Norfolk Southern announced a significant step forward on its long-term commitment to protect East Palestine’s drinking water. Norfolk Southern will grant the Village of East Palestine nearly $4.3 million to overhaul the municipal drinking water system.

Upgrades to the municipal system will include new engineering and carbon filtration systems, improving the Village system with state of the art technology. The $4.299 million commitment from Norfolk Southern includes $661,481 already reimbursed to the Village for new carbon filters and initial engineering, as well as $3.638 million to fund additional engineering and new filtration technology, and infrastructure. Norfolk Southern will continue conversations with the Village to determine if additional work is needed.

“We made a commitment to invest in the protection of East Palestine’s drinking water for the long term, and we are making significant strides toward fulfilling that,” said Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan H. Shaw. “We worked with community leaders and their outside experts to develop the best path forward. Thanks to their feedback, these infrastructure upgrades will help ensure clean drinking water remains accessible for East Palestine’s current and future generations.”

In March 2023, Norfolk Southern committed to addressing long-term community concerns on drinking water, healthcare, and home values and this announcement marks a critical milestone in the process.

“This technology will drastically improve water quality in the Village,” said East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway. “Our current system, like other municipal systems across the country, is focused on eliminating heavy metals like lead, but these upgrades go deeper and broader, using the leading methods for ensuring the quality of drinking water.”

Municipal water continues to be sampled and monitored by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, along with a team of independent scientists. Test results continue to show no water quality concerns as a result of the derailment and these upgrades will help protect against future water quality concerns. 

To date, Norfolk Southern has committed $74.3 million to East Palestine and the surrounding communities. Learn more at: NSMakingitRight.com.