still pays.
Let me give you a few examples of how investment helps ensure clean water.
In 2017, Pennsylvania American Water, our state's largest owner and operator of water and wastewater systems, acquired a municipal-run sewer system in McKeesport in Allegheny County.
As a condition of the sale, the DEP required a remedy to the over 40 residences illegally dumping wastewater into abandoned mines. So, the company invested $3 million to construct two new sewage systems.
Yes, rates ultimately went up, but the environmental cost of not investing was far greater: without investment, sewer waste would have continued to seep into the local drinking water supply and eventually the Monongahela River.
In 2018, Exeter Township's (Berks County) wastewater treatment plant, released 4 million gallons of untreated sewage into the Schuylkill River. That put communities downstream in Montgomery and Chester Counties on alert to monitor their drinking water intakes.
A year later, the township was able to sell the plant to Pennsylvania American Water, citing an "increasing burden" from federal and state regulations. It used the $93.5 million in proceeds to eliminate wastewater debt, pay pension funds, and implement new tax exemptions.
The company invested another $3 million to improve Exeter Township's wastewater infrastructure and environmental compliance.
Yes, again rates went up. But they would have gone up even more had the township itself made required upgrades. And more importantly, Exeter residents and communities downstream can now confidently turn on their taps and safely drink water, not to mention enjoy outdoor water activities without fear of untreated sewage.
At the end of the day, shouldn't that be everyone's priority?
Sewage Treatment Plant Mbr Technology Jim Seif is a former regional administrator in EPA's Region 3 and secretary of Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection under Gov. Tom Ridge.