DURITSA NAMED ORSANCO CHAIRMAN
Charles Duritsa of Hempfield Township, Westmoreland County, PA was elected Chairman of the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO) at the Commission's June 2020 Virtual Commission meeting. Duritsa was appointed to the Commission in 2004 and previously served as Chairman in 2011-2012. ORSANCO is the water pollution control agency for the Ohio River representing Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.
ORSANCO operates water quality programs through representation from its eight member states. Twenty-seven Commissioners are appointed from the member states and the federal government. In addition, numerous ORSANCO committees address specific Ohio River water quality topics and interests. From July 2020 through June 2021, Duritsa will serve as Chairman to this extensive network of Ohio River representatives.
Duritsa served as Director of the Southwest Regional Office for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) from 1988 until his retirement in 2004. During his tenure as PA DEP Regional Director, he was responsible for directing the regional programs in Water Quality; Air Quality; Waste Management; Environmental Cleanup; Water Supply; Oil & Gas Management; Radiation Protection; Emergency Response; and Pollution Prevention and Compliance Assistance. Additionally, he served as the Department of Environmental Resources' (DER) Regional Solid Waste Manager from 1976 to 1988, supervising the Commonwealth's municipal, residual and hazardous waste regulatory program. Since leaving PA DEP, he has consulted (2006-2016) to southwestern Pennsylvania companies, local government entities, and non-profit organizations on issues ranging from permitting of new facilities to developing negotiation and settlement strategies in response to regulatory agency enforcement actions.
Duritsa currently is a Pennsylvania Commissioner to the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (Vice Chairman from July 2019-June 2020) and is on the Boards of the Westmoreland Conservation District (Vice Chairman), Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts (immediate past Chairman), Westmoreland Land Trust (immediate past Chairman), Member Board of Directors Rivers of Steel Heritage Corporation, Ohio River Basin Consortium for Research & Education (Chairman), and the Turtle Creek Watershed Association (Vice Chairman). Duritsa also serves on the Advisory Committee of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History's Powdermill Nature Reserve/Field Station. He is a Gubernatorial appointed member of Pennsylvania's Ohio River Basin Water Resources Committee (Vice Chairman).
He has previously served on the Boards of the Pennsylvania Environmental Health Association, Southwestern Pennsylvania Planning Commission, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh River Quest/Pittsburgh Voyager, and the American Public Works Association Institute for Solid Waste. He has a BA in Natural Science (Chemistry) from California State College and Graduate Credits in Civil Engineering from Penn State University.
Duritsa resides in Hempfield Township, Westmoreland County, PA, with his wife Judy.
