Download PDF

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and Township of Belleville, New Jersey, (“Belleville”) entered into a July 22nd Consent Agreement and Final Order (“CAFO”) addressing an alleged violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act (“SDWA”). See Docket No. SDWA-02-2020-8401.

The CAFO addresses a public water system (“System”) owned/operated by Belleville.

The Belleville System is stated to be a “supplier of water” as that term is defined by the SDWA. The System is stated to regularly serve at last 15 service connections used by year-round residents and/or regularly serves at least 25 year-round residents. As a result, it is stated to be a “community water system” as defined by the relevant section of the SDWA.

A community water system is subject to the requirements of Part B of the SDWA and the statute’s implementing regulations.

Belleville was stated to have been required by an Administrative Order to comply with the SDWA’s Consumer Confidence Report (“CCR”) requirements. The Township is stated to have transmitted a copy of the 2018 CCR. However, the CCR did not contain all required information.

Belleville is stated to have submitted on August 6, 2019, a copy of the CCR that had been provided to customers by July 1, 2019. The CCR is stated to have met the language and content requirements of the relevant SDWA regulations. Therefore, EPA is stated to have deemed that the compliance requirements of the previously referenced Administrative Order had been satisfied.

The CAFO provides that Belleville neither admits nor denies the factual allegations.

A civil penalty of $3,000 is assessed.

A copy of the CAFO can be downloaded here.