The state Public Service Commission
says West Virginia American Water Company is holding too much information back
from the public in connection with how it responded to the Jan. 9 chemical
spill in the Elk River in Charleston
The PSC ordered the company Tuesday to
produce more information no later than Friday, Jan. 16 at 4 pm.
The order said current documents
submitted by the water utility were “significantly over-redacted.” The PSC said
it previously cautioned the company to use “a light hand in redacting its
documents.”
The PSC said in a Tuesday news release
that “it is apparent that WVAWC ignored its warning and significantly
over-redacted those documents.”
The PSC has agreed with West Virginia
American Water that some information should be protected from public disclosure
but the company has gone too far according to the agency.
Tuesday’s order is part of the PSC’s
ongoing investigation into the water company’s response to the spill of
thousands of gallons of MCHM from the Freedom Industries site just up river
from West Virginia American’s Kanawha Valley Plant. The spill contaminated the
tap water of some 300,000 residents.
The PSC is scheduled to conduct a hearing on the investigation
in February.
