UPDATE: Drinking water from the James totally fine

DPU says they’ll keep pulling water from the James.

Update #1 — May 1, 2014; 7:12 AM

The RTD has the scoop from Robert C. Steidel, director of the Department of Public Utilities, that Richmond’s drinking water will not be impacted by crude oil from yesterday’s train derailment.

“Our plan is to continue to use the water off the James River,” he said. “The James River is at flood stage right now. There’s a lot of water moving through the river, and we anticipate what isn’t caught upstream is going to move very quickly down the river and then move past the intake to the water plant.”

Richmond also will put absorbent booms on the river surface to capture any oil that approaches the intake canal to the city treatment plan, and also test the water downstream.

“We’re going to remove it all. … We’re not going to accept any oil,” Steidel said.

— ∮∮∮ —

Original — April 30, 2014

Mike Valerie from NBC12 reports:

See photos from the derailment on Twitter.

More as it develops.

Photo by: DPU

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Ross Catrow

Founder and publisher of RVANews.

Notice: Comments that are not conducive to an interesting and thoughtful conversation may be removed at the editor’s discretion.

  1. Lee on said:

    Not to be gross, but is that picture meant to suggest that they are directly recycling treated water? (pardon my ignorance, but I kind of thought that once treated, wastewater went back into the river…). What exactly is their “alternative” source? Not concerned – just curious.

  2. Lee on said:

    And I just read that twitter post. Oops. Canal Water. Cool.

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