Residents press borough for more detail on sewer-authority H2S monitoring and odor spikes

Multiple residents told the Borough of Waldwick council that sewer odors — described as strong at early-morning and late-evening hours — are continuing and concern neighbors.

Resident Eric Laporta told the council the smell has been particularly bad at about 5 a.m. on multiple recent mornings and said he had called the sewer authority and the DEP; he described inconsistent responses from field samplers. The borough administrator and council said the sewer authority has begun a 30- to 60-day monitoring program and that the borough would ask for the authority's monitoring report, including dates, locations and readings, and any baseline comparisons with neighboring communities.

One council member suggested the borough might perform its own readings but staff cautioned that monitoring and enforcement are regulated by the state Department of Environmental Protection and that there could be preemption or equipment and licensing constraints. Staff said the borough is coordinating with the sewer authority and will request data, and council asked staff to report back with the authority's measurement schedule and findings.

What’s next: borough staff will follow up with the sewer authority to request monitoring dates, location-specific readings and methodology and will report back to the council when the authority's results are available. Council also discussed whether to pursue an independent monitoring capability and asked staff to investigate feasibility and legal limits.