Ocean salt water entering Delaware River due to drought and sea level rise, water managers say [View all]
Source: ABC News
November 27, 2024, 5:14 PM
Drought and sea level rise have caused salt water from the Atlantic Ocean to creep into the Delaware River Basin, a major source of drinking water for Philadelphia and the surrounding area, officials say.
The Delaware River's salt front -- the line where ocean water and freshwater meet -- has been shifting upstream from its typical spot near Wilmington to about 20 miles north, near the Philadelphia International Airport and closer to the intake for drinking water, Amy Shallcross, manager of water resource operations at the Delaware River Basin Commission, said.
"When flows are really low, that's when the salt front will start to creep upstream," Shallcross said. Drinking water has not yet been affected, but water management officials are taking urgent measures to prevent the ocean water from tainting the water supply, Shallcross said. One of the contingency efforts includes tapping two nearby reservoirs to push the unpotable waters back downstream, Shallcross said. The flows released are roughly equivalent to two Olympic-sized swimming pools per minute.
"As conditions become more and more serious, or drier and drier, then we'll need to release more water," Shallcross said. "And so it's really a balance between keeping water in storage for water supplies versus releasing water to repel salinity or to push the salt downstream."
Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/ocean-salt-water-entering-delaware-river-drought-sea-level-rise/story?id=116270464
In this graphic released by the Delaware River Basin Commission, the salt front location is shown.
Delaware River Basin Commission
My water comes from the OTHER river that runs through Philly - the Schuylkill (the river shown in the below pic) -
Philadelphia skyline
STOOCK PHOTO/Getty Images
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