Pessimistically Optimistic

Yesterday, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection announced they had issued an Administrative Consent Order regarding the Trenton Water Works. The ACO outlines definitive steps and deadlines for improvements, operations, and staffing of the water utility. Failure to meet the deadlines will leave the city open to fines.

The troubles at TWW have been well documented by Kevin Moriarty and the local press. In the past week the governing bodies of both Trenton and Hamilton have had special presentations/discussions about the ongoing issues. Yet there still seems to be a lot of misinformation out there. (Some of which is due to the city of Trenton's inability and/or unwillingness to communicate clearly with the TWW customer base as well as public officials in the towns served by the utility).

We heard more than one public official say that would like transparency with regards to the budget of the Trenton Water Works. Well, the water budget is available on line as part of the City of Trenton budget. Unfortunately, some of the numbers are not readable because, for space reasons the cells are not large enough to contain the entire sum. However, the key information is there, especially the amount of the anticipated and realized surpluses each year.

With a realized surplus of $12 million for fiscal year 2017, it is obvious that there is money available for staffing, maintenance and improvements.

There is confusion about the city's residency requirement for employees. Let's be real clear right and here and now, the residency ordinance was amended in October of 2014 to allow a "waiver for exceptional persons". 

Chapter 2. AdministrationArticle XVI. Officers and Employees ...
§ 2-95. Residence requirements; exception; waiver. D. Waiver for exceptional persons. Whenever the hiring authority of the City of Trenton shall determine that there are certain specific positions and employments requiring special talents or skills which are necessary for the operations of the City of Trenton and which are not likely to be found among the residents of the City, such positions or employments so determined shall be filled without reference to residency. This provision shall be used for positions or employments for (1) officers that are subject to the advice and consent of the City Council and (2) positions requiring persons with scientific or technical licenses or certifications required by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New Jersey Division of Community Affairs or any other state governing agency.
[Amended 10-2-2014 by Ord. No. 14-33]

It is obvious that the intent of the amendment was to allow the city to hire form outside of the city the licensed individuals necessary for the proper operation of the TWW. And, it was done in the first few months of the failed Jackson administration.

If the residency waiver was in effect, why have so many technical positions been left unfilled?

One answer, based upon the testimony heard at last week's Trenton city council meeting, was that the city was bad about responding to/following up with applicants. One individual stated she never heard back from the city; not even a "thank you, no" letter. Nothing!

The administration offered the excuse that the salaries being offered "were not competitive". Well, if you are operating the utility with a surplus but your salaries are not competitive, maybe you should increase those salaries. Is it that hard?

A third issue is that, until recently, the advertising of the vacancies seemed to be sparse and sporadic at best. We heard that open positions were not currently posted on the city website and a suggestion to hang a "Now Hiring" banner on the filtration plant ignored. You aren't going to get many applicants if they don't know there are openings.

Taken altogether, it appears less that the city was unable to hire people and more like it didn't put any real effort into hiring people.

The ACO has set benchmarks for hiring critical personnel and recent contracts issued to Wade Trim for contract employees to fill some of the vacancies are a start. With increased staffing of professionals, we would expect to see a return to normal, proper operations.

Timely notification of customers about events potentially affecting have been another complaint heard over and over. The DEP has recognized that TWW's Emergency Action Plan is deficient and is demanding it be updated to eliminate those deficiencies. In a February 7 article in the Trentonian, Hamilton mayor, Kelly Yaede, complained that TWW still has up to 24 hours to notify customers.

“The neighboring municipalities should receive the notification within 60 minutes,” the Hamilton mayor said. “When you’re dealing a public health crisis, particularly dealing with quality drinking water, notification is key. In this day and age of social media, getting information out quickly, timliness is imperative.”

As we pointed out in a previous entry, that is the maximum time that Federal regulations for a Tier 1 (Immediate Notice) event to be communicated to the customers. We have to assume that the new policies and procedures to be adopted by TWW aren't going to tell employees to wait the full day before notification. We'd expect something along the lines of "should be notified as soon as possible but not more than 24 hours after an event occurred."

While many are still dubious about the ability of Trenton to professionally manage the utility, the ACO lays out a pretty straightforward road map of what needs to be done and by one. To help keep things on course, TWW must file monthly progress reports with DEP until all items have been completed. The reports are due to be submitted on the last day of each month, unless said date falls on a weekend. In that case, the reports are due on the first business day of the new month. There are fines for each day the reports are late. A prior ACO required "quarterly progress reports" be we are not sure if any were filed.

To help restore confidence in TWW, we believe it would be best if the city made those reports public at the time of submission to DEP. In this way, the customers and all of the public officials can track progress along with the DEP. If things get off track, public pressure can be brought to bear and the situation corrected sooner rather than later.

We feel this new ACO is both a positive first step and a last chance warning for TWW, Trenton's governing body and mayor now and going forward.


We're pessimistically optimistic

Water this, water that.

“Water this, water that,” City of Trenton spokesman Michael Walker said in response to an email query about Trenton Water Works from the Post.

So reports Rob Anthes in a very good article in the February edition of the Hamilton Post. Anthes highlights the recent issues at Trenton's water utility that serves some quarter of a million people in Mercer County.

This past Thursday night Trenton's Public Works Director, Merkle Cherry, and key members of the TWW staff presented an update for the city council. The hope was that the city's governing body and the public alike would come out of that meeting with a fuller understanding of what the situation actually is at the water utility.

Unfortunately, that presentation came up woefully short. Kevin Moriarty blogged about the meeting on Friday. Basically, it consisted of a brief power point presentation, a Q & A between members of the council and the water works team, and then public comment.

It lasted 3.5 hours (council then had to go on to their regular business afterwards) and what was learned was that Mr. Cherry has a less than firm grasp on the operations of TWW. We also learned that some of the long time staff who work day to day in the utility don't have a much better grasp of how things work there than Cherry does. That was a huge disappointment. 

The lack of investment in the utility and the lack of staff definitely contributes to the marked increase in citations of non-compliance issued by DEP. That's certain. The lack of communication... effective, timely communication... between the city/TWW and its customers is the one thing that came up time and time again during the discourse.

One of the big complaints has been the length of time between when an "event" occurs and the public is notified. City representatives have continually sworn that they were delayed in issuing notices because they were waiting for DEP to approve the language in the advisories before sending them out.

Strangely, in the same breath, there is always mention of  "templates" that exist for the notices.

It's hard to fathom how, if there is an existing template for, say, a boil water advisory, there has to be approval from a state agency before the notice can be sent out. That sort of defeats the whole purpose of having a template, doesn't it?

Curious about this, we spent some time wading around in the DEP website. There is a lot of information available to the public there. Granted, you might have to be a bit of a nerd or wonk to delve into this stuff, but it is there for the curious. 

The following is based upon a couple of hours of browsing, following links, reading and, yes, THINKING about how one handles events that adversely effect the quality of water service. We are not licensed plant operators; we have not taken any classes in water supply operations or management. We're just reasonably intelligent parties interested in what the process is; how it is supposed to work; and trying to figure why it seems to continually break down when it comes to TWW. 

If we miss something or make faulty statements and anyone can point us to accurate information countering our incorrect assumptions, we welcome the correction. We're trying to educate ourselves and our readers as to what is the right way to handle these things. 

Water quality regulation and enforcement in New Jersey falls under the Department of Environmental Protection, division of Water Supply and Geoscience.  From the division's page, there are various links under "Drinking Water Systems; Emergencies & Security. There's a lot of information available to anyone who wants to poke around awhile. 

As stated right on the page, a water utility has to report an emergency to DEP within six (6) hours. There is a 24 hour hotline just for such purposes. There are also required follow ups with the engineering office during normal work hours and a form that must be completed an emailed to DEP.

The incident form includes a section about notifications on the second page.   

The first question asked is "Has the appropriate water use advisory been issued?"  Now, if this form is what is used to record and track an incident with DEP and DEP must be notified within six hours of the event, doesn't it seem likely that there is an expectation that notifications to the public, et al were made sooner rather than later?

There are links on the page to templates for various advisories pertaining to water main breaks. The templates are right there in a very user friendly form (Microsoft Word). The utility just has to fill in the event specific information and distribute.

But what about non-water main break related events?

Further down on the page are links to "Water Use Advisory Information".

Within that grouping is a link to a 166 page document that is a clearly written and organized EPA Drinking Water Advisory Comprehensive Toolbox. It is filled with very good, common sense ideas about how to prepare for, execute and follow up on the issuing of an event advisory. The document includes fill-in-the-blank templates, in English and Spanish. The document is so comprehensive that after reading it we feel confident that we could effectively execute the issuing of an advisory. Certainly, if anyone from TWW and/or the City of Trenton had there would not be the continual issues with fumbled notifications.

There are other resources on that section of the page. The three main types of advisories are described:

• Advisories:
• Boil Water Advisory: Advises customers to boil the water before drinking, cooking, and other potable water uses due to the potential for the water supply to be contaminated with disease-causing microorganisms.
• Do Not Drink Advisory: Advises customers not to use the water supply for potable purposes and only advocates its use for sanitary and fire-fighting needs.
• Do Not Use Advisory: Advises customers not to use the water supply for any purpose, including sanitary and fire-fighting needs.

There are also more links to templates and handbooks:

• Guidance & Templates
• EPA Public Notification Handbooks:
• Community & Non-Transient Non-Community Water Systems
• Transient Water Systems
• Public Notification Templates
• EPA Drinking Water Advisory Communication Toolbox - provides information on how to plan for, develop, implement, and evaluate drinking water advisories.

Obviously, there is a wealth of material available to help a water supply system effectively communicate about any event that adversely affects the potability of the water.

Earlier on we established that NJ DEP must be notified within six (6) hours of an event. Diving deeper into the subject we discovered EPA guidelines (linked to from the DEP site, so we assume these are the operative standards in New Jersey) for three levels of notifications.

You'll note that in Tier 1 (Immediate Notice) events water suppliers have 24 hours to notify {our emphasis} people who may drink the water.  TWENTY FOUR HOURS!

That seems like a long time. We assume because the guidelines are applicable to systems of all sizes in densely populated areas as well as sparsely populated ones, the federal standards are somewhat generous.  We also assume that common sense dictates system operators would get the notice out as soon as possible, well within the 24 hour deadline.

We feel it is important to note here that at no time has TWW made the argument that their delayed notifications have fallen within the allowable 24 hour time period. Rather, they keep falling back on the excuse of having to wait for DEP approval of the text and/or translation into Spanish...EVEN THOUGH TEMPLATES FOR BOTH EXIST AND ARE AVAILABLE!  In addition, for all of our fishing in the rules and regulations we have yet to land any evidence that DEP requires approval of the verbiage of advisories prior to them being released.

We have also found, repeated, reference to the 10 items that must be included in an advisory:

Notices must contain:

• A description of the violation that occurred, including the contaminant(s) of concern, and  the contaminant level(s);
• When the violation or situation occurred;
• The potential health effects (including standard required language);
• The population at risk, including subpopulations vulnerable if exposed to the contaminant in their drinking water;
• Whether alternate water supplies need to be used;
• What the water system is doing to correct the problem;
• Actions consumers can take;
• When the system expects a resolution to the problem;
• How to contact the water system for more information; and
• Language encouraging broader distribution of the notice.

Anyone with basic English composition skills and the required information at hand should be able to craft an acceptable advisory notice in less than hour without a template. With a template, the notice should be ready for distribution within minutes. Not hours. No external approvals required!

From what we have found, it is readily apparent that the failures of TWW to notify customers in a timely manner originate internally. Whether it is due to the acknowledged shortage of qualified staff, management indifference or both doesn't really matter.

What does matter is that they are failing to execute critical responsibilities. Instead of pointing fingers to outside agencies, they need to look at their own processes and procedures and fix them. Immediately.

Don't drink the water

In the September round of layoffs, the city of Trenton was to release three technicians from the water department for reasons of “economy and efficiency.”  These are individuals who are licensed Water System Distribution Technicians…professionals who through the application of their experience and knowledge help maintain and safeguard the delivery of potable water to thousands of paying customers in Trenton and the surrounding suburbs.  (Need I remind the reader of the water distribution fiasco of October 2010 apparently caused by inexperienced individuals failing to follow proper procedure in opening and closing valves in the water system?)

First and foremost…laying off any employee of the Trenton Water Works does not save money!  Let me repeat that.  Laying off water works employees does not save money.

How is this so?  Well as you should know by now, the Trenton Water Works operates on its own budget separate and distinct from the city of Trenton budget.  The water utility revenue comes from the rate payers who buy and consume the water it produces. They may or may not be city of Trenton taxpayers. It doesn’t matter.  The money that flows into the waterworks comes from the distribution and sale of the water it produces. Period. 

Cutting the number of employees in the water utility does not save the city money or lower the property tax rate for Trentonians.

In fact, the argument can be made that reducing personnel costs at the water works actually hurts the city and can contribute to tax increases for city property owners.

How?  

Because the city of Trenton owns and operates the water utility it is allowed by law to take a portion of the operating surplus (profit, if you will) and move it over to the city’s general budget.  That portion is equal to a percentage of the utility’s operating expense.  The more money the utility spends on operating costs…like paying licensed Water System Distribution Technicians, the more money can be moved over to the city’s budget. 

Got it?  Good.

Now back to those technicians…why, you might ask yourself, would we lay anyone off from the water works, especially licensed professionals if it isn’t saving us money and thus lowering taxes? 

 
Good and fair question.  The answer lies in the fact that even though it operates on its own budget, the Trenton Water Works currently resides organizationally within the city Department of Public Works.  Civil service laws require that if a layoff impacts a department it must impact every division within that department. You can’t lay off people from solid waste but leave the water works employees alone.

If you recall, late last winter the city announced a plan to essentially shut down operations each Friday for 13 or 14 weeks as a cost saving measure. This would have been an across the board shutdown…including licensed water utility staff. This plan was eventually shelved at least in part because the city could not show how it could conduct these layoffs and still staff the water utility with the properly credentialed individuals.

In a letter dated February 15, 2011, John Plonski, the Assistant Commissioner for Water Resource Management at NJDEP, sent a letter to Mayor Mack raising the concern of proper staffing of the treatment facility during these weekly furloughs. The letter reminds the mayor that the water system is required to have licensed staff on duty at all times.

Makes sense, right? There needs to be proper, professional operators of the water system that so many depend on for potable water.

When the September layoffs are approved and notices sent out, Mr. Plonski sent a second letter, this time to then Business Administrator Eric Berry. This letter, dated August 5, 2011 (scroll down past thesecond page of the first letter) is more forceful and direct. Mr. Plonski states the case quite plainly:

“The NJDEP has identified the lack of qualified personnel as a key problem adversely affecting TWW’s ability to effectively operate its water system.”

A thinking person might reconsider the wisdom of laying off technicians in a utility already short handed.  Alas, our mayor does not think.  Or does he.

You see, the two licensed individuals targeted for layoff just happen to have testified before the grand jury last year about the misdeeds of Stanley Davis, the mayor’s half brother. This is a case of retaliation pure and simple. 

The mayor is not laying them off for matters of “economy and efficiency”. They are being singled out because they did the right thing and told what they knew about Mr. Davis.

Not convinced? 

How about this: last winter and again this summer, city council tried to pass an ordinance rearranging the organizational structure to create a standalone water and sewer authority department that could be isolated from the layoff plans. The first attempt was shelved because the less than astute members of council couldn’t grasp why it was needed. Then the city withdrew the “Friday furlough” plan and the issue didn’t come again until the September layoffs loomed.  That time, council passed the ordinance 4 – 3 but the mayor refused to sign it or discuss it and council couldn’t raise the fifth vote needed to override Mr. Mack.

It’s pretty common knowledge that when layoffs are planned, the most recent hires (the ones with least seniority) go first.  How is it that the long term employees…the licensed technicians were slated for layoff when two laborers and three water meter readers hired shortly after Mayor Mack took office were not?

Certainly the two laborers, Rodney Washington and Terrance Bailey should have been on the layoff list. Both are known Mack supporters with legal and other problems in their pasts. They are also the ones named in a harassment complaint brought by Kevin Moriarty for their verbal abuse while he tried to collect signatures for the recall petition.

The meter readers, too, by common sense would be the first to go in a layoff.  One, Charles Hall, is the nephew of Mack crony Harold Hall and although being paid by the water utility, is now assigned to oversee landscaping and design work in city parks.  Work that young Mr. Hall is absolutely not qualified to do.   Another is one time caterer and former owner of the now-closed Maxine’s restaurant, Henry Page. Page, another Mack “friend” reportedly cannot or will not complete his daily meter reading assignments, leaving them for others to do.

A week before the September 16 layoffs, Civil service stepped in and told the Mack administration to “bump” the technicians down to water meter readers and, presumably, layoff the two of the most recently hired readers.

That didn’t happen.  Instead, the Mack administration tried to move the technicians into laborer positions.  The techs balked; the administration moved to dismiss them entirely; a lawsuit was filed. A temporary restraining order halting the dismissal of the employees was also filed but ultimately, Judge Pereksta reversed it.  “While I agree that the DEP is recommending that (the utility) be more fully staffed, it’s too thin (an argument) to say that there is going to be this major effect on the safety of the citizenry of Trenton if your clients are moved to other positions,” Pereksta ruled. 

Assistant Commissioner Plonski states in his August 5 letter:  “Recent service disruptions due to operational deficiencies, which have not yet been resolved, indicate that TWW should not decrease the number of experienced and educated individuals who hold the licenses necessary to effectively operate the water treatment plant and distribution system. Targeting those licensed personnel serving TWW for layoff at a time when significant operational issues still exist is inappropriate and threatens the ability of TWW to provide a safe, dependable water supply to the City of Trenton and its surrounding communities.”

Judge Pereksta feels that is “too thin to say that there is going to be a major effect on the safety”. 

George Dougherty, attorney for the technicians has this to say: “The evidence is overwhelming that the reduction of the technician staff from an already low six to three is truly a dangerous thing to do.” .

So, we guess Judge Peksta is ok with putting the water supply at risk for the sake of Mayor Mack's spite against the people who he doesn't like. And we guess that Mayor Mack must not like customers of the city owned water utility.

Pass the bottled water.

Now read this

This advertisement appeared in the Times (of Trenton), page A5, Saturday, October 16, 2010.

We here at the Front Stoop found it interesting.  The ad is a public notice from New Jersey American Water (NJAW) that they exceeded a drinking water standard.

According to the ad, during routine cleaning of a settlement basin, sediment was stirred up and entered the water system and overburdened the filters of the system.  This caused turbid water in excess of the 1 NTU standard to enter the distribution system of water that Aqua New Jersey purchases from NJAW or it's Lawrenceville customers.  The incident occurred on Thursday, September 23, 2010.

The ad goes on as follows:

What does this mean?
This is not an emergency.  I it had been you would have been notified within 24 hours.  Turbidity is not harmful in itself.  High turbidity increases the chance that water might contain disease-causing organisms.

What should I do?
You do not need to boil your water or take other corrective actions.

So what we want to know is this:

If the incident above is being treated as a non-emergency and notification wasn't required within 24 hours and boiling water wasn't required, what really happened at the Trenton Water Works (TWW) between October 2 and October 8 that made the City of Trenton and the DEP issue "boil water advisories" repeatedly from the 4th through the 7th?  

Doesn't it seem likely that the situation with the TWW was somewhat more serious than the NJAW event of September 24?  But the city has repeatedly told us there was no risk and that there was no evidence of contamination. At the same time, we were continually advised to boil water and, if our water temperature was lower than 113 degrees Fahrenheit to drain, flush and refill our hot water tanks.  And why haven't the results of the water tests conducted between October 3 and October 7 been made public?

We don't consider ourselves prone to conspiracy theories but there certainly seems to be more to the story than the Mack administration AND New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection have so far let on.

Our water is running clear now, how about our government officials come clean.