Public meeting will outline Delmont, Salem plan to address sewage, stormwater issues

The public will get a closer look at how Delmont and Salem Township plan to address longstanding sewage and stormwater issues in early July.

The Delmont Volunteer Fire Department will host a July 2 meeting that is to include officials from both towns, and the public is invited to see more details about steps laid out in a consent order finalized last month between Delmont and the state’s Department of Environmental Protection.

The order charges Delmont with eliminating sanitary sewer overflows. This primarily involves eliminating what is called “inflow and infiltration,” when stormwater makes its way into the sewage system, either because of defective infrastructure, or through residents directing stormwater from their downspouts into the sewer system.

The result is that, during heavy rains, a mixture of raw sewage and stormwater spouts from three manholes, much of it onto the property of the Rock Springs Trust in Salem Township.

The July 2 meeting will lay out the plan to fix it.

“It’s an overview of the project,” Delmont Councilman Stan Cheyne said.

Borough officials are proposing the replacement of a section of both a gravity sewer line and a force main. They also plan to build an equalization tank, which is meant to hold excess sanitary sewer overflow and discharge it at a slower rate.

In addition, the borough must perform flow monitoring to determine the full extent of stormwater infiltrating the sewage system and repair all major defects. It also must ensure that all private lateral lines are tested, and repaired if they are damaged.

Delmont Councilman Dave Weber said the July 2 meeting will not be a question-and-answer session, but anyone interested can submit questions.

“I don’t think they’ll be addressed at the meeting, but they’ll be addressed in writing afterward,” Weber said. “We want people to be able to look at the drawings, look at the route, and if they have follow-up questions, they can submit those.”

Written questions can be submitted in advance by emailing delmontborough@comcast.net.

The meeting is set for July 2, 7 p.m. at the fire department’s social hall, 2360 Route 66 in Delmont.