Water

$12 Million Water Treatment Plant Upgrades Move Power Lines Underground

Illinois American Water’s Interurban (Metro East) District, which serves the communities of East St. Louis, Granite City, Belleville and surrounding areas, has completed a significant upgrade at its East. St. Louis Water Treatment Plant. The approximately $12 million investment helps to enhance reli..

Water Technology Program Honored

The Hamilton Mill’s Pipeline H2O program was recognized on Thursday, Oct. 19 at the 2017 Ohio Economic Development Association (OEDA) Annual Excellence Awards program in Columbus, Ohio. The Ohio Economic Development Association’s Annual Excellence Awards program acknowledges the achievements of indi..

International Plastic Pipe Conference Extends Deadline for Papers

The organizers of the International Plastic Pipe Conference and Exhibition have announced a two-week extension of the deadline for the submission of abstracts to Nov. 15, 2017. “We have already received some major proposals for presentations and are particularly interested to receive case reference..

Houston Receives $47 Million to Address Brays Bayou Flooding

The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) has approved more than $47 million in financial assistance from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund to the city of Houston. The city will use the assistance to finance design and construction costs associated with a stormwater management project to address f..

Texas Water Development Board Makes $90 Million Available for Hurricane Harvey Recovery

The Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) has approved amendments to the State Fiscal Year 2018 State Revolving Funds Intended Use Plans making $90 million in financial assistance available for disaster recovery. The approval will enable the TWDB to provide immediate funding options to communities im..

Lawsuit Filed over North Carolina Water Contamination

The national law firm of Baron & Budd has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Brunswick County in the United States Eastern District of North Carolina against Chemours and DuPont for their role in contaminating the Cape Fear River. The firm is pursuing legal action on the county’s behalf to recover costs r..

FAST Start Replaces More Than 5,200 Water Lines in Flint

FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Service lines have been replaced at more than 4,300 Flint homes during phase 4 of an effort to help fix the city’s lead-tainted water crisis. The replaced lines are part of the city’s FAST Start initiative to put new water pipes in 6,000 homes this year. More than 5,2..

Consolidation of Rural Water Systems Prompts Industry Dialogue

CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange Division has released, When Rural Water Systems Combine, a report that examines key issues and considerations surrounding consolidation of rural water systems. “The pace of consolidations at agricultural cooperatives in rural America has picked up in recent years,” said ..

Aqua America Offers Tips, Video to Minimize Lead Exposure

To help raise awareness of potential sources of lead in drinking water during Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, Oct. 22 – 28, Aqua America has released a lead education video designed to help homeowners understand the important role they play in ensuring their water is lead free. “Each day, Aqua stri..

Milwaukee Wins Waukesha Water Contract

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee, not Oak Creek, will sell Lake Michigan water to the City of Waukesha under a new deal. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and Waukesha Mayor Shawn Reilly announced the 40-year water supply agreement on Monday. Waukesha Water Utility General Manager Dan Duchniak says for Waukes..

Sacramento’s Catastrophic Peril: Flooding

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – Even living here on the West Coast, Marion Townsend decided to act as floods ravaged Texas and hurricanes pounded the Caribbean in recent weeks. Her Sacramento neighborhood slopes downward from a levee that separates it from the American River, in an area that officials co..

11-Year-Old Honored for Lead Detection Invention

3M and Discovery Education have named 11-year-old Gitanjali Rao from Lone Tree, Colo. the winner of the 2017 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. Gitanjali is working to develop Tethys, a sensor-based device that can detect lead in water faster than other current techniques. ..

Last Boil Water Advisory Ends After Detroit-Area Main Break

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) — A final boil water advisory has been lifted following last week’s water main break that affected about a dozen suburban Detroit communities. The Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner’s office issued the all-clear Monday morning for the northwest part of Farmingt..

Wisconsin Senate to Vote on Lead Pipe Replacement Loans

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin state Senate is expected to vote on a bill that would allow a public water utility and municipalities to finance property owners’ efforts to replace lead pipes. Under the bill, public water utilities, cities, villages, towns or counties could provide grants, loans..

7 Detroit-Area Communities Remain Under Boil Water Advisory

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) — Seven suburban Detroit communities are expected to remain under a boil water advisory through Sunday following this week’s water main break. The Great Lakes Water Authority gave the update Friday as it announced that the advisory for Bloomfield Township and Keego Harb..

Judge Dismayed by Flint’s Refusal to Follow Water Order

FLINT, Mich. (AP) — A judge says the Flint City Council again has failed to come up with a long-term water source and may be pushing the troubled community toward bankruptcy. In a sweeping decision Friday, federal Judge David Lawson says the council’s proposed two-year extension with the Great Lake..

Water Pipeline to Be Built in Pennsylvania

On behalf of Governor Tom Wolf, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has announced funding for an Abandoned Mine Land (AML) project to construct a public waterline to serve 148 homes and businesses with public drinking water. “The Pine Grove Waterline Project will eliminate..

San Francisco PUC Awarded $625 Million Water Infrastructure Loan

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded a $625-million WIFIA (Water Infrastructure and Financing Innovation Act) loan to the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC). The loan, one of 12 issued nationwide, is expected to save ratepayers over $200 million. The $625-million ..

EPA: Michigan Should Boost Water Safety in Flint, Statewide

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Staff and funding shortages and poor data management are preventing Michigan environmental regulators from making sure that state residents have safe drinking water, federal officials said Thursday. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said deficiencies in Michigan’s..

Crews Replace Sections of Broken Detroit-Area Water Main

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) — Crews have installed new sections of a broken 48-inch (122-centimeter) line that prompted a boil water advisory to about a dozen suburban Detroit communities. The Great Lakes Water Authority says Thursday that work is continuing to restore service to thousands of cust..

New Online Marketplace for Trenchless Pipe and Sewer Repairs Launched

ShopTRENCHLESS.com, LLC today announced the launch of its website targeting residential and commercial plumbing contractors and suppliers, as well as utility contractors and municipalities’ maintenance divisions. shopTRENCHLESS.com is an online marketplace empowering the industry to source the next ..

Grant to Improve Water Quality for the Maumee River Basin

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — A northeastern Indiana county is receiving a $367,000 federal grant to improve the water quality for the Maumee River Basin. The Northeastern Indiana Regional Coordinating Council says Allen County will use the funds for improvements in Fort Wayne to capture nearly 500,000 g..

Water Pressure Being Restored After Detroit-Area Main Break

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) — Officials say water pressure has been restored to most communities following a suburban Detroit water main break that kept students home from dozens of schools for a second day. The Great Lakes Water Authority says only a section of Farmington Hills with 35,000 reside..

Michigan School’s Water Clear of Chemicals

ROCKFORD, Mich. (AP) — Drinking water tested at a western Michigan middle school has shown no signs of hazardous chemicals from a decades-old tannery waste dump site. Rockford Public Schools turned off drinking fountains at East Rockford Middle School two weeks ago as a precaution after leather and..

Trump Administration Opposes California Water Tunnel Project

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Trump administration said Wednesday that it will not support a massive water project proposed by California, the latest and most serious blow for Gov. Jerry Brown’s plan to re-engineer the state’s water system by building two giant water tunnels. “The Trump administration d..

California Democrats Seek New Federal Probe of Water Project

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Five California Democrats in Congress asked Tuesday for a new federal review of funding for Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed tunnel project. Their request follows a federal audit of Brown’s $16 billion proposal to re-engineer California’s complex north-south water system by building..

Michigan Water Main Break Continues to Affect Health Care, Schools

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) — A water main break in suburban Detroit continues to affect area hospital services and is keeping some students home from school for another day. The break of a 48-inch (122-centimeter) line Monday in Farmington Hills that serves customers in western Oakland County pro..

Illinois Attorney General Sues Gas Company Over Leak

MAHOMET, Ill. (AP) — The Illinois attorney general is suing a Chicago gas company over an underground natural-gas leak that has affected water wells near the central part of the state. The News-Gazette reports the lawsuit filed by Attorney General Lisa Madigan against Peoples Gas is based on a refe..

Lawsuit Filed Over Tainted North Carolina Water

WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — A law firm fighting lawsuits for Flint, Michigan, residents over lead-tainted drinking water is filing the latest class-action case blaming a North Carolina chemical plant for releasing little-understood compounds into the water supply for hundreds of thousands of people. Th..

Detroit Boil Water Advisory to Last for Days

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) — Officials say the earliest that a boil water advisory could be lifted for several suburban Detroit communities is Friday evening. The Great Lakes Water Authority gave the update Tuesday on Monday evening’s break of a 48-inch (122-centimeter) diameter pipe in Farmingto..