Valley creek fishkill 1/14/22

[Mike]

Being really nit picking here, but chlorine doesn't degrade; it's an element and can't.* Hypochlorite (which is what people use to chlorinate swimming pool) degrades in sunlight, turning into chlorine gas, which then evaporates from the water.

Most water and wastewater treatment plants use chlorine gas directly.

* Being even more nit picking, chlorine gas (Cl2) is really a molecule, and could be torn apart, but that doesn't happen.

Not nit-picking at all from my viewpoint. I should have known that and, thus, commented more accurately. Thanks for,the review.

 

[flyflicker]

Not nit-picking at all from my viewpoint. I should have known that and, thus, commented more accurately. Thanks for,the review.

Kudos for not taking offense and treating the comment like a review. It allows the conversation to continue and more accurately. No emotions attached. Good stuff (and people!) on this forum

 

[Fredrick]

Isn't Aqua a publicly traded company and isn't this the second or third fish kill from them due to failing infrastructure/equipment. To me that is definitely a trend in neglect . Curious if VCTU is seeking any legal options against AQUA

 

[lestrout]

Isn't Aqua a publicly traded company and isn't this the second or third fish kill from them due to failing infrastructure/equipment. To me that is definitely a trend in neglect . Curious if VCTU is seeking any legal options against AQUA

Yo Fred - another thread https://www.paflyfish.com/threads/valley-creek-pollution-incidents-this-century.80062/#post-900669 shows the more than dozen water main break incidents just the last 20 years. The were some nasty ones like back in '64 and '84 but VFTU documentation process wasn't as good back then. There were also episodes with draining swimming pools, which VFTU tracked down and stopped. Also stuff like sewage line breaks and that milk truck dump.

Look at http://www.valleyforgetu.org/pollution-incidents/ for detail on the incidents.

VFTU knows how to sue companies and agencies - hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent over the years doing this. This is why developers, townships, etc. take VFTU seriously when concerns arise over issues like this. But lawsuits are more a last resort if constructive discussions don't work. VFTU has put together a working group to formally address AQUA, who may not be responsible for all the problems with water mains, but they are the only party able to fix them. This has gone past an angry letter, fines or petition, and we need a working relationship with them.

 

[shadspoon]

Long time member of VFTU. I was with Les and the others on Sat. This was maybe my sixth time onsite with water main breaks. Other problems like sewer lines are different, they don't kill fish. The lessons learned are spread the word that public water kills anything with gills and the sooner a problem is reported the better. Put the phone #'s in your phones before you need them. The more eyes we have on Valley the better. PeteL

 

[moon1284]

Isn't Aqua a publicly traded company and isn't this the second or third fish kill from them due to failing infrastructure/equipment. To me that is definitely a trend in neglect . Curious if VCTU is seeking any legal options against AQUA

Yes publicly traded company with deep pockets.

I would imagine they are going to get fined by the regulator. They had to have violated their permit. No idea how big the fine would be, politics are always in play. It seems like they are a repeat offender so the fine should be substantial.

 

[Evers]

Yo Surf - Thanks for your sad message. Here's what I've found, talking to the VFTU members and WCO Bob Bonney:

The AQUA 12 inch main broke some before 8:00am. It is upstream near Great Valley High School, and the break was bad enough to shut down Rte 401.
AQUA reported it directly to DEP
A VFTU member saw the problem and reported it about 8:10am
Bob Bonney was on vacation and we let him know directly, so he jumped down to the creek
He and a VFTU member counted a couple hundred dead fish, but the water got too turbid to see the bottom
The USGS gave showed a very sharp spike, uncharacteristic of stormwater surges, from about 20 cfs to 40 cfs (about double). The spike down there lasted about an hour, starting about 12:30pm.

By now the rest of the stream will have cleared, and the (dead) fish count will resume tomorrow Saturday morning about 10:00am. Some of the VFTU will be there to help Bonney, and if anyone here wants to help, come join this sad effort. We'll use the Valley Creek Park on Rte 29 for parking and as the base:

361 N Morehall Rd, Malvern, PA 19355, United States, GPS: 40.0606,-75.53193

Was at the birdge by the sewer treatment plant across from the East Whiteland fire dept today. There is a good size pool there that usually has about 25 nice size trout in it. There were no trout in it this morning. All gone. How sad.