Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-09-18
ORANGE ON RECORD
FOR |MHOFF PLANT
Final Action on Sewage System
Will Be Taken on Oc-
tober 8.

With three members dissenting.
the Orange Common Council last
night, went on record as favoring the
Imhoff sewage disposal plant rather
than the Passaio Valley trunk sewer.
The ordinance committing the city to
join with Montclair and East Orange
in the Independent plant, which they
propose to locate in the Soho section
of Belleville, was passed on first
reading.
It was explained, however, that this
action is not Anal. At meeting on
October the ordinance will come up
for final passage. Montclair has
already passeds q similar ordinance.
but East Orange, whose officials have
been more active in the scheme than
those of Orange, has not acted on the
measure as yet.
The chief argument for the Orange
sewer advisory committee, which has
wrestled with the problem of sewage
disposal for several years. was Of
fered by former Judge Thomas A.
Davis. He warned the Council against
the Passaic Valley fiume as he
claimed the agitation against further
pollution of the New York harbor
will result in general sentiment for
purifying that body of water, with
the result that the Jersey sewage
will not be permitted there.
Securing new outlet will add ma
terially to the burden of cost, he
said, and he warned the municipali-
ties of Chieago's costly experience in
river pollution. United States inter-
vention to prevent contamination of
the New York Bay he also mentioned.
Government May Interfere.
1.-THE day has gone by when you
may dump sewage in sight of Cities"
he continued, land the government
will speedily stop further dumping in
New York Bay IL the municipalities
using the Passaic Valley sewer vio-
late any of the articles of agreement
under which the government has con-
scented to allow the sewage effluent
to go into the water at Robbins Reef.
Judge Davis insisted the Passaic
Valley scheme was opposed to the
best modern engineering Judgment,
and he spoke of alleged violent dis
elimination against Orange" in the
Passaic Valley apportionment of cost.
The city, he declared, must pay s41s,-
$50 for 1928 per cent. of the f1ume ca
pacity, while Bloomfield, which gets
3.28 per cent. space. is assessed but
$175,800. Orange has reached nearly
its limit of population, he said, while
Bloomfield is but one-third built UP.
He chided folk from Bloomfield for
protests against the Orange Montclair
and East Orange independent scheme,
declaring that the question with the
townsfolk was merely one of dollars
and cents. He denied the Imhoff
scheme would prove a nuisance, and
said he would not stand up for thirty
seconds to favor the proposed plant If
he thought for a moment that the
a neighboring municipality.
Lauds Tank system.
Tax Assessor John P. Lee 1auded
the sewerage disposal system of his
native town-Saratoga, N. Y.--and
told of the successful operation there
of a system of tanks He passed
around a bottle of effiuent which was
potable water. No sprinklers are
used. and Rudolph Herring. one of the
engineers who are favoring the Imhoff
tank. said the Saratoga system was
one of the best in the United States.
William A. Lord. DIR. Eugene G.
West. Joseph Drexel Holmes, former
Assemblyman Coleman E. Nissan,
John d. Everitt. Frederick w. Kelsey.
Stuart Lindsey. Postmaster Edward
8. Perry. former Councilman John L.
Davis. Philemon Woodruff. of East
Orange: Police Commissioner John N.
Lindsey and others also spoke.
Councilman p. Allan Smith asked If
the advisory committee had figured
what the situation would be If Or
ange was annexed to Newark and
Judge Davis said he hoped the city
never would be taken into the larger
community. He urged that the city
of Orange would be better off by
joining the Imhoff or other plan with
Montclair and East Orange, thereby
saving on the original cost the diff
ference between half million dollars
or more for joining the Passaic fume
and a considerably smaller sum for
the Independent scheme, as well as
a. saving of $4,000 annually ON OPP
Grating expenses.
Several of the speakers emphasized
what they termed the injustice of the
Passaic valley scheme for arranging
to give connecting sewer fumes to
municipalities In Hudson county,
through which sewage would be sent
from the communities to the big
fiume, while Orange was told she
must not only pay a generous share
lines and plants, but must also build
a connecting pipe line FROM the city
to the big sewer.
The several speakers also insisted
they were not committed to the
Imhoff tank, but wanted some other
disposal arrangement than was Of
fered by the Passaic Valley Commits
sion. Several also insisted that 1t
was a ridiculous expenditure of money
to build the outlet to Robbins reef,
since the United States governments
restrictions against solids in New
York bay will require partial purifica-
ton of the volume of sewage, and the
effluent might just as well go in
Newark bay in its cleansed state,
thereby saving the cost of the big
tunnel that is proposed.
Mr.. Nissan, former assemblyman,
insisted that the sewage, If dumped
at Robbins Reef, would actually re-
turn to the bay with the tides. DR..
West, who gave an outline of the
Metropolitan Sewage Commission re-
port on pollution of New York harbor.
also predicted that with the sewage
dumped in the bay Belleville folk
may actually find some of its own
sewage returning up the Passaic
river, after it's trip to Robbins Reef,
through the action of the tides.