Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners President Phillips Armstrong said township residents “can sleep well tonight.”

Representatives of Whitehall Township Authority and Northampton Borough Municipal Authority (NBMA) appeared at the April 11 commissioners meeting and assured those in attendance that their water is safe.

Armstrong invited the two authorities, both of which serve the township, to address water quality for its residents, schools and businesses in the wake of the Flint, Mich., disaster, which brought to the forefront large amounts of lead and copper infiltrating the entire city system.

Joseph M. McMahon III, who heads the township water authority, and Steve Kerbacher, NBMA executive director, told commissioners their water authorities are in full and complete compliance with tough state Department of Environmental Protection inspections and regulations, as backed up by official inspections.

McMahon, who presented a PowerPoint program, Kerbacher and NBMA microbiologist Bob Montgomery reported their systems operate state-of-the-art water treatment plants that surpass state and federal regulations.

Kerbacher said required testing of water is done every three years under stringent protocol lab tests.

McMahon told commissioners and Whitehall Township Mayor Edward D. Hozza Jr. since the Flint incident made national news months ago, the township water authority received only one call from a resident.

Kerbacher said Whitehall-Coplay School District schools have NBMA water, and the district is in sync with testing. No problems have occurred, he added.

Township resident Donald Drabic asked McMahon whether the authority utilizes plastic pipes.

McMahon said no, adding “there are plenty of places” that do.

Township resident Joan Tedesco, of Fullerton, inquired about hard and soft water in the township. She was told the township water authority’s water is harder. Lead and copper have also never been a problem, she learned.

“The [NBMA] has invested over $100 million on capital investments in our water treatment and distribution system during the past 40 years,” Kerbacher said.

These improvements have included constructing a new river intake and pumping station, replacing and extending new water mains, upgrading meters to touchpad or radio reads, constructing a new Spring Street pump station and constructing a new operations center, office building and water treatment plant.

NBMA has 15,300 metered accounts serving more than 40,000 residents, approximately 6,236 in Whitehall.

McMahon said Whitehall Township Authority serves 2,800 customers.