DUNCANNON, PERRY COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) -- A public water supply emergency is in effect in Duncannon, and this is not the first time -- water problems have been a slow drip in the Perry County borough.
This is the second water supply emergency in less than three months -- the borough had one back in June, but officials are working to try and fix the problem.
"I wouldn't say it's anything new," Perry County Planning Coordinator Jason Finnerty said. "Unless you remedy it or correct it, it's going to continue to get worse."
The last time Duncannon had a public water supply emergency, borough engineer Greg Rogalski explained the challenges.
"We certainly have a lot of infrastructure that's old and a relatively small population to be able to fund that infrastructure replacement," he said.
Rogalski said parts of the borough's water system are nearly 100 years old, and the system is leaking, losing up to half of the water it produces every month.
The borough is taking steps to fix it. Finnerty said the borough is applying for money from the PENNVEST Clean Water State Revolving Fund. He said Duncannon would use the money to replace water mains and water valves and install leak detection systems.
"I'm hopeful that the state will yield this money to the borough," he said.
Finnerty said he does not know how much money the borough would need to fix their whole system, but he said says this funding would be a good first step.
"Hopefully correcting a large portion if not all," he said.
Back in May, Senator Bob Casey helped get more than $8 million in federal funding to Loysville for water system upgrades. abc27 reached out to Casey's office to find out if something similar would be possible for Duncannon. Casey's office said they are in contact with Perry County commissioners about Duncannon's issue.
The borough has already received some money from the American Rescue Plan Act, and the PENNVEST money the borough is requesting is funded largely by federal grants.
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