Rendell Names PSC Chairman and Former State Environmental Officer to Statewide Water Resources Planning Committee.

Energy Editors/Business Editors

BRYN MAWR, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 17, 2003

Nicholas DeBenedictis, Philadelphia Suburban Corporation (PSC) chairman and chief executive officer and Department of Environmental Resources secretary (1982-86), has been appointed by Governor Rendell to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Statewide Water Resources Planning Committee.

"I am honored that the Governor saw fit to appoint me to this committee," said DeBenedictis. "I am fully committed to support the Commonwealth's development of a statewide water plan to better manage the state's most precious resource--our water supply."

The 18-member committee will coordinate and oversee the development of the State Water Plan through a collaborative process that will answer basic questions, like how much water Pennsylvania has, uses and needs. In doing so, the committee will work with six regional water resource committees--the members of which were named last month by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)--as well as with DEP itself, to develop this plan.

The plan will provide current information on water availability, an assessment and projection of future water use and demands on watersheds, identification of critical water planning areas and the development of plans for these areas. Once the plan is coordinated, the statewide committee will present the plan to DEP Secretary Kathleen McGinty.

DeBenedictis received a masters of science degree in environmental engineering from Drexel University and has worked in the water resource industry for most of his 30 year career. His past experience includes the Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. EPA, Department of Environmental Resources, and PECO Energy.

PSW is the largest subsidiary of Philadelphia Suburban Corporation (NYSE:PSC)--soon to be named Aqua America, Inc.--the nation's largest U.S.-based publicly-traded utility, serving approximately two million residents in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Maine, Indiana, Texas, Virginia, Florida, Missouri, Kentucky and North and South Carolina.