Reaction of inflow successful at Pine Grove sewage plant

PINE GROVE - The Pine Grove Joint Treatment Authority's recent inflow and infiltration (I&I) project is completed and the sewage treatment plant is already seeing a change.

Waste Water Treatment Plant supervisor Nick Stark informed the board in June that the workers have been addressing some I&I issues in addition to the Mill Street sewer replacement project begun in the middle of May and completed earlier this month. "They have had a great impact," said Stark. "Most definitely."

Stark's May report noted 5.54 inches of precipitation for the month, and a 45% I&I rate. He added, however, that the plant had not gone over on flows, complying with its NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit.

Although the sewer replacement work is completed, the repaving of the section of Mill Street involved with the project is not. A temporary pavement was completed on June 6, but the final restoration will not begin until Sept. 5. This, said Rettew engineer Ron Madison, will allow for sewer testing.

Madison reported a complaint made during the project cost the JTA an additional $800 plus for extra signs. The person making the complaint felt drivers were not given sufficient notification that they could not make a left hand turn onto Mill Street. Although Madison said the signs originally posted met PennDOT requirements, the additional signs were posted. According to Madison, that charge would not be considered a "big ticket item in a $50,000 plus project."

Madison reported, to date, his company has reviewed 13 videos as part of the new sewer lateral inspection ordinance. He recommended, however, that JTA staff members conduct the reviews in order to provide more timely response. Local people, he added, have the ability to visit each applicant's property if there are questions to ask. Although Madison did not provide any examples, he noted, "This month was a troublesome one, and we will switch over to the staff once training is completed."

Because of the closing of Pine Grove Landfill this month, Waste Management had sent a letter to the JTA with a proposal for hauling and disposal of the authority's sludge. The authority was given 90 days to accept or seek an alternative.

However, a Sept. 17, 2002 agreement between the JTA and PGL states that the landfill will haul and dispose of the authority's sludge, free of charge, as long as the landfill is in operation, in exchange for the authority's acceptance of treated leachate from the landfill, also free of charge.

Upon reviewing the agreement, solicitor Rick Wiest stated that he felt the agreement would be in force until the landfill ceases to discharge leachate, and after some discussion, the members agreed Wiest should respond to the letter, including with it, a copy of the agreement. Waste management's proposed fees to dispose of sludge are contrary to the agreement, said Wiest.

The owner of a newly acquired property on Brookside Road requested connection to the sewer line. However, the main line is on the opposite side of the road and would require the road to be dug up. The property owner questioned whether her property could be hooked onto a neighboring property's lateral instead.

Madison disagreed that the road would necessarily have to be dug up. A contractor can bore under the road said Madison. He agreed, however, what the property owner was requesting could be approved by the authority.

Business Manager Diane Tobin noted that the main line would need to be cut into since there was no lateral, while Will Hanson said the neighbor would need to give permission for the connection.

If allowed, said Madison, the connection should be done outside the right-of-way. "Connect on private property and have a maintenance agreement between both parties." He further suggested, before a decision was made, that a cost be obtained for drilling under the road, and if it's three times as much, connect with the neighbor.

A drop in septage receiving had prompted the authority to drop it's fee one cent per gallon. Stark had noted the receipt of only 14,500 gallons in April, compared to 47,850 gallons in May and felt some of the decrease over the past several months was probably because it was winter.

Tobin reported delinquent accounts total $91,930.08 as of June 15. Of that $27,710 is in the "over 90 days inactive accounts"; $50,926 in the "over 90 days active; and $13,294 in the "over 30 days active". The top five delinquent customers owe a total of $30,261. Efforts by Tobin to convince the authority to allow her to use a collection agency to collect the bills have not been approved. According to Wiest, legal means have also, as he described it, "not bore any fruit," and recommended it be discussed in the Regulation and Enforcement Committee.

A Clements Street property is still not connected to the sewage system. Efforts by owner Brenda Feaser over the past several years had finally resulted in the condemnation of some property by Pine Grove borough in order to make the street a legal street and enable the connection. It was noted, however, that the authority does not require a connection to the sewage system since the property is located more than 150 feet from the sewer line. The borough, however, has ordered the connection. According to chairman Bernie Kulkaski, "At this point, it's not our problem."

In other business,

- Wiest noted there was modest activity on the Class Action suit. Although no other specific were noted, Wiest was no doubt speaking about the suit filed by Donald Wenrich concerning the low pressure sewer system connections in the area of the I-81 interchange.

- Kulkaski noted that the KayTee building in the Pine Grove Industrial Park had been purchased by Solar Innovations. Application for a lateral inspection, he said, had not been requested. Although Wiest noted that it was probably an oversight, the owner of KayTee should be contacted, informed of the violation, and the provisions of the ordinance followed.

- Tobin's recommendation to either purchase or lease an office copier was left for her to decide. According to Tobin, the current printer is malfunctioning and it would be cheaper to replace it than to have it repaired. However, she noted, it would be more economical to purchase or lease a copier than to purchase a new printer.

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