Waterline cleaning on tap for next year First phase of work to cost $1.8M, cover length of Main St. BY JESSICA SMITH Staff Writer "I don't want the people at home to think this is a magic solution. It's going to take some time before we can clear up this problem." - Mike Skarzynski Councilman MILLTOWN - Local officials are moving toward their goal of alleviating residents' brown-water blues. The Borough Council adopted an ordinance that will set into motion the first phase of a long-term process of cleaning and relining older sections of the town's water mains. "I believe this is a vital project to the borough of Milltown," said Councilman Bill Deinzer, who serves as liaison to the utilities department. "We want to get this phase started." The first phase covers the length of Main Street from Elkins Lane, which is near the North Brunswick border, to the entrance of the Home Depot plaza. The work is slated to begin next spring, and the phase is expected to cost $1.8 million. Borough Engineer Michael McClelland researched the process of applying for a grant and loan from the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust (NJEIT), an independent state financing authority that funds improvements to infrastructures and the acquisition of open space. The grant portion of the funding consists of the reduced interest rate of the loan, McClelland said. Now that the project has been approved, borough officials will begin the application process. Funds for projects approved by the NJEIT are distributed in November, but because the project has to be executed during the warm-weather months, it will wait until spring. "We're taking a step in the right direction, and we're facing the problem head-on," Mayor Gloria Bradford said. According to McClelland, portions of Main Street with newer waterlines will be skipped, like the Main Street bridge and the area above the New Jersey Turnpike. Though some residents are happy with the quality of their water, others who have been enduring sporadic brown water for years have had their fill. Joe and Linda Locandro, of West Lawrence Street, brought samples and photographs of the dirty water that flows from their faucets, to the council's May 29 meeting. "It's a health issue for our children and our future," Joe Locandro said. "This is something that is as important as the air we breathe." Deinzer said the waterline in that neighborhood is from 1917, and it has seen recurring problems with water quality because of breaks caused by natural springs around the pipes. While the utilities department will meet to determine a course of action, he said officials intend to try to include the area in phase one of the project. "It's kind of an unstable line over there," Deinzer said. While problems with water quality have gone on for years in sections of the town, Deinzer said many towns experience the same thing, and the issue has not been a constant. "The brown-water issue comes and goes," Deinzer said. "What we ran into was just the month from hell, it really was." In May, there was a water-main break on Ford Avenue, and on another occasion the fire department opened a hydrant, causing a spike in water pressure through the lines. Another pressure spike came soon after, when utilities workers observed the gallons-per-minute jump from 550 to almost double that amount at the Elkins Lane pumping station. Within a few minutes, the pressure fell to normal levels again. Workers searched the town in vain for the cause of the sudden spike. "It was just the weirdest thing," Deinzer said. "We just weren't able to find it." At the May 29 meeting, Deinzer asked residents to call the police or fire department if they observe anyone opening hydrants in town. Elevations in water pressure stir up mineral deposits that accumulate over time in the pipes, Deinzer said. Though last month's water issues were due to extenuating circumstances, Linda Locandro pointed out that the problem has gone on for years. "I want my grandchildren to drink good water, and not this," she said. "In 37 years of being patient, my hair is getting gray. I don't know how long I can be patient." The state requires towns to flush out their water systems through hydrants twice a year. Milltown performed the flushing a week after the mysterious water pressure rise, and has not seen any brown-water issues since, according to Deinzer. "The groundwork has been laid for some time," McClelland said of the upcoming project. A study was done in the early 1980s outlining improvements to Milltown's water system, according to McClelland. Since that time, the pumping station at Elkins Lane was installed, as well as the water tank at Home Depot and the water transmission main that runs from New Brunswick, McClelland said. Along with the approval of the loan/grant application, the borough will need state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) approval before it can move forward with the project. The cleaning and relining process consists of a machine cleaning the lines with a scraping tool, with a cement lining following after, Deinzer said. While Councilman Mike Skarzynski expressed his support of what he agreed is a necessary project, he pointed out that it only represents one step in an ongoing process. "I don't want the people at home to think this is a magic solution," Skarzynski said. "It's going to take some time before we can clear up this problem."