The Lower Township Municipal Utilities Authority (LTMUA) and the Delaware River & Bay Authority (DRBA) have formalized a temporary water transfer agreement that will allow the LTMUA to proceed with construction of a $10.8 million USDA water main improvement project for the Townbank/Villas areas. The proposed water main improvements will ensure each resident in the project area will have access to safe potable water meeting all State and Federal Safe Drinking Water guidelines as well as improved fire safety.
The DRBA has agreed to temporarily transfer 8.6 million gallons of water allocation from the Cape May County Airport complex to the LTMUA. The 8.6 million gallons of water is a reserve that is allocated to the Airport complex for future growth. Currently, the DRBA does not have a need for the reserve water allocation but the Lower Township residents in the Townbank/Villas areas do. The residents in the Townbank/Villas areas rely on private wells for potable water service. Due to confirm high-level contaminates in the groundwater supply, the LTMUA proposed to install a water main throughout the area to provide contaminate-free public water to those residences.
The LTMUA would not be able to proceed with this project without the assistance of the DRBA. This agreement is the start of a long working relationship between the LTMUA and the DRBA. The LTMUA will file with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection for a major modification to their water allocation permit in the near future. The modification will include the transfer of the reserve water allocation back to the DRBA.
