West Amwell OKs $50,000 for wells fix

The capital improvement fund will provide $40,000 for the ongoing remediation of salt-tainted wells; the remainder will be drawn from capital surplus.

By: Linda Seida
   WEST AMWELL — Officials have approved spending $50,000 for the ongoing remediation of private wells on Mt. Airy-Harbourton Road that were tainted by the township’s store of road salt.
   The capital improvement fund will provide $40,000 for the project and the remainder will be drawn from capital surplus.
   The Township Committee approved the expenditure March 17 with no discussion.
   The wells on three properties at 255, 258 and 259 Mt.-Airy Harbourton Road were found to be tainted in 2001. The plan for remediation of the wells resulted from a lawsuit against the township filed in state Superior Court in Flemington in 2002 by Jim and Leslie Cahill, Lester Perrine and the estate of Charles Hartl.
   The township is supplying the properties with bottled water. The township also has since changed the location of its salt stores, which now are at a road department facility operated by the county.
   On one of the wells, the 15-foot casing surrounding it is not long enough, according to Mayor Tom Molnar.
   "This needs to be 50 feet so groundwater can not infiltrate the well," he said. "The current water quality is well above standards set by the state and county." However, a deeper well is "still showing signs of salt contamination and, therefore, is not being used as a potable water supply."
   The first phase of the project was approved in February 2005 and cost the township $100,000. This included purging the wells.
   The second phase was approved in June 2005 and cost the township $105,000 for testing and re-engineering of the wells to determine the appropriate action to remedy the problem.
   In December, the township approved $48,000 for a shed and the installation of a reverse osmosis system, plus maintenance of the system that includes the removal of brine.
   Fees related to the litigation have cost the township about $1 million, the mayor previously said.