Citizens Committee Formed To Tackle Outdated Combined Sewer Systems

Citizens Committee Formed To Tackle

Outdated Combined Sewer Systems

Hackensack Riverkeeper® Joins New Jersey CSO Group

By Hugh M. Carola

A major step towards clean water was taken last month with the creation of a Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) for the New Jersey Combined Sewer Overflow (NJCSO) Group. The Group is comprised of representatives from the following municipalities: Paterson, Guttenberg, Harrison, Kearny, East Newark, Jersey City, Bayonne and North Bergen as well as the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners. Each of those entities owns and/or operates various components of a Combined Sewer System.

Combined sewer systems are usually located in older urban areas and were first constructed in the 19th century to provide for the transportation of sewage and stormwater within the same pipe. While the systems were initially designed to transport that flow to the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners Newark facility for treatment, they were also designed to discharge excess overflows (CSOs) directly into local waters if and when they became overburdened. Nowadays, the systems become overburdened very easily. Too easily.

“There are three major sources of pollution that still affect the Hackensack River today: leachate from closed landfills, polluted runoff from streets and CSOs,” explained Captain Bill Sheehan, executive director of Hackensack Riverkeeper.® “Until we can get the CSO problem under control, we can’t get the river fixed.”

Planning to meet quarterly, the CAC will hear presentations, offer feedback, learn about alternative controls, and will ultimately offer recommendations on how Group members can best develop Long-term Control Plans (LTCPs) to lessen CSO discharges. Captain Bill Sheehan was asked to join the CAC because of our organization’s longstanding work on behalf of clean water.

LTCPs are studies designed to evaluate the means, costs and effectiveness of reducing the frequency and volume of CSO discharges, as well as considering different levels of pretreatment and disinfection. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) now requires that all municipalities with combined sewer systems undertake such plans. Creating the CAC was the first step in that endeavor.

“In addition to our scheduled meetings, the CAC will also hold workshops and tour regional treatment facilities,” explained Captain Bill. “Our work will be finished in January 2007 when we submit our final report to the DEP.”

A separate Bergen County CSO Group has also been formed recently, comprised of the Bergen County Utilities Authority (BCUA) and the municipalities of Ridgefield Park and Fort Lee. (The city of Hackensack, which also operates a combined sewer system, has elected not to join but plans to comply with the new state regulations independently.)

In every case, Hackensack Riverkeeper® is actively involved in helping all CSO municipalities find the best solutions to bring there sewer systems into the 21st century. To that end, we have recently taken on a Policy Intern who will assist Captain Bill in this critical endeavor. Andrea Mateo, a graduate student at Rutgers University, will begin her internship with us in December.