The Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority, BTMUA (Photo: Daniel Nee)
It could be a noisy few weeks for some Brick residents, at the Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority drills new wells which must be continuously constructed 24 hours a day for 16 days each.
Blame it on the state, officials said. New Jersey is requiring the BTMUA to drill two “observation wells” that will connect to two different aquifers. The purpose of the wells will be to ensure the quality of the township’s water supply meets state standards through continuous monitoring.
“They can’t stop at night, or even just for an hour,” explained Councilman Paul Mummolo, because of technical constraints.
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The two wells will be dug separately, but both will be dug at the BTMUA campus at 1551 Route 88. The MUA’s contractor will burrow 1,600 feet and 1,800 feet, respectively, underground to reach the two aquifers.
The township council unanimously voted in favor of suspending the township’s noise ordinance to allow the project to go forward. While Mummolo said estimates are for each project to last 16 days, the noise ordinance waiver covers the period of time from April 1 through July 3. The two wells cannot be dug simultaneously, he said.
The BTMUA complex fronts the highway and an empty plot of land, but is neighbored by residential housing on either side – the Laurel Brook community to the west and several streets surrounding Forge Pond Road to the east. Mummolo said the MUA’s contractor will set up a physical sound barrier to control the noise.
“It’s going to create quite a bit of noise,” Mummolo acknowledged, but “once they start, they can’t stop.”
