Feb 5, 2019   SOURCE: BusinessWire

New Jersey American Water Implements Temporary Treatment Changes in Water Treatment Plants Serving Central and Northern Parts of the State

As part of an annual maintenance program for its water distribution system, New Jersey American Water will temporarily change the water treatment process from a chloramine (combined) residual to free chlorine residual at the company’s Raritan-Millstone and Canal Road Surface Water Treatment plants. These plants serve New Jersey American Water customers in the following counties: Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Somerset and Union.

“This periodic, scheduled change in disinfectant is a standard water treatment practice that allows us to continue to ensure safe, high-quality water for our customers,” said Anthony Matarazzo, Director of Water Quality and Environmental Compliance, New Jersey American Water. “We perform this distribution system maintenance program every year as an added measure to further disinfect the pipelines in our distribution system.”

The temporary treatment process will begin on Monday, February 11, 2019, and continue until the end of April 2019. During this period, some customers may notice a slight taste and smell of chlorine in their water. This is normal and will only be temporary until the system maintenance is complete. Customers who wish to reduce the taste of chlorine can place water in an uncovered glass container in the refrigerator overnight to dissipate chlorine faster.

“As always, we will continue to monitor water quality in the system to ensure that customers receive water that meets or is better than federal and state drinking water standards,” Matarazzo said.

The temporary treatment change applies to New Jersey American Water customers in the following communities. (Communities with an asterisk purchase water from New Jersey American Water.)

Hunterdon County: Flemington Borough*, Frenchtown Borough, Raritan Township, Readington Township, and Tewksbury Township

Mercer County: Hopewell Township, Lawrence Township, Princeton Borough, Princeton Junction, Princeton Township and West Windsor Township

Middlesex County: Cranbury Township, Dunellen Borough, Edison Township, Jamesburg Borough, Middlesex Borough, Monroe Township, North Brunswick*, Piscataway Township, Plainsboro Township, South Brunswick Township and South Plainfield Borough

Somerset County: Bedminster Township, Bernards Township, Bernardsville Borough, Bound Brook Borough, Branchburg Township, Bridgewater Township, Far Hills Borough, Franklin Township, Green Brook Township, Hillsborough Township, Manville Borough, Millstone Borough, Montgomery Township, North Plainfield Borough, Peapack & Gladstone Borough, Raritan Borough, Somerville Borough, South Bound Brook Borough, Warren Township and Watchung Borough

Union County: Berkley Heights Township, City of Rahway*, Clark Township, Cranford Township, Fanwood Borough, Garwood Borough, Hillside Township, Kenilworth Borough, Linden City, Mountainside Borough, New Providence Borough, Plainfield City, Roselle Borough, Roselle Park Borough, Scotch Plains Township, Springfield Township, Summit City, Union Township, Westfield Township and Winfield Park Township*

New Jersey American Water has used chloramines in its water treatment process since the 1970s. For more information, visit newjerseyamwater.com.

New Jersey American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water and/or wastewater services to approximately 2.7 million people. For more information, visit www.newjerseyamwater.com and follow New Jersey American Water on Twitter and Facebook. With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 7,100 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to an estimated 15 million people in 45 states and Ontario, Canada. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable and reliable water services to our customers to make sure we keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit www.amwater.com.