The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1901-06-10
NEWARK WATERSHED
City Officials Inspect Pc
quannock Land Sat-
urday.
[special q ..rhe Jersey clty News."l

| SIOChHOl4M, June ~ l5ul.--<AlteF iae-
| ing postponed their annual inspection of
the Pequannock watershed several times
on account of bad weather, the Street and
| Water Commissioners finally made the
| trip Saturday. With them went NUM-
Der of other people, who took the occa-
| sion to obtain from competent authority
| and from personal inspection proper
knowledge of the sources from which the
| city obtaines its water supply.
| The party included President Ballard
of the Street and Water Commission, and
| Mrs. Ballard; Commissioner Baumann
and Mrs. Baumann; Commissioner Garri-
| son, Mrs Garrison and Miss Garrison;
Morris R. Sherrerd, Engineer of .he
| Water Department; City Surveyor Ernest
Adam and his sister, Mrs. Scheiner;
former Commissioner Harrison Van
Duyne and Mrs. Van Duyne, and John
Stobaeus and Mrs. Stobaeus.
The Commissioners ordinarily make
Newfoundland their headquarters on
their inspection trips, but this year alter
ations to the hotel there are being made
and the necessary accommodations could
not be had. The party is here at Kin
caid's
Carriages We're waiting here on the ar
rival of the party, at 11.30 o'clock, and
the Commissioners went to Canistear
Reservoir. This is the reservoir that 1t
has been found the slowest to fill. At the
present time the water is a foot below
the fiow line, although all the other re-
servoirs in the watershed are full This
condition is owing to the fact that Can
istear has small drainage area. 1t is
located at the highest level of any of the
reservoirs, and this fact limits the in
flow.
The rain has been heavy in the water
shed the last three months-much heavier
than in the city, but it was necessary to
save the city from a possible water fam
inc during the late summer and fall
Much apprehension was felt early ins the
year by the water department and the
commissioners that there would be fam
inc and that the wells at Belleville would
have to be used or that water would have
to be obtained from the East Jersey
Water Company, from Little Falls. un-
der the emergency contract between the
city and the company.
With the normal fall of snow and rain
during the winter, the reservoirs would
have been filled in February or by March
l. Up to the latter date this. year, the
reservoirs were in an aggravated state
of depletion. But nature has law of
compensation, and after March it was put
in operation, for the benefit of the city,
and Newark was saved from the possible
difficulty and the commissioners from
much worry, for as yet they have heard
of no way too vercome the apparent va
garies of Mother Nature
The water in Ganistear reservoir was q
little rol,ed, but this was due to a very
heavy rainstorm yesterday. During the
day IT inches of rain fell, from which
fact an idea of the downpour may be OBJ
tanned. The rains of the last few weeks
have added an average IN Canistear. The
inflow from the rain that fell previously
to yesterday has not yet ceased, and it
was thought the reservoir would fill with
in week or TWO Yesterdays storm may
help fill it within another week.
Water supplied to the city is coming
from the streams below Canistear, Oak
Ridge and Clinton reservoirs ana Echo
Lake are full and overdowing, and
great quantity Of water is leaving the
watershed over the dam of the Macopir:
Intake.
This afternoon the Commissioners viii.
go to Clinton and Oak Ridge, Macopin
and Echo Lake. They will also inspect
the Mead property below CaTtistear. On
this tract, bordering the outlet stream
from Canistear, and below Stockholm,
are some buildings from which the water
might be polluted.
The owner of the property are willing
to sell the city any quantity of land up TO
100 acres, and it is thought the city will
purchase it because it will tend 10 keep
the water pure.
The Commissioners will also visite the
site of the proposed reservoir, Which the
Ice trust proposes to build. The city Off
cials wish tc prevent the ingress of out
side parties into the watershed and may
purchase this site to head off the trust