Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission — Maryland’s largest water utility — recently filed a federal lawsuit accusing eight companies and five executives of conspiracy to inflate the price of a water treatment chemical.

The commission is claiming it overpaid by millions of dollars over the course of 14 years for aluminum sulfate.

Federal prosecutors claim that there has been a longtime conspiracy to drive up prices for the chemical by eliminating competition.

Sixty-eight similar lawsuits have been filed against the companies in questions throughout the nation.

Source: Washington Post

Niagara Falls WWTP Facing Crumbing Infrastructure

Niagara Falls (New York) Water Board member Nick Forester recently detailed some of the major problems facing the Niagara Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant when he was in front of city council members.

The story he told suggests the city’s wastewater infrastructure is falling apart.

“A lot has been said about what's going on at the water board and a lot of it is true,” Forester told the city council, according to the Niagara Gazette.

Forester says he was forced to use his cell phone flashlight to navigate the lower areas of the plant because so many lights were burnt out. He also said there was unopened mail from state and federal regulatory agencies.

He warned that without changes to the plant, more overflows into the Niagara River would be imminent.

Source: Niagara Gazette

Hazardous Materials Leak Exposes Workers to Ozone

A hazardous material leak recently caused the evacuation of a water treatment plant in Gilbert, Arizona. And four people say they had symptoms of ozone exposure related to the event.

Approximately 20 to 30 people were evacuated from the plant, although it’s unknown how many were exposed to the hazardous leak.

Emergency personnel contained the hazardous material before monitoring the room to return it to normal levels of oxygen.

Source: AZ Central

Schools Close After Water Treatment Computer Failure

The Amity (Oregon) School District was closed recently as city officials tried to resolve a water treatment issue.

A computer at the city’s plant had failed during the night, causing the entire city to lose its water pressure. The public works department asked residents to conserve water as crews worked to restore service.

Source: Katu 2