A water main break repair in Montclair. Photo by Ricardo Kaulessar, NorthJersey.com

James M. O’Neil reports for The Record:


A state task force was poised to approve a report Monday outlining the dire condition of New Jersey’s aging drinking water infrastructure and recommendations to legislators for fixing the problem.


The report urges the legislature create a new grant program, financed by $400 million in bonds, to begin urgent upgrades to the state’s complex patchwork of drinking water systems, especially smaller systems and those in economically distressed communities.


Editor: As if on cue,

• Atlantic City facing ‘unprecedented’ 12 water main
  breaks The Municipal
  Utilities Authority was facing a record number of water main breaks Friday but
  was managing to keep the water on for customers, Executive Director G. Bruce
  Ward said Atlantic
  City Press

“New Jersey is facing a hidden infrastructure crisis underneath its streets in the pipes that transport its water,” the report argues. “Much of this infrastructure has aged past its useful life and is breaking down due to decades of under-investment.


“Failure to replace them will result in an unreliable supply of safe drinking water, increased service interruptions, more frequent and costly emergency repairs” and “insufficient water flow and pressure.”


The problem could be exacerbated as continued development, combined with more numerous droughts from climate change, push up water demands.


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