West Virginia American Water Earns Exemplary Source Water Protection Program Award
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (Sept. 28, 2021) – West Virginia American Water announced today that it received the 2021 Exemplary Source Water Protection Program Award from the American Water Works Association (AWWA). The award was presented to the company for establishing the most robust source water protection program in North America among large water systems serving greater than 250,000 customers.
“West Virginia American Water is incredibly honored to receive the Exemplary Source Water Protection Program Award from the American Water Works Association,” said Robert Burton, West Virginia American Water president. “This international award represents more than seven years of hard work to create an effective, innovative program that provides state-of-the-art source water protection for the benefit of our customers and communities across West Virginia.”
Any public or private drinking water system that performs source water protection for drinking water supplies in North America was eligible to be nominated for this award. Selection criteria for the award included the following six components outlined in the AWWA Standard for Source Water Protection: (1) a source water protection program vision; (2) source water characterization; (3) source water protection goals; (4) source water protection action plan; (5) implementation of the action plan; and (6) periodic evaluation and revision of the entire program.
“West Virginia American Water’s current source water protection program began out of legislation following the 2014 Freedom Industries chemical spill,” said Erica Pauken, West Virginia American Water source water protection program manager. “Our company viewed that legislation as a baseline, and we created an emergency response and source water protection program that goes far above and beyond the minimum requirements of the law. As a result, it’s an honor to be recognized for those efforts to deliver a superior protection program for our customers in West Virginia.”
West Virginia American Water strives to provide high quality, reliable water service for its customers. Collaborative efforts to protect sources of water used as drinking water supplies are an important part of maintaining high quality water for communities across the state. Source water protection involves identifying potential risks that could affect the drinking water supply and seeking to reduce those risks when possible in order to maintain quality sources of supply. To learn more about West Virginia American Water’s award-winning source water protection program, please visit the company’s source water protection webpage.
“A cornerstone of our source water protection program has been the development of emergency management relationships that allow for deployment of effective contingency and communication plans in the event of an emergency,” said Pauken. “Along with those relationships, our program boasts the most advanced water quality testing in the state, along with upstream monitoring and source water detection panels that provide up-to-the-minute data on what’s happening in our source waters. Through all of these components, our customers can rest assured that we’re working hard for them in every aspect of this program.”
About West Virginia American Water:
West Virginia American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water services to approximately 545,000 people. With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 7,000 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to 15 million people in 46 states. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable and reliable water services to our customers to make sure we help keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com and follow American Water on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
About the American Water Works Association (AWWA):
The American Water Works Association is an international, nonprofit, scientific and educational society dedicated to providing total water solutions assuring the effective management of water. Founded in 1881, the Association is the largest organization of water supply professionals in the world. Our membership includes over 4,300 utilities that supply roughly 80 percent of the nation’s drinking water and treat almost half of the nation’s wastewater. Our 51,000 total members represent the full spectrum of the water community: public water and wastewater systems, environmental advocates, scientists, academicians, and others who hold a genuine interest in water, our most important resource.
Connect with us: Facebook.com/wvamwater ● Twitter.com/wvamwater YouTube.com/wvamwater ● Instagram: @wvamawater
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West Virginia American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water services to approximately 545,000 people. For more information, visit www.westvirginiaamwater.com and follow West Virginia American Water on Twitter and Facebook.
About American Water
With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 7,000 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to 15 million people in 46 states. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable, and reliable water services to our customers to help make sure we keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com and follow American Water on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (Sept. 28, 2021) – West Virginia American Water announced today that it received the 2021 Exemplary Source Water Protection Program Award from the American Water Works Association (AWWA). The award was presented to the company for establishing the most robust source water protection program in North America among large water systems serving greater than 250,000 customers.
“West Virginia American Water is incredibly honored to receive the Exemplary Source Water Protection Program Award from the American Water Works Association,” said Robert Burton, West Virginia American Water president. “This international award represents more than seven years of hard work to create an effective, innovative program that provides state-of-the-art source water protection for the benefit of our customers and communities across West Virginia.”
Any public or private drinking water system that performs source water protection for drinking water supplies in North America was eligible to be nominated for this award. Selection criteria for the award included the following six components outlined in the AWWA Standard for Source Water Protection: (1) a source water protection program vision; (2) source water characterization; (3) source water protection goals; (4) source water protection action plan; (5) implementation of the action plan; and (6) periodic evaluation and revision of the entire program.
“West Virginia American Water’s current source water protection program began out of legislation following the 2014 Freedom Industries chemical spill,” said Erica Pauken, West Virginia American Water source water protection program manager. “Our company viewed that legislation as a baseline, and we created an emergency response and source water protection program that goes far above and beyond the minimum requirements of the law. As a result, it’s an honor to be recognized for those efforts to deliver a superior protection program for our customers in West Virginia.”
West Virginia American Water strives to provide high quality, reliable water service for its customers. Collaborative efforts to protect sources of water used as drinking water supplies are an important part of maintaining high quality water for communities across the state. Source water protection involves identifying potential risks that could affect the drinking water supply and seeking to reduce those risks when possible in order to maintain quality sources of supply. To learn more about West Virginia American Water’s award-winning source water protection program, please visit the company’s source water protection webpage.
“A cornerstone of our source water protection program has been the development of emergency management relationships that allow for deployment of effective contingency and communication plans in the event of an emergency,” said Pauken. “Along with those relationships, our program boasts the most advanced water quality testing in the state, along with upstream monitoring and source water detection panels that provide up-to-the-minute data on what’s happening in our source waters. Through all of these components, our customers can rest assured that we’re working hard for them in every aspect of this program.”
About West Virginia American Water:
West Virginia American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water services to approximately 545,000 people. With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 7,000 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to 15 million people in 46 states. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable and reliable water services to our customers to make sure we help keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com and follow American Water on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
About the American Water Works Association (AWWA):
The American Water Works Association is an international, nonprofit, scientific and educational society dedicated to providing total water solutions assuring the effective management of water. Founded in 1881, the Association is the largest organization of water supply professionals in the world. Our membership includes over 4,300 utilities that supply roughly 80 percent of the nation’s drinking water and treat almost half of the nation’s wastewater. Our 51,000 total members represent the full spectrum of the water community: public water and wastewater systems, environmental advocates, scientists, academicians, and others who hold a genuine interest in water, our most important resource.
Connect with us: Facebook.com/wvamwater ● Twitter.com/wvamwater YouTube.com/wvamwater ● Instagram: @wvamawater
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West Virginia American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water services to approximately 545,000 people. For more information, visit www.westvirginiaamwater.com and follow West Virginia American Water on Twitter and Facebook.
About American Water
With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 7,000 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to 15 million people in 46 states. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable, and reliable water services to our customers to help make sure we keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com and follow American Water on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.