American Water's Pennsylvania subsidiary has started the construction to extend water lines in Butler County in the state to provide public water service to the Summit Township Elementary School and about 100 residential customers.
The elementary school was closed in January after reports of lead and E.coli contamination, which testing showed was caused by the school’s on-site well.
“This project came together with strong community support and cooperation from the Butler Area District Board of School Directors, State Representative Brian Ellis, State Senator Donald White and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection,” said Pennsylvania American Water Senior Director of Operations Wynn Morgan. “Thanks to this partnership, we hope to bring safe, reliable water service to Summit Township Elementary School students in time for the start of the new school year, as well as for many local customers.”
The new water line will connect to Pennsylvania American Water’s existing Butler water system, which serves nearly 19,000 customers.
“I applaud Pennsylvania American Water for moving forward with this important water service expansion project. Providing a safe and reliable water supply for area residents and especially the students attending Summit Township Elementary School became an obvious priority over the past several months,” said Senator White. “This work will address the serious health issues related to lead and E. coli contamination that pose a true hazard to the students. In the long run, this project will benefit the students and improve the overall quality of life for local residents in general. ”
“Ensuring the students and parents of Summit Township Elementary School are confident that they safe, reliable drinking water is of utmost importance,” said Representative Ellis. “Pennsylvania American Water stepped up to the plate to move quickly and the timeliness of this project will allow us to be ready for the new school year.”
Starting this week, crews will install approximately 2.4 miles of 12-inch ductile iron pipe along Hirchberger Street, Simon Road, Herman Road, Bonnie Brook Road and Brinker Road.
Construction will take place weekdays Monday through Thursday between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m., and Fridays between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. Traffic will be reduced to a single lane during construction hours. The company expects to complete the new main installation, testing and disinfection, and connecting customers’ service lines to the new main by the end of August, with final paving restoration scheduled for September, weather permitting.