Mahwah May 25, 2011 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • Page 11 Council to test Winters Pond for dredging by Frank J. McMahon The Mahwah Council has authorized a $14,400 total expenditure for Boswell McClave Engineering to obtain samples and test the soil at the bottom of Winters Pond on East Ramapo Avenue, and to prepare specifications and obtain bids for the potential dredging of the pond. Boswell engineer Michael Kelly recently advised the council that 20,000 cubic yards of soil could be removed from the bottom of the pond. He said that soil might consist of three different types, and the proposed testing will determine what kind of soil exists there and, therefore, if dredging is feasible. Kelly explained the soil could consist of hazardous material that would be difficult to dispose of in an economical manner, or it could consist of low-level contaminants from roadway runoff that might be disposed of economically, or it could be totally clean material that could be used for residential site remediation. Kelly does not expect the soil to be hazardous or totally clean, but he said it would most likely consist of low-level contaminants. He estimated the testing of the soil would take three weeks and cost $3,400 for the laboratory work and $3,500 for the collection, preparation, and evaluation of the soil by his engineering firm and the preparation of a report to the council. Township Business Administrator Brian Campion advised that preparing the specifications and bid documents for the dredging project will cost $7,500. Professional Engineer Kevin Boswell advised the council that the township has already applied for and received permits from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to dredge the pond and safety plans have been approved by Rockland Electric, which has high tension electric wires strung over the pond. But he estimated the project of dredging the pond could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars depending on what type of material comes out of the body of water. According to Campion, the township has $200,000 available for the project, half of which came from a Bergen County grant. Councilman Samuel Alderisio supported the expenditure, but he cautioned that, while this project would help residents who live upstream from the pond, it will not guarantee that the residents living downstream from the pond will no longer have flooding. Kelly also emphasized that this would not be a flood control project, which he said would require the reconstruction of the dam at this site. In 2006, the council approved the cost of engineering services for the cleaning of the Masonicus Brook. The Bergen County Mosquito Commission was expected to perform the stream cleaning, and Boswell McClave proceeded to apply for the necessary permits from the NJDEP, which advised that the dredging of Winters Pond could be included in that project. In June 2009, Boswell advised Campion that all necessary permits had been obtained and that the services of the mosquito commission had been obtained to perform the necessary dredging of the pond and the work on the stream at no cost to the township. The work to remove about three to four feet of silt from the bottom of the pond was set to begin when the Orange and Rockland Electric Company stopped it because they realized their transmission lines were about 40 feet above the pond’s water level and the heavy equipment that was to be used to dredge the pond might interfere with those transmission lines. The mosquito commission amended its plans to eliminate the use of the long reach equipment, and the work was expected to resume in September 2009. However, that plan was abandoned when the mosquito commission realized that it is often called to other county projects and, therefore, it could not make the commitment the two-year project would require. Now the township intends to use a private contractor to do the dredging. Kelly told the council that decision will give the township more control over the project and allow the work to be completed more quickly. ����� �������� ��������� ����������� ������������ ���������� ������������� ��������������������� ����������������������� �������������� ����������������������� �������������������������� �������� �������������������������������� ������������������������������� ������������ ����������� ������������� ������������ ��������� ���������������������� ��������������������������� ��������������������������������� ������������������������������������ � ���������������������� ���������������������� ��������������������� �������������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������������� ������� ���������� ����������� ����������� ���������� ����������� ������������� ��������������������������������� ������������������� ������������������������������������� �������������������������� ������������ ��������������������������� ��������������������