By Stephen Appezzato
TINTON FALLS – An $8.5 million New Jersey American Water (NJAW) project is underway, which the company claims will improve water service reliability.
Beginning this week, the water provider is replacing approximately 4,900 feet of aging water main. The improvements will take place along Wayside, Shafto and Hope roads.
According to NJAW, the 30-inch water transmission main, which dates back to the 1970s, will be replaced with a new 30-inch ductile iron main.
“We proactively identify and upgrade critical infrastructure based on routine assessments throughout our distribution system,” Natalya Shimunova, a senior project manager at NJAW explained.
According to Shimunova, the water main that will be replaced was singled out in a 2022 condition assessment.
An additional 3,000 feet of new 8-inch water main will also be installed along these stretches of roadway; the work will include replacing fire hydrants and utility-owned service lines. The company also stated it will replace any customer-owned lines that are lead or galvanized, as per a statewide initiative. In May, the U.S. EPA announced New Jersey will receive $123 million to support this project.
Shimunova said the company’s investments in water infrastructure “minimize service interruptions and address growing demands.”
Improvements will be undertaken by Vineland-based contractor Perna Finnigan, Inc., and are expected to be completed by the end of November, with working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Final street restorations are slated for spring 2025.
According to NJAW, this round of pipe replacement is part of a larger company program to renew water infrastructure across more than 100 communities in the state.
Other Water News
A third-party drilling company punctured a Red Bank wastewater main last week at the borough’s NJ Transit parking lot, resulting in a severe discharge of sewage into nearby storm drains that lead into the Navesink River.
The borough’s emergency mechanical contractor, Mark Woszczcak, clamped and repaired the broken wastewater main July 11, however residents were still urged to avoid entering the river or consuming its shellfish and fish.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection conducted water quality sampling July 15 and released a statement July 17 clearing the Navesink for public use.
The Red Bank sewage spill was “not considered a risk for swimming or shellfish since the discharge into the Navesink River was determined to be minimal. Several tide changes have occurred since the spill, and any remaining contamination will already have been flushed,” said NJDEP spokesperson Vincent Grassi in an emailed statement confirming the testing results.
Since the nearest bathing beaches and unrestricted shellfish beds are distant from the spill site, Grassi noted, “no additional sampling or advisories/closures were determined to be necessary.”
From mid-May to mid-September, local health departments conduct recreational beach water quality monitoring along New Jersey’s Atlantic Coast through the Cooperative Coastal Monitoring Program administered by the DEP. This week, routine samples were taken Monday in Highlands and Tuesday in the Navesink near Shrewsbury Yacht Club, with results typically posted the following day. “These locations are not close to the recent spill site and are therefore not considered at risk,” Grassi confirmed.
The article originally appeared in the July 18 – July 24, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
