Borough Gets Tough on Illegal Sewer Line Hook-Ups

The mayor and council have amended the borough's sewer ordinance to get tough on residents who illegally hook-up sump pumps to sanitary sewer lines.

The amendment will read, in part, that as of January 1, 2013, any property owner negotiating the sale of their home who has a sump pump must have its connection inspected as a condition of the sale.

This crack down is a result of a letter the borough received from the Bergen County Utilities Authority (BCUA) notifying the mayor and council that they were requiring the borough to inspect homes and businesses for illegally connected sump pumps. This notice comes as a result of 2011's severe weather events whereby the BCUA's water sanitary sewer lines exceeded their capacities resulting in a number of sewer overflows into the environment. Sewer lines are not big enough to accomodate the large volumes of water that storm drainage systems can.

In a letter to the borough dated March 7, the BCUA said that part of the problem was a result of clean water entering the municipal sanitary sewer system through "illegally connected basement sump pumps." A sump pump must be hooked up to a storm drain or a seepage pit.

The BCUA said that during storms, sump pumps illegally connected to the sanitary sewer lines resulted in clean rainwater being treated at a large cost. Clean storm water entering the sanitary sewer system affects the cost of treatment which, in turn, affects the sewer rates that residents pay through taxes. 

Because inspecting every household for an illegal connections is unrealistic, the mayor and council have amended the existing sewer ordinance to make an inspection of sump pump hook-ups a condition of the sale of property. Property owners will be receiving notice of this with their tax bills.

The deadline for compliance is Dec. 31.