The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-05-28
THBORANGES' SHARE
Passaic Pollution Commits.
sioners Continue Their
Search After Con-
tamination.
MORE FILTH INTO THE WATEs
Three Towns Discharge Ten Million
Gallons of Sewage Every
Day Into the River.
lore FILTH INTO THE WATEs
Special to the Jersey citu Nes.x.


ORANGE. May 2S. 1S96-The Paasaio
Pollution Commission recently appointed
by Governor Griggs, journeyed to this
place yesterday afternoon to learn some
thing about the sewage which this city
ernpties IN the Pssssaic River The en-
tire commission. DR.. Marsh, Of Paterson
and DR.. HeroId and William Hunt Of
Newark were present. They met in the
office Of Frederick Crane who is city
Engineer and Superintendent of Sewers.
and besides the Commissioners there were
present the Mayor of Orange, Engineer
owen. who has charge of the Bloomfield
and Montclair sewers. and Park Commits
sioner Kelsey, a member of the Commfs-
sion appointed to lay out parks in Essex
county.
The object of the Pollution Commission
ers' visit was to ascertain just how much
pollution goes into the Passaic from
Orange and the adjacent towns and
townships, what other means could be
employed to dispose of the sewage by
means other than ennptying it into the
river. Mr.. Crane produced maps and ex-
plained the sewerage system of Orange.
The city has two sewers, one for storing
water, which is a natural brook wnich,
however, has been replaced with a brick
sewer in that section of the city which is
inhabited. The other is a large brick
sewer which runs through the towns OF
Montclair and Bloomfield to the I1assa lc
River about where the bridge of the
Greenwood Lake Railroads bridge crosses.
TINS latter sewer is the one by means of
which the sewage of the city is disposed
of. Montclair and Bloomfield also use It.
1t has a capacity OF from 10 100000 10 49,
0oO,0u0 gallons per day. At the preselt
time, however, Orange discharges through
II about 6,C00,000 gallons per day and the
TWO townships together between a, ,000. 900
and 100000, make a total of about 1O,-
100000 gallons of ordinary city sewage,
which goes into the PaSsalc a short dis
tance above the place where Jersey City
takes in her supply Of water for drinking
and domestic uses.
Mr.. Crane had no data at hand from
which he could give the exact amount,
but said he would secure 1t and send it
10 the Commission at a near day. He
said that the Passafc received very little
pollution from factories by means of the
Bloomfield which had dye stuff to get rid
of but they used the sewer to such d
small extent that 'it was safe to say
that there were practically no factories
that emptied into the sewer.
The sewer system of Orange was begun
in 1891 and completed in 1888 1t includes
pumping the sewage from that section Of
the city which lay in the hollow betwean
tShe hilis ana ID, v was known as me valley
400 acres and pumps up about 5000 gar
Ions an hour at cost of about $50 per
month. The pumping system is so good
Mr.. Crane expressed it. The Orange sewer
has a big storage basin near the river
where the sewage is allowed to accumu-
late twice a day and is then discharged
into. the. river with the tide. A man is
employed TOT watch the tides and opea the
will hold about 100000 gallons.
The population which the Orange sewer
drains for is estimated to be 1000. Dr.
81, SrfRh
comparatively small population there
should be such a large amount of sewage
Mr.. Crane explained that that was prob
ably due to the surface water which ii an
extent leaked into the sewer.
Dr. Marsh next asked Mr. Crane If he
had ever calculated what the sewage of
explaining that the reason for his ques-
ton was that part of the Commission d
work was to ascertain some approximate
idea of what would have to be guarded
against in the future.
Mr.. Crane replied that he. had never
considered that question, but he should
Judge from present indications that for
Orange it would be about 100000 Mr..
Kelsey, one of the Essex Park Coalrnis-
sioners, was asked if the Commission pro-
posed 10 lay out a park along the Passaic-.
He laughed and replied that he did not
stance. He added that aside from the
present conditions which polluted the
river it was a most beautiful sheet OF
thought the Park Commissioners and the
Pollution Commissioners would have to
get together some day aud consider the
question Engineer Owen spoke of tne
Bloomfield sewer. system Which efnptied4
its sewage into the Passaic through ths
Orange sewer; He said the reason why
they sought the Passaic was that it was
the natural drainage outlet for the town
as well as for Orange and Montciair. t
DR.. Marsh asked Mr. Crane If .wheH
Orange was considering plans for build-
ing her present system of sewers she
considered any plan which provided for
the disposition of the sewage in any other
manner than its discharge into the Passaic
River. The engineer replied that the
authorities had not as they considered
the Passaic their natural drain. East
Orange, he said. emptles into one Of thes
Newark sewers and through which it's
sewage was emptied into the Passaic
some distance beIow Jersey City's intakes
at Belleville. The Commissioners and
the Engineers spent some time IN an in
formal discussion of the various methods
of disposing of sewage and then adj
ionrned.