The North Wales Water Authority...
was incorporated in 1951 by the government of the Borough of North Wales under the Pennsylvania Municipalities Authorities Act of 1945. The Authority is governed by a board of five people appointed by the borough council of North Wales. The board members are customers of the system and serve without compensation. The purpose of the formation of the North Wales Water Authority was to acquire and operate the privately held North Wales Water Company which, at the time, serviced 1,200 customers.
A municipal authority offers several unique advantages over private or investor-owned entities in its ability to deliver essential public services such as water. An Authority is nonprofit; therefore, 100% of all revenues remain within the Authority for system improvements. There is no outside stockholder cost, nor can funds be used for other municipal services.
Due to the continuing need for access to public water supplies in the surrounding area, the North Wales Water Authority extended its service lines into the surrounding municipalities of Upper Gwynedd Township and Lower Gwynedd Township. The added advantage of this expansion was to acquire a larger service area and provide the Authority with an ability to develop additional sources of groundwater for its customers' use.
The local area experienced a drought of record in 1964, which afforded the Authority an opportunity to expand into Montgomery Township. Later, in the late 1960s, the Authority acquired the assets of the Blue Bell Water Company (a privately-held company) and expanded its service into Whitpain Township. In 1979, the Authority acquired the assets of the Upper Dublin and Delaware Valley Industrial Water Companies (also privately-held) and expanded into Upper Dublin Township, including the Fort Washington Industrial Park. Additional acquisitions in the 1980s expanded the Authority's service territory into New Britain Township and Bucks County. In addition, the Authority has numerous wholesale agreements with neighboring municipalities to sell supplemental water.
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