Bloomfield, Belleville, Nutley React To Newark Water Woes – Bloomfield, NJ Patch
ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Bloomfield officials – along with their peers in Belleville and Nutley – continue to monitor Newark’s ongoing struggle with lead contamination for possible effects on their own towns.
Updates on each municipality’s actions taken in the past week follow below. Have an opinion about the situation? Learn how to post op-eds, announcements or events to your local Patch.
BLOOMFIELD: PUBLIC FORUM ON LEAD IN WATER
Bloomfield officials will hold a public forum to discuss the findings of recent lead tests in the township’s water connection systems and some local homes on Monday, Aug. 19.
The meeting will take place at 6 p.m. in the Civic Center at 84 Broad Street. Mayor Michael Venezia and Township Council members will be present, Bloomfield officials stated in a news release.
Officials will also discuss how residents how they can reduce their risk of lead exposure. Township engineers and representatives from the Bloomfield Health Department will be on hand to answer questions.
This meeting will also be livestreamed on Facebook via the township’s official page.
The township is continuing to offer free lead tests to any residents concerned about potential lead build-up in faucets and plumbing fixtures of their homes. Residents can schedule a lead test or get additional information by calling 973-680-4024.
Fresh on the heels of Newark’s announcement that thousands of free water filters may be coming up short helping the city cope with its ongoing lead contamination issues, Bloomfield officials are now taking a new look at their own program.
Last week, Bloomfield officials announced that the township – which buys its water from Newark – is beginning a “comprehensive test” of its own filters to see if they’re functioning properly.
Bloomfield began handing out free filters in November 2018 after a test of 61 homes found 16 had elevated levels of lead and exceeded the “action level” of 15 parts per billion established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Most of the lead build-up was traced to the inside of homes, not Bloomfield’s water mains, township officials said.
It’s a similar situation to Newark, where thousands of homes likely have lead-contaminated service lines, one of the suspected culprits of the problem.
On Aug. 13, Bloomfield town officials offered an update on the situation via social media:
“This morning, Mayor Venezia spoke with NJDEP Commissioner Catherine McCabe along with Belleville Mayor Michael Melham and a representative for Nutley Mayor Joseph Scarpelli to discuss the ongoing water situation in Newark, and appropriate responses to the ongoing situation in Newark and its impacts on all three neighboring communities. Mayor Venezia spoke to the commissioner about infrastructure improvements Bloomfield has made over the last several years, and the township’s plans to change our water supplier. Part of that improvement will include making major water infrastructure improvements throughout the township.”
Bloomfield officials continued:
“Additionally, the Bloomfield Health Department has collected samples from five PUR filters given to residents in the past two days and are waiting for expedited test results, which should arrive later in the week. The township is operating under an excess of caution in terms of testing these filters. To be clear, the water we all receive from Newark is lead-free, and safe to drink. Lead is only in some older homes with lead-based fixtures and service lines. The township has already replaced 46 service lines going into older homes. The township is utilizing a $1.1 million loan from the state of New Jersey to replace more service lines as they are identified.”
Bloomfield officials added that the township will soon break ground on a new water pumping station, “one of many ongoing, forward-thinking projects to modernize Bloomfield’s water infrastructure.”
BELLEVILLE MONITORING NEW TREATMENT IN NEWARK
Earlier this week, Belleville officials said they are continuing to monitor the quality of water in their township.
On Thursday, township officials said there are no restrictions on Belleville residents in terms of drinking the tap water, and there is no reason to believe there are elevated levels of lead in the water the town receives from the Pequannock Reservoir.
Township engineer and water operator Tom Herits said Belleville is required to test twice a year for lead and copper levels. During the most recent testing, the “overwhelming majority” of samples came back below the acceptable state- imposed levels.
Hertis pointed out that Newark recently tweaked treatment efforts in the city’s Pequannock system, which will improve the quality of the water reaching Belleville.
Newark officials recently estimated as many as 15,000 homes served by the city’s Pequannock system may have contaminated drinking water. Affected residents are being advised to use bottled water until further testing is completed.
A Newark city spokesperson previously said that Belleville, Bloomfield and Nutley – which purchase from Newark – will all benefit from the new treatment, which involves adding orthophosphate to the water. Towns that buy Newark’s water on an emergency basis, such as East Orange and South Orange, will also benefit, officials said.
NUTLEY: UPGRADING WATER INFRASTRUCTURE
On Aug. 16, Nutley Mayor Joseph Scarpelli issued an update about town’s recent water-related efforts. (Read the full statement)
“In light of media coverage of the Newark water situation, on Tuesday morning my office spoke with New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJ DEP) Commissioner Catherine McCabe, along with Belleville Mayor Michael Melham and Bloomfield Mayor Michael Venezia to discuss the ongoing water issues in Newark, its impacts on all three neighboring communities, and the appropriate responses to these issues. We also spoke about our efforts to upgrade our infrastructure, not only in Nutley, but in all three communities.
“To be clear, the water we all receive from Newark is lead-free, and safe to drink. Lead is only introduced into the water supply by the internal plumbing or through service lines.
“Later Tuesday afternoon we also had a conference call with the Governor’s office, the NJ DEP, the City of Newark and various elected officials to get the facts as it pertains to Newark and their lead testing.
“Test results from the tap water of older homes with known lead plumbing performed on August 9, 2019 have shown that a small sample of water filters (2 of 3) provided to the City of Newark may not be removing lead to the low levels expected. These tests are inconclusive as to the effectiveness of these water filters, not only because of the small sample size, but other factors in a non-controlled environment.
“The Nutley Water Department is operating under an excess of caution and will be doing expedited water testing of the PUR filters we have purchased for distribution.
“As we await follow-up testing from our Water Department and the other municipalities, it must be noted that the PUR filter is certified by the NSF to remove both lead and haloacetic acid from tap water (www.pur.com).
“Until this additional testing is completed, residents who are pregnant or have small children are advised to use bottled water for drinking, cooking and preparing baby formula.
“Further decisions will be made about the best course of action as soon as we receive the additional testing results back. We are working closely with the Governor’s office, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the NJ DEP, the City of Newark, and the water filter manufacturer.
“In addition, the Nutley Water Department strongly encourages all residents as a matter of habit to run their water for 1-2 minutes, especially first thing in the morning, in order to introduce fresh water into their homes.”
Scarpelli said that local efforts in Nutley have included:
- “Expedited testing of the PUR water filter we purchased”
- “Started the replacement of all known lead service lines as part of our long term infrastructure upgrades”
- “Initiated a study to determine the steps needed to have the 436 homes receiving Newark water switched to a different water supplier”
- “Offering free testing of the tap water in any of the 436 homes receiving Newark Water. Please call the Nutley Water Department at 973-284-4984 to find out how to have your water tested for lead”
- “Offering free testing of children (0-18) for lead by the Nutley Public Affairs Department (Health Department). Contact Public Affairs at 973-284-4976 or your healthcare provider to find out how you can get your child tested for lead if you are concerned about lead exposure”
Nutley residents seeking more information can contact Dominic Ferry at 973-284-4984.
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