The star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1908-1909, 1908-12-09
Engineer Herring Approves
Scheme for an Outlet Into
New York Bay.
FILTRATION WILL MAKE.
IT HARMLESS, HE SAYS
Jersey Men Appear Before Board
and Explain Need for
Improvement.
Irrom a staff Correspondent


| NEW YORK, Dec. 9.-The right of
| the Passaic Valley District Sewerage
Commission to terminate its proposed
great trunk sewer in New York bay,
| near Robbins Reef. was ought bitterly
today by many New York organiza-
tions at the hearing before the New
York Harbor Board in the Army build
ing, in Whitehall street.
Rudolph Herring, the eminent engi-
neer, who designed the modern sew
age system for Chicago and who is con-
sidered probably the foremost sanitary
engineer in this country. If not in the
world, assured the board that the ter
mination of the sewer at the point in
dicated would not in any manner harm
the bay, nor the cities on it.
He added that the plans call for the
| filtration of the Passaic Vaalley sewage
and that New York city, Jersey City
and Hoboken dump their sewage into
the river without filtering it.
'As consulting engineer for the
| State of New York. said Mr.. Herring
| Il come here to say that this sewer
will not in the least injure any of the
| interests of the State or it's people.
| have gone over every atom of evidence
and am positive of what l say
The morning session of the board ter
| minated with a sarcastic arraignment
| of the sewer plan by DR.. Thomas Dar-
| lington, Health Commissioner of New
| York.
Former Judge Francis Child, of New
| ark, president of the Passaic Valley
| Sewerage Commission, presented the
case of that body to the board.
Theodore Backes. representing Attor-
| ney-General Edmund Wilson; Chandler
| w. Riker,~Joseph Coult, City Counsel
James r. Nugent, Chief Engineer Nor
| ris r. Sherrerd. Edward e. Rankin
head of the sewer department, all of
Newark, and the other members Of the
Passaic Valley Commission, repre-
sented Newark and the other inter-
ested municipalities. and Senator John
Hinchliffe, Mayor Mcbride, DIR. r. NJ
Curtis. Henry Hewitt, Charles Schrein-
er, John j. Fitzgerald and big dele
CATION came from Paterson and Pas
sale to speak for the sewer they SO
long opposed.
Edlow Harrison. OF Earle & Harri-
son, Jersey City engineers, took up
most of the session with a technical
discussion.
plan Publication.
1t was represented to the board that
| the whole trunk sewer plan for purify
ing the Passaic by intercepting the
| millions of gallons of matter going into
the stream daily depended on obtain
| ing the outlet under the harbor waters
The board was told that the Jersey
commission had investigated Passaic
publication since 1901, and found only
one way of intercepting sewage now
pollutfng the river. That was by
trunk sewer, and 1t was held that tests
had proven that the water emptied by
the sewer would be of character that
would not rise tC the surface of the
bay and that 1t would be so treated be-
fore leaving the fumes as to be perfect
ly safe insofar as disease organisms
were concerned.
Colonel d. w. Lockwood, who pre-
sided at the hearing, said when Mr..
Harrison concluded that the plan in
volved the question of sedimentation
and screening, and that nothing was
before the board which covered that.
Rudolph Herring, the eminent en-
gineer, who has had charge of most
of the commission investigation, was
Immediately called to answer Colonel
Lockwood.
Mr.. Herring created sensation when
he said that he was a regularly retained
consulting engineer for the New York
board and had been one of the designers
of the New Jersey sewer He said that
all the sewage would be filtered before
being discharged a mile from shore
forfu af t,- L.,
bay. He said the discharge would not
in the least harm the water in the bay.
that the New Jersey sewage would he
filtered, while that from Jersey City.
Hoboken and New York city was not
filtered
New York Opposition.
The sewerage commission rested its
case at 12:45 after O. skirmish between
Chandler w. Riker and Morris B. Dean,
assistant New York attorney general
Mr.. Riller protested against cross
examination of Jersey witnesses 5y
Dean, who represents New York in
litigation pending between his State and
New Jersey on bay pollution.
In opposing the application, George
A. Soper offered a long brief for the
New York Merchants Association. He
said that in a few years the proposed
trench sewer outlet would be a public
| menace and become a serious incon-
venience to navigation.
DR.. Eugene RI. Porter, president of
the New York state Board of Health,
struck at the Jersey plan in long
paper. Colonel Lockwood. who ap.
pesred much impressed by the Jersey
| arguments. asked the New Workers