AWWA ACE58241

Although the origins of Baltimore City (the City) may be traced far earlier than 1797, in that year the City received its charter from Maryland's state legislature, the General Assembly. Since that time, the City has remained an independent political entity from its contiguous neighbor, Baltimore County. The City also shares a southern boundary with Anne Arundel County. In addition, nearby counties that arguably comprise the Baltimore Metropolitan Area include Howard and Carroll Counties to the west and north, and Harford County to the northeast. The City's water system presently serves all or part of these six political jurisdictions. The day-to-day sources of raw water for the Metropolitan Area are impoundments on the Gunpowder River and the north branch of the Patapsco River. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the City's Department of Public Works constructed a pipeline (popularly referred to as the "Big-Inch") and pumping station, enabling it to augment its raw water supply from the Susquehanna River. The Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) came into existence somewhat later in 1970. In the mid 1990s, a dispute between the City and the SRBC ripened into a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. The action reached the U.S. Court of Appeals, before it was settled by the parties under a written agreement in the summer of 2001. The nature of the dispute, the litigation, the settlement negotiations, and the settlement agreement are the subjects of this paper.