Water
becoming hot commodity for communities
By Hilary Bentman, Intelligencer, January 20, 2009
Area officials may dive into water resource planning to
prepare for future needs.
In the last few years, communities throughout Bucks County have struggled to keep their infrastructure and services in line
with the fast pace of development.
New housing projects have put more cars on the roads, more
children in the schools, and more stress on natural resources.
But in the last year, development has slowed to a mere trickle,
creating an ideal time to prepare for future needs and examine the bigger picture, says Dennis Livrone, a senior planner with
the Bucks County Planning Commission.
In that vein, the Quakertown Area Planning Committee is
beginning to discuss regional water resource planning, and may consider tackling projects to safeguard the drinking water
supply, wetlands and flood plains, and perhaps tie and limit future growth based on water availability.
But a real concern for some is finding the money in this
already down economy to do the work. Grant money is available but contributions from the municipalities could also be needed.
No figures have been tossed around yet.
"We don't have money in this year's budget and I don't know
if we will have it in next year's," said Henry DePue, a member of the QAPC and supervisor in Haycock, a township which, this
year, for the first time in 47 years, raised taxes.
Grants, such as through the state's Growing Greener environmental
investment program, are also becoming more competitive, as more and more municipalities and organizations learn of their existence,
said Livrone.
But there are some other sources for funding to explore,
he said.
The Quakertown Area Planning Committee, comprised of representatives
from the six municipalities and the school district, is currently gathering information about water resource planning and
looking to the nearby Pennridge Area Coordinating Committee as a model. This group has spent the last eight years working
on water management.
West Rockhill Supervisor Don Duvall, a member of the group,
believes each municipality was asked to contribute $10,000 to these efforts.
Several recommendations have emerged from Pennridge's study,
which are now being implemented. These include ongoing public education, developing language in a town's regulations to protect
water, and monitoring the watershed.
But perhaps the most notable is creating a committee to
review development proposals with an eye specifically to water availability. This inter-municipal board would make recommendations
to individual towns to have a builder modify a proposal accordingly.
"Water is one of the most critical resources we're going
to deal with in the next 10 to 20 years," said Duvall. "Some say water is becoming (like) oil. But we can live without oil.
You can't live without water."
Currently there are no major or widespread concerns about
water shortages in either the Pennridge or Quakertown areas.
But there are concerns in the Palisades community where the geology - solid rock and steep slopes - prevents rainfall from recharging the aquifers and forces
homeowners to dig deep wells.
Tinicum has a water development ordinance that places regulations
on new developments based on the size of the home and the average person's daily water usage.
And last year, Nockamixon passed a regulation basically
prohibiting drilling a well unless it can be shown that the well will meet the demands of the home or business it is to serve
without overstraining water supplies. A developer proposing a major subdivision would be held responsible for adversely affecting
neighboring wells.
Opponents have argued the regulation is anti-development.
Meanwhile, the Newtown area has a joint committee discussing water resource efforts, and Solebury has also developed a similar plan, said
Livrone.
