Evening star., 1953-12-01
Health Board
Cracks Down
On Rockville
Bans Additional
Load on Sewage
Disposal Facility

The State Board of Health
yesterday declared a moratorium
on new construction in west
Rockville, ordering the towns
officials to provide proper sew
age disposal facilities.
The booming Montgomery
County suburb has been di-
rected not to hook any more
houses into sewer lines running
to the overburdened west side or
Watts Branch disposal plant
after January 81.
This had the immediate eff
feet of holding up the 1.400-
unit Dawson Farm housing de-
velopment planned for the west
side of Rockville by Donald E
Gingery, a builder, and w.
Evans Buchanan. real estate
man.
Earlier Delay.
Earlier this year, the Board
of Health delayed the opening
of the Twinbrook housing de-
velopment in another section of
Rockville until satisfactory ar
rangementS were made for sewer
service.
The order served on the Mayor
and Council yesterday brands
the disposal plant a menace to
health and gives the town until
next June / to file plans. speci-
fications and contracts for cor
recting its shortcomings by July
/, 1855.
State law provides a $40 to
$500 fine for failing to comply
with such orders. 1t also provides
additional fines of SIS to $50 a
day for each day of violation
beyond the time limit.
Remedies Planned.
The order was adopted by the
State board on November 20.
Learning of it, the Rockville
Mayor and Council on November
"a adopted a resolution outlining
plans to meet the difficulties.
The order was held in allegiance
temporarily.
DR.. Robert H. Riley, chairman
of the State board, said in a
letter accompanying the order
when it was served yesterday
that study Of the councils ac-
ton produced nothing to justify
a further delay.
Rockville City Manager John
G. Mcdonald said he has been
working for the last six months
seeking at least a temporary
solution to the sewage problem
Construction OF a bigger dis
posal plant would cost between
100000 and 100000. he said
An alternate proposal, build
ing eight miles of sewer lines to
connect with the Washington
Suburban Sanitary Commissions
trunk line at Cabin John Creek,
would cost about 100000, he
added. Mr.. Mcdonald said all
construction in the main part
of Rockville would be blocked
unless the State Health Board
allows temporary measures to
be used.
Mr.. Gingery said Rockville's
rapid growth was the basic
cause of the trouble. The 1910
population of about 5000 jumped
to 1000 by 1850 and it is now
estimated at 10000. Mr.. Gingery
said the town just hasn't been
able to provide sewer facilities
fast enough to keep up with this.
Plant Built in 1889.
The disposal plant serving the
west part of the community was
built in 1889 to handle 300, 900
gallons of sewage a day, State
sanitarians reported, and it has
been pumping about 100000 a
day.
Mr.. Gingery asked the health
board to let him proceed with
the first 200 of the new houses
while Rockville is spending
$4,000 to $4,000 on temporary
measures to improve the treat
ment at the overloaded plant.
Then, he said, the Rockville
Council will go ahead and pledge
$250,000 to 100000 with the
Suburban Sanitary Commission
to get it to extend its Cabin
John Greek trunk sever into the
area.
Doubtful Solution.
The plea backfired when
State specialists expressed a
doubt the temporary expedients
would be adequate during the
18 to 20 months it would take
to extend the sanitary commits
sion's trunk sewer.
Members of the board said
they were vexed that builders
persisted in going ahead with
elaborate development plans
without learning in advance if
adequate sewer service is avail
able.
Mr.. Gingery and Mr.. Buchanan
said they had negotiated with
Rockville for some time on de-
tails of the development and
had never heard a suggestion
sewage capacity wasn't avail
able. They pointed out that the
new Montgomery County office
building at Rockville recently
was hooked into the overloaded
disposal plant.