PSOC Inventory Update Identifies Hundreds of Sites

RAWA is conducting ongoing verification of their new PS PSOC inventory, containing more than 400 sites. The above images displays a portion of these sites within their Zone A protection areas.

Reading Area Water Authority

Reading, Pennsylvania

The Reading Area Water Authority (RAWA) serves drinking water to more than 125,000 persons in Berks County, Pennsylvania.  

In 2007, a source water protection plan was approved for RAWA. This plan included a PS PSOC inventory of just 83 sites, generated from 9 statewide databases. As part of their annual SWP plan review in 2014, RAWA requested an update to their PSOC inventory. Using a total of 28 databases, and more accurate methodology and technology, a new inventory was developed containing over 400 sites of potential concern. This new inventory not only added  hundreds of new sites, but retained previously identified sites, and indicated which sites appeared in both analyses, allowing the system to compare any changes. With this new information, RAWA has been gradually reviewing, modifying and visiting the sites as part of their implementation plan.

The update to RAWA’s PSOC inventory occurred shortly after the high profile 2014 chemical spill in West Virginia. RAWA understood that should a similar situation happen within their watershed, it would only be a matter of hours before the contaminant reached their intake. By retaining up-to-date information on potential contaminants within their watershed, RAWA will be able to save precious response time should a release occur.