In efforts to resolve low-pressure issues with the Bordentown City’s water utility and restore its water supply, the city has entered an agreement with Trenton Water Works (TWW) to assist the city’s Water Department for the next several months per approval from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), according to Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora.
TWW is an extensive public water system owned by Trenton and one of the oldest in the United States at 165 years old. It supplies drinking water to five municipalities in Mercer County.
Gusciora and City of Bordentown Mayor Jennifer L. Sciortino signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) formalizing the arrangement, enabling the city’s water utility operators and engineers to maintain system pressure, increase capacity and advance work to replace high-lift pumps damaged by flooding in April at its water-treatment plant, according to Gusciora in a press release.
Bordentown’s water utility serves nearly 40,000 residents, encompassing Bordentown City, Bordentown Township, and Fieldsboro.
“Trenton Water Works has the capacity, infrastructure, and expertise to provide drinking water to our neighboring communities,” Gusciora said. “TWW is happy to assist the City of Bordentown Water Department in maintaining this vital service to the towns it serves.”
According to the MOU and per the NJDEP approved plan, the City of Bordentown Water Department will establish, at the water utility’s expense, a 1,200-foot overland interconnection from the TWW distribution system in Hamilton Township to the City of Bordentown Water Department. Field testing has verified sufficient flow and pressure needed to make the interconnection viable.
“The interconnection will connect above ground from one hydrant in Hamilton to another hydrant in Bordentown Township, and increase the water supply into our distribution system,” explained Bordentown City’s Deputy Mayor Joe Myers explained in a social media post on Aug. 20.
“Over the past few days, the team at the water department received the piping and materials for the physical construction of the emergency interconnection. The team is finishing up the setup, and conducting a testing and sampling period.”
The water department’s goal was to be able to start opening up the hydrants and accepting additional water as of Aug. 22-23.
Myers had previously explained that the city’s solution is based on detailed engineering analysis.
“An emergency interconnection is a big component of our plan, along with immediate plant upgrades and/or repairs,” he said.
The emergency connection will have no impact on TWW’s regular customers. TWW will charge the city of Bordentown Water Department a bulk rate for the water it supplies. Bordentown is responsible for, at its own expense, constructing and maintaining the interconnection, including its operation, monitoring, and testing to maintain high water quality.
TWW is an extensive public water system owned by Trenton and one of the oldest in the United States. It produces approximately 30 million gallons of drinking water daily. The TWW system, which draws and treats water from the Delaware River, consists of a 60 MGD (millions of gallons per day) water-filtration plant on Route 29 South in Trenton, the 100-million-gallon Pennington Avenue Reservoir, three pump stations, more than 3,500 fire hydrants, more than 8,000 valves, six interconnections, six storage tanks, and 683 miles of water mains.
