At the Coplay Whitehall Sewer Authority (CWSA) regular board meeting July 19, Engineer Darryl Jenkins reported the solar project is ready for bid. He expects bid results back in time for the August meeting.

The board proposed looking into solar as a way to supplement power to its pumping stations over a year ago. Strict requirements were set that the products used needed to be American made.

The solar industry is in its early stages of development, and reliable contractors are difficult to come by. Based on Jenkins’ recommendation, CWSA reviewed the proposal with known solar companies. Once it was determined that using solar power could save money, Jenkins put together his bid proposal. According to Jenkins, the payback period is about 30 years.

The board adjourned to executive session to discuss litigation matters. Upon its return, the board released funds to the contractor for the Front Street project in Coplay. A change order was also signed for the same project. The project is well overdue. According to board member Paul Boyle, there are still items on the completion list that remain undone.

“The project was not done well and not well supervised. This was a long, ugly road,” Boyle said.

The projected completion at the beginning of the project was November 2016. The contractor ran into multiple problems, most related to poor soils and an improperly engineered road base.

Much of the latest delay is caused by poor workmanship that needed to be torn out and reworked.

Funds can be released once substantial completion is identified. Based on the results of the June meeting, Solicitor John Stover notified the contractor that CWSA will pursue its contract rights and ask for reimbursement for the delay.

Before the meeting, board member Joseph Marx addressed an ongoing concern over the high level of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) that were allegedly dumped into the Coplay Aggregates quarry.

PCBs belong to a family of man-made organic chemicals that were manufactured and used in hundreds of industrial and commercial applications from 1929 until being banned in 1979. They do not readily break down in the environment and are known to cause adverse health effects.

“We have no report on the impact of PCBs in our water supply and what impact it will have on sewage. What happens when the PCBs hit the wastewater treatment plant, get treated and then get dumped into the Lehigh?” he asked.

Earlier in the day, state representatives toured the site.

“I don’t know what good that will do. I heard the DEP told us not to be concerned and that they had the matter under control,” Marx said.

According to Marx, Pennsylvania is one of the few states that accepts waste with high levels of PCBs. It is assumed that there is an approved procedure for isolating the waste. Marx is seeking more information.