Sewer system that spilled 5 million gallons of sewage into Valley Forge Park in 2014 has a new owner

Aqua America Inc. announced Thursday it will pay $28.3 million to Tredyffrin Township for the Valley Creek Trunk Sewer System, a wastewater main that made the news in 2014 when it broke and leaked 5 million gallons of raw sewage into Valley Forge National Historical Park.

The sewer main, which has been largely replaced since the 2014, transports the untreated wastewater from Easttown, East Whiteland, Willistown and Tredyffrin Townships, Malvern Borough and the Valley Forge Sewer Authority. The sewage is sent to the Valley Forge Treatment Plant, owned by the VFSA. The system consists of 9.3 miles of sewers and two pump stations.

Aqua is acquiring the system through its Aqua Resources Inc. subsidiary, and the rates for its six customers will initially be set by contract rather than by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, said Thomas Rafferty, Aqua’s director of corporate development.

Since much of the system is new, no major capital investments are anticipated for at least seven years, he said.

“We are grateful that Aqua has been entrusted to help resolve the long-standing challenges this system has faced and appreciate the opportunity to share our expertise in infrastructure and operations to strengthen it well into the future,” Christopher Franklin, Aqua’s chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.

The Bryn Mawr-based company is one of the largest publicly-traded water utilities in the country, serving some 3 million residents in Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Illinois, Texas, New Jersey, Indiana and Virginia.