South Orange Water Woes Continue

The South Orange Board of Trustees (BOT) will have to make decisions about whether to remain with the East Orange Water Commission (EOWC)—with which it is involved in an ongoing lawsuit over water quality and other issues—or to find a new source for the township's water, according to officials.

It is a "very important matter," township counsel Steve Rother said at last Monday's BOT meeting, and has "major consequences" in both the short term and long-term for South Orange.

Rother said the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has determined the EOWC has "absolutely no water" because of its lack of a water contract with Newark and because the EOWC was forced to shut down faulty wells.

Residents can be assured that "although VOC (volatile organic compounds) are still too high, they are not in violation," Rother said. In addition, the township has agreed to a plan with the DEP that the EOWC will permanently construct infrastructure that will safely treat all the water from wells.

In February, two top EOWC officials were indicted and charged with manipulating water test results. The Village has continued to monitor the water situation and post test results on its website.

However, since three years remain on the village's contract with EOWC, the BOT will have to decide to stay with the EOWC or find a new source, Rother said.

In addition, the current water situation might affect the upcoming development of a multi-use project on 3rd and Valley streets, Rother said, because the township cannot give a required "water letter" to the developers.

"The water letter is a document that a developer of a project in excess of a certain size has to obtain from the water provider indicating that adequate water supply and delivery infrastructure exists to provide service to the proposed project," township administrator Barry Lewis Jr. said in an email to Patch.

"It is accurate that the NJDEP is currently of the position that EOWC has limited water capacity (and no excess for new development) due to there being no contract with Newark and due to some of EOWC’s wells being out of service," Lewis said.

Lewis said he does not anticipate this will delay the project since the development is some time away. "However, we are concerned and will monitor the situation closely, including arranging alternative supply sources if necessary," he said.

The village is currently planning three different options for switching providers and it will eventually make a public presentation. However, some of the discussion will be held in closed sessions because it concerns legal matters.