After Spill, Many PA Residents Don't Trust That Drinking Water Is Safe, Study Finds

PENNSYLVANIA — Many residents of the greater Philadelphia area don't trust that their drinking water is safe in the wake of the recent toxic spill into the Delaware River, a study finds, despite assurances from water authorities that they weren't impacted.

Some 31 percent of residents surveyed across southeastern Pennsylvania, Delaware, and South Jersey don't believe the advisories that the water is safe to drink, according to the study industry guide publisher WaterFilterGuru.

Similarly, 40 percent of respondents said they were afraid to drink the tap water, even if they believed the advisories.

“Considering Philadelphia officials initially advised residents to switch to bottled water Sunday after the chemical spill, residents could still be hesitant given the rapid change of advice," WaterFilterGuru's founder Brian Campbell told Patch.

Water authorities around the region who say they're not impacted by the spill have sought to reassure residents. PA American Water, Aqua PA, North Penn Water Authority, and others have issued similar statements.

An equipment failure at manufacturing company Altuglas caused 8,100 gallons of toxic "latex emulsion product" to be released into Otter Creek in Bristol on Friday night. It quickly flowed downstream into the Delaware River. In Philadelphia, residents in the impacted areas have been told tap water is safe to drink through at least 3:30 p.m. Tuesday because of the purified water already in reserve. The city is eyeing multiple contingencies and a potential water distribution plan if the water is still not safe.

North Penn, in particular, explained in detail why they were not impacted.

"It is not possible for the spilled material to travel in the opposite direction of the river’s flow to reach the Authority’s facility, located upstream and such a long distance away," they said Wednesday.

Others, however, are much closer to the source of the spill, like Pennsylvania American Water.

"The company has determined there is no impact to our Yardley Water Treatment Plant, which is 15 miles upstream of the chemical release and serves Yardley Borough, Lower Makefield Township, and part of Falls Township," the company said. "We remain in regular communication with state and federal agencies regarding the situation."

The WaterFilterGuru study also found that Internet searches for "water alternative" and "safe water" were up by 350 percent.

The latex emulsion spilled into the creek is a white liquid used in various consumer goods, Trinseo said. Altuglas said they are testing water samples in the surrounding area to determine the impact to wildlife and people. The response has been heavily criticized by both residents and environmental groups, who say that agencies are keeping the public in the dark.

"It’s not good enough to look out at the River and, seeing no dead birds or floating fish, to declare the natural resources haven’t been harmed," Delaware Riverkeeper's Maya van Rossum said. "It is essential we investigate and monitor the full breadth of impacts - from drinking water supply, to the dragonfly nymphs, to the migratory and resident fish, to the near term and/or long-term impacts to ecosystem habitats – and it is essential that our protocols for every catastrophic pollution event includes this full breadth of data collection and report out to our communities.”