Horsham Among 3 Municipalities Not to Sign Partnership to Protect Wissahickon Waters

A total of 13 suburban municipalities plus the Philadelphia Water Department in the Wissahickon Watershed have adopted an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) ordinance to officially move forward with the Wissahickon Clean Water Partnership, the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association said in a press release Wednesday.

The Agreement states that the municipalities will commit to work together to improve drinking water, mitigate damaging flooding, reduce streambank erosion, protect fish and wildlife, and restore valuable recreation area throughout the Creek corridor, the release states.

Local municipalities began meeting in June to vote on joining the Agreement, and the most recent meetings occurred on Tuesday, when both North Wales Borough and Lower Gwynedd voted to sign the IGA.

“The Wissahickon Clean Water Partnership is a unique, unprecedented opportunity for our local communities to come together to restore the Wissahickon Creek,” said Rick Collier, Board Chair, Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association (WVWA). “This is our chance to “Own the Solution.” 13 of the 16 municipalities plus 3 of the 4 wastewater treatment plants signing on, sending a strong message of commitment to a #CleanWissahickon.”

In addition to North Wales and Lower Gwynedd, municipalities that have signed include Abington, Ambler, Cheltenham, Lansdale, Montgomery, Philadelphia, Springfield, Upper Dublin, Upper Gwynedd, Whitemarsh, and Whitpain.

Thus far, only Horsham, Upper Moreland, and Worcester, have not signed, although the WVWA said that all three have expressed their support. Those municipalities comprise only three percent of the watershed.

Some residents remain unaware of the Creek’s importance to drinking water or that it is officially considered “impaired.” Over the summer, WWVA has marshaled 1,100 residents to sign a petition urging local officials to vote to pass the IGA.

The agreement empowers municipalities to work on solutions together, and to shape future regulatory guidelines themselves instead of merely complying with federal limits, WWVA says. Furthermore, the Partnership reduces costs for all participating municipalities due to the William Penn Foundation’s commitment of over $1 million in financial support for planning.

Representatives from each of the municipalities who signed onto the IGA will meet in the fall to officially appoint the team and determine next steps.