Aqua Pennsylvania Lifts Emlenton Boil Order Within One Month of Purchasing Troubled Water Company

Aqua Pennsylvania, Inc., (Aqua) announced today that improvements it made to its recently purchased Emlenton water treatment plant allowed the company to lift a boil water order on Friday, January 23. The boil order was instituted by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) on April 29, 2008 during previous ownership of the system.

"We are pleased to have made the improvements necessary for our new Emlenton customers to be able to drink water directly from their taps,” said Aqua Regional President Robert G. Liptak. "We kept the commitment we made at the time of purchase to do all that we could to make their water potable again so the order could be lifted. We worked closely with DEP toward a goal of lifting the boil order as soon as possible.”

DEP Water Supply Manager Brad Vanderhoof said the agency was extremely pleased with the actions Aqua took in a relatively short period of time to allow the boil order to be lifted. "Aqua’s involvement became a real turning point in this case. We are delighted that Aqua has gained control over the treatment plant and the water is once again safe to drink,” said Vanderhoof. "We were very impressed with the expertise of their staff and the level of resources they invested to resolve this crisis, ensuring quality water for Emlenton customers.”

Liptak said since assuming ownership of the system a little more than three weeks ago, Aqua has been making repairs and improvements to the water plant including automating some operations and upgrading process controls and data communication equipment. He added that although the boil order is lifted, the system will require additional capital investment over the next few years.

Area legislators, including State Senator Mary Jo White, were actively involved in addressing the Emlenton customers’ water quality issues. "I commend Aqua Pennsylvania for its hard work to improve drinking water quality for the residents of Emlenton,” said Pennsylvania Senator Mary Jo White, who represents the affected area and chairs the Senate’s Environmental Resources and Energy Committee. "I appreciate Aqua’s commitment to investing in the infrastructure needed to provide quality service into the future.”

Aqua acquired the Emlenton Water Company, which serves approximately 1,200 people in portions of Emlenton Borough and Richland Township, Venango County and Richland Township, Clarion County in western Pennsylvania, on December 31, 2008. Aqua had been operating the troubled utility as its certified operator under an emergency order from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission since November 21, 2008.

Aqua Pennsylvania serves approximately 1.4 million people in 29 counties throughout Pennsylvania. It is the largest operating subsidiary of Aqua America, Inc., (NYSE:WTR) which serves approximately 3 million people collectively in Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Illinois, Texas, New Jersey, New York, Florida, Indiana, Virginia, Maine, Missouri and South Carolina, and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol WTR.

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