A42-Lanca»ter Farming, Friday, January 14, 1097 - •
SRBC Meeting
(Continued from Page Alt)
decade because of a series of
droughts that caused water
shortages.
However, it also has received
more attention because of water
demand problems that have caused
some shortages even during non
drought years.
In recent years, the SRBC has
revised regulations from pieceme
al rules developed over time into a
comprehensive and coherent pack
age. It also has been conducting
research on groundwater and the
flow of nutrients, as well as the use
of artificial “wetlands” (biofilters)
in reducing nutrient flows from
croplands.
In its most publicly visible role,
the SRBC has been functioning as
an agency that facilitates the stor
age of water in upper basin reser
viors for release during drought.
To maintain critical flows in the
river during drought, the agency
charges for the “consumptive use”
of water that water use that
evaporates or transpires water out
of the immediate water system, so
as to deplete the flows to the river.
The money is used to pay for the
storage of water in reserviors that
is then released during drought, to
compensate for the consumptive
uses.
It is estimated that, during a
drought of historical significance,
more than 40 percent of the river’s
flow is used consumptively. That
amount is expected to increase if
residential and commercial uses
continue to increase at current
rates.
The Eastern United States his
torically has not had the water
problems experienced in the West,
but demands on the flow of water
within the basin have increased
dramatically over the years.
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Per capita use of water has
increased dramatically, while an
overall population increase has
been increasing the demand and
use of water.
Many water-use regulatory
issues remain unresolved, largely
because the people living in the
basin have never had to come to
terms with those issues.
For example, since state policy
changed and now dissuades com
munities from establishing or
maintaining existing surface water
reservoirs for community drinking
water supplies, unless costly treat
ment systems (including staff) are
incorporated, many small com
munities are seeking combined
efforts for public water supplies.
Many of those supplies are coming
from wells.
In the meantime, water supplies
to many communities are provided
through private water companies
that have grown through buyouts
and consolidations.
Out-of-area water supplies are
becoming more common, espe
cially in areas with large residen
tial developments and a lack of
adequate supplies from natural,
close-proximity watersheds.
In some cases, groundwater
dependent residential develop
ments have dried-up streams. (All
streams are actually flows of
groundwater forced to the surface.
True surface water flows generally
only occur during a rain storm.)
In other cases, there are some
areas where water supplies were
inexpensive, and sewage was pri
marily treated on-lot. For years
those residents had inexpensive
water and sewer service.
However, with residential and
industrial demands exceeding loc
al water capacity, outside sources
had to be created in order to get
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residential development approved.
(While environmental laws don’t
prevent building homes in water
depleted areas, financial support is
difficult to obtain for a project that
doesn’t secure potable water.)
Some of the problems this sce
nario presents are not necessarily
felt by those in the new residential
developments, but rather with the
historic communities where water
and sewer costs had been minimal.
Such subcommunities can and
do include a high percentage of
retired or fixed-income, long-time
residents who now, in effect, have
been forced to give up inexpensive
water and sewer service to subsid
ize expensive systems that were
built to facilitate approval for new
residential development.
Approval for such expensive
systems has been promoted by loc
al policitians under the ruse that
increasing residential growth pro
vides a stronger tax base and thus a
better standard of living and long
term lower taxes.
Scientific research been shown
the reserve to be the case, however,
as residential developments, espe
cially newer ones, carry higher
demands for public services and
actually use more in local govern
ment funds than are paid through
taxes and fees.
While the SRBC is not directly
involved in forming state policy
with water and sewer and its subse
quent affect on development, or
with local policies that benefit resi
dential developments instead of
providing for long-term stability of
water supplies, the SRBC has to
deal with the reality that residential
development is not dependent
upon the availability or adequacy
of water supplies.
In some areas, demand on
groundwater sources has caused
extreme problems.
The SRBC, as a regional author
ity, has the power to prevent
groundwater withdrawals that
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overdraw upon an aquifer, howev
er it has yet to exercise that option,
though it has been considered in
some areas with heavy develop
ment tapping into high value aquif
ers, such as in some areas near
State College.
Further complicating are the
realities that have yet to be
addressed legislatively, such as the
occurance of sinkholes which can
be directly linked to the stability of
groundwater flows.
Again, while the SRBC has the
authority to deny groundwater
withdrawals because of natural
limitations, much remains to be
documented concerning the avail-
Pennsylvania Cable Network
Offers Live Coverage
CAMP HELL (Cumberland
Co.) The Pennsylvania Cable
Network, the first educational
cable television service in the
nation, has announced its prog
ramming schedule of live events at
the Pennsylvania State Farm
Show.
The network is supported by
Pennsylvania cable companies
statewide which cany the network
on their channel lineup.
Broadcasting is set to begin at
11:30 a.m., Saturday with an open
ing address by Gov. Tom Ridge.
The Farm Show opens to the publ
ic then.
Coverage by the cable network
is to continue through the sale of
junior market livestock champions
at 10 a.m., Thursday.
Complementing the live cover
age are to be delayed telecasts of
some events, such as the Sheep-to-
Shawl contest and auction, lives
tock judging, vo-ag school demon
strations, and Farm Show fashions.
Interviews with judges, contes
tants and exhibitors are also to be
included.
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ability of groundwater and the spe
cifics of certain aquifers.
Without supporting documenta
tion, legal challenges to denials of
groundwater are difficult to battle.
Further, since the agency is gen
erally not well-understood by the
general public, it can lack the
necessary political support that
some circumstances to exercise its
authority.
The agency, and its sister
agency the Delaware River
Basin Commission both
depend upon state and federal sup
port. Recently the U.S. Congress
sought to eliminate funding for
both.
On Saturday, after the gover
nor’s address, a partial listing of
the events scheduled to be telecast
live includes the championship
rodeo from noon to 3 p.m.; the
Cumberland County 4-H Club
Horse Drill Team from 4 p.m. to 5
p.m.; followed by another session
of championship rodeo from 5
p.m. until 8 p.m.
On Sunday, the draft horse
hitched competition is set to be
aired from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m., fol
lowed by team classes of hitched
horses from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m.
Other events during the week to
be broadcast live include the folk
dance fesdval and contest on Mon
day, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.; the
championship horse pulling con
test on Tuesday from 4:30 p.m.
until 8 p.m.; the state champion
ship pony pulling contest on Wed
nesday freon 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and
the livestock sale Thursday.
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