ASHLAND, Pa. — Community members let their frustrations be heard at Monday night's Ashland Area Municipal Meeting at Borough Hall, where residents say they believe they are paying for water that is unsafe and undrinkable.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to offer you a drink from my tap, and don't worry, I understand that germs go around, so I brought plenty of cups. Who wants to take a swig," said Desi Knecht, Ashland.
Dozens squeezed into the Ashland Borough meeting hall Monday night to voice their concerns about discolored drinking water that they say has been pouring out of faucets off and on for about a year.
Officials for Ashland Area Municipal Authority, the provider of water to the borough, say they are constantly testing the drinking water and that this is the first they are hearing of so many poor water issues.
"We've come to these meetings for years where there's been no residents here, and then tonight we're overwhelmed with a number of people and not knowing that they were having these problems for as long as they're saying they're having a problem," said Jennifer Kowalonek, Ashland Area Municipal Authority Engineer.
Jennifer Kowlanek, the municipal authorities engineer, says the borough's current water system predates the Civil War and that they have several projects in the works to hopefully tackle already existing issues.
"I live in Butler Township Township, so my neighbors everybody uses this water, so we care about the health and safety of the residence. No one here on the authority is out to hurt anyone. We want to help him make sure that the water is safe for everybody to use," explained Kowalonek.
The municipal authority does say that recent tests show that the water currently in Ashland does fall under DEP guidelines and is safe to consume.
They ask anybody who is having an issue to contact the borough or reach out directly to the municipal authority.
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