'Solar bees' improve water at Lake Oneida Dam
OAKLAND TWP — The three structures protruding from the Lake Oneida Dam that have been noticed by many motorists on Oneida Valley Road are not overturned boats or artifacts exposed by this summer's dry weather.
Gary Lobaugh, spokesman for Pennsylvania American Water, said they are new quality-improvement technology added to the 202-year-old public water source.
Josh Dunkle, a source water protection lead at Pennsylvania American Water, said the units are known as “solar bees.”
He explained that three solar panels on each of the structures power a paddle that circulates water in the dam 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.
The paddle pulls the water from the bottom of the 573 million-gallon dam to the top and spreads it across the dam at a rate of 10,000 gallons per minute to help prevent algae growth.
Rain that normally occurs in Western Pennsylvania naturally helps with that process, but the dry weather this year prompted water company officials to move forward with the $325,000 project to place three solar bees in the Lake Oneida Dam and two in the nearby Thorn Run Dam.
Both dams provide drinking water for 18,000 customers in Butler and surrounding communities.
Pennsylvania American Water officials hope the solar bees will improve the quality of the water.
“We battle taste and odor every year coming from the dam,” said Kevin Mortimer, operations supervisor at the Butler plant on Oneida Valley Road.
Mortimer said when there is less water in the dam, the algae is closer to the surface, where taste and odor issues begin.
He said the solar bees were installed in the dams a few weeks ago, and three raw water samples are collected each day to monitor the unit's progress.
Dunkle said the solar bees have resulted in a huge improvement in water quality at the dams, including clearer, less cloudy samples.
The units have also caused a 60% reduction in the number of copper sulfate treatments required at the dam to solve taste and odor issues, he said.
Dunkle added that circulating the water and a lower algae content also create a healthier environment for the many gamefish in the dam, which allows fishing from the shore.
Leah Griffin, a senior environmental specialist for Pennsylvania American Water, said her crew took nitrogen and phosphorus samples from the dam.
She looks forward to taking more samples for comparison next summer.
Dunkle said more solar bees will be added to the dams in the next year.
The Lake Oneida and Thorn Run dams provide public water for 12 communities in Butler County.
Pennsylvania American Water last performed a major upgrade at Lake Oneida Dam in 2012, when the spillway system was upgraded to improve safety.
