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In 1999 the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) developed a
Source Water Assessment Program (SWAP) in response to requirements
set forth by the Safe
Drinking Water Act Amendments passed by Congress in 1996. Because
of this requirement all watersheds within the state using a surface
water supply for a public drinking water system are to be assessed
for potential contaminant sources that may affect the raw water
quality at the intake. Four tasks are to be completed in order to
comply with these requirements. They are:
1. Delineation of the watershed above the source water intake
2. Inventory all potential non-point and point sources of contamination
3. Determine the susceptibility of the water supply to the contaminant
sources
4. Make the results public to the community served by the water
supplier
The Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB) is
performing the surface water assessment under contract from the
PA DEP for the Marsh Creek watershed. Part of Gettysburg's public
water supply is drawn from Marsh Creek.
ICPRB recognizes the importance of small watershed groups and has
asked the Watershed
Alliance of Adams County (WAAC) for assistance in providing
information to the public and in conducting the initial and final
public meetings for the Marsh Creek project. ICPRB also hopes to
draw upon the Alliance's intimate knowledge of the Marsh Creek area
in order to conduct a more thorough assessment of Gettysburg's as
well as the surrounding area's surface water source.
Now that an assessment has been performed, it can be used to provide
decision-makers and the public with detailed information on potential
threats to their public water supply. This information in turn can
enable the stakeholders to develop and adopt protective measures
for their watershed and ultimately improve the water quality at
the tap. It is hoped that the citizens of Gettysburg and Adams County
will use the public meetings as a critical first step in the development
of a source
water protection plan.
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