CHADDS FORD TOWNSHIP SEWER AUTHORITY

MINUTES

 

June 17, 2008

Meeting No. 224

 

The 224th meeting of the Chadds Ford Township Sewer Authority was held on this date in the Chadds Ford Township building.

 

Present: Chairman Keith Klaver, Vice-Chairman/Treasurer Marc Altman, Member Roland Martin. Not present: Secretary Paul Koch.

 

Also attending were J. Michael Sheridan, Esq., Authority solicitor; Joseph DiMatteo, Delcora foreman; Michael DiSantis, Delcora director of operations and maintenance; Evan Andrews, Authority engineer; and Mary J. Walter, asst. secretary/asst. treasurer.

Chairman Klaver called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1.      A special meeting of the Authority was held on Friday, June 6, 2008 to elect new officers and to conduct the business of the Authority. The meeting was advertised as required.

2.      Mr. Klaver and George Thorpe, chairman of the CFT Board of Supervisors, met with Delcora representatives on June 11.

3.      Mr. Klaver and Mr. Andrews telephoned Siemens representatives to discuss the disc filter.

4.      Mr. Klaver and Mr. Martin attended the Delcora Board meeting on June 17 and toured the plant.

 

MINUTES:

The minutes of the May 20, 2008 meeting were approved on a motion by Mr. Altman and a second by Mr. Martin. The minutes of the June 6, 2008 special meeting were approved on a motion by Mr. Martin and a second by Mr. Altman. Mr. Klaver noted that the number of properties in the Ridings development that have been determined to house septic/holding tanks has been reduced from seven to five.

 

DELCORA/RIDINGS WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT:

Mr. DiMatteo reviewed his written report.

1.      In a response to a request from Mr. Altman, Mr. DiMatteo noted the comparable plant flows for 2007. The decrease in flows from 2007 to 2008 is attributable to the Authority’s effort in I&I reduction.

2.      Mr. Martin noted that the TSS decreased quite significantly in May. Mr. DiMatteo noted that the combination of lower flows, less wet weather, and the consistent monitoring of chemical treatment attributed to the lower TSS results.  Mr. DiSantis also noted that there is regular, seasonal variability in an activated sludge process such as the one at the Ridings plant. He noted that at present neither the sand filter nor the disc filter is efficient on its own.

 

Chadds Ford Township Sewer Authority

Minutes Of The Meeting Of June 17, 2008

Page 2

 

3.      The sand filter still is handling approximately one-third of the flows to the plant while the disc filter is processing the remaining two-thirds of the flows. Mr. DiMatteo noted that as soon as the floc tank is operating, DELCORA will run tests with the disc filter handling all flows. He said there will be a short time during the floc tank installation that all flows will go to the sand filter.

4.      Mr. DiMatteo reported that Jennifer Hartley of the DEP spent three hours at the plant on June 13. She filed a detailed report due to the pending consent order and agreement.

5.      Mr. Altman asked if the sludge is being wasted more frequently. Mr. DiSantis reported that DELCORA has been following recommendations from Pennoni regarding the “age” of the sludge.  The age of the sludge has stabilized and will remain so until colder weather begins and more sludge is under aeration and the loading changes. Mr. DiMatteo noted that because DELCORA takes composite samples rather than grab samples, more accurate loading data is available.

6.      Mr. Klaver briefly summarized the meeting among Mr. Thorpe, Mr. DiSantis, Rob Martin and Joseph Salvucci. He reiterated that both the Authority and DELCORA have a strong working relationship, but emphasized the need for ongoing communication. The meeting attendees agreed to get together every 6 to 8 weeks.

7.      The Board briefly reviewed the capital improvements recommendations from Mr. DiMatteo. On a motion from Mr. Klaver and a second by Mr. Altman, the Board approved up to $6500.00 for the purchase of a new Flygt influent pump. Mr. Sheridan clarified that if the proposed purchase is more than $10,000.00, the purchase is subject to the public bid process. In consultation with Mr. DiMatteo, Mr. Andrews and Mr. Martin will further review the list to prioritize the capital improvements.  Mr. Martin suggested the Board and DELCORA develop a long-term, preventative maintenance plan for the plant. Mr. DiSantis noted that an immediate concern is the securing of the three Ridings’ system pump stations with fences and gates, and the list of capital improvements previously provided to the Authority by DELCORA.

8.      Mr. DiMatteo noted that he has some continued concerns about the requests Siemens is making for process adjustments. He is reluctant to make any adjustments that will cause violations in permit parameters that currently do not have violations.

9.      Mr. Klaver reported that there is no collection system emergency, on-call provision in the Turners Mill operations agreement with DELCORA. Mr. DiSantis has drafted an agreement based on the approved scope of work from the original Ridings agreement. The Board would like Mr. Sheridan to review the proposed agreement so that the Board can prove the agreement at the July meeting.

 

 

 

Chadds Ford Township Sewer Authority

Minutes Of The Meeting Of June 17, 2008

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ENGINEER’S REPORT

Mr. Andrews reviewed his written report.

  1. A representative of Krueger will visit the Ridings plant tomorrow to assess what Kruger technology might be able to be used as an alternative to the Siemens disc filter.
  2. As a follow-up to discussion at the June 6 special meeting, Mr. Andrews reported that Siemens has 12 orders for disc filters in the United States, but has no other installations in the country. The local Siemens representative is investigating the number of international installations. Mr. Andrews noted that Siemens purchased the technology from another vendor, but changed the technology to counter patent issues. Any international installations would have been accomplished by the former vendor.
  3. Mr. DiMatteo and/or Mr. DiSantis, Mr. Klaver, Mr. Sheridan and Mr. Andrews will participate in a conference call with Siemens representatives on June 25. In the conference call, it will be stressed that regularly scheduled conference will be necessary with Siemens and that Mr. Andrews will prepare minutes of the future conference calls.
  4. Pennoni has reviewed data collected from the meters installed on three specific manholes. Data from one meter was skewed, possibly due to a malfunctioning meter. Mr. DiSantis volunteered to re-install a meter and complete the data collection if it is determined that the meter was faulty.  The second and third meters recorded appropriate data.  The results showed that there appears to be a surcharge at manholes 23 and 2 of approximately two feet up in to but not out of the manholes. Ms. Dana Walker of DEP has noted these results and contacted Mr. Andrews. He reported that the repairs to the Eckman pump station decreased the amount of flow into the manholes; however, there was a major rainstorm on March 9. Mr. Andrews will further interpret the metering data and recommend future I&I initiatives. Mr. DiSantis reiterated that he believes two sources of I&I are sump pumps and lateral damage.
  5. The Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board recently decided that surcharging is indicative of hydraulic overload. Any Township whose Chapter 94 report indicates surcharging will be required to implement a corrective action plan and a connection management plan. That connection management plan will limit new connections until certain actions are taken. Brandywine Summit II will need to complete a full planning module and subject to the DEP’s review of the Authority’s corrective action plan. On a motion from Mr. Klaver and a second from Mr. Altman, the Board authorized Pennoni Associates to complete the required corrective action plan.

Chadds Ford Township Sewer Authority

Minutes Of The Meeting Of June 17, 2008

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  1. Mr. Andrews has reviewed the Part II permit. He noted that the specifications for equalization and screening in the final permit differ from those discussed with Delcora and the Board previously. Mr. Andrews attempted to reach David Linehan of Yerkes Associates to discuss why the permit was changed. The Board agreed to move forward with Mr. Andrews’ and Delcora’s recommendations for changes to the Part II permit.
  2. Mr. Klaver requested that Mr. Altman and Mr. Koch review the Pennoni proposal for the rate study and make a recommendation to the Board by October. Mr. Klaver reiterated that some actual cost and revenue data is available now from Toll Brothers for the operation of the plant since February 2008.

 

 

SOLICITOR’S REPORT:

1.      Mr. Sheridan reported that he has received no formal response from Siemens to the Board’s most recent letter.

2.      Regarding Parkside Associates, Mr. Klaver reported that the property owner agrees that Parkside does own 28 EDUs for the Ethan Allen property. Since the Ethan Allen store is using only a small number of EDUs, the property owner requested that he be permitted to acquire a comparable number of EDUs from Old Ridge Village to use for the Ethan Allen store.  The Authority has seen no revenue from Parkside Associates’ 28 EDUs.

3.      On a motion from Mr. Klaver and a second by Mr. Altman, the Board approved the payment arrangement that Mr. Sheridan made with the owner of RW0005 at the District Justice hearing on the matter.

4.      Mr. Sheridan informed the Board that George Golden of Aqua Wastewater has determined that two properties in the Ridings do not have septic/holding tanks. He will inspect a third property to determine if it has a tank.

 

 

TREASURER’S REPORT:

  1. Mr. Altman reported that the initial fieldwork has been done for the 2007 audit.
  2. The Authority is running slightly ahead of budget.
  3. On a motion from Mr. Klaver and a second by Mr. Martin, the treasurer’s report and the accounts payable report including monthly bills of $45,285.23, debit card purchases of $41.00, ACH payments for Verizon and PECO of $2097.03, ACH payment for the Sovereign Bank loan $6378.69, ACH interest payment for the DVRFA loan of $362.48, payroll of $1405.00 were approved.
  4. Mr. Klaver reported that a condition of the Pennvest loan is for the Authority to purchase insurance for the Turner’s Mill plant. On a motion from Mr. Altman and a second by Mr. Klaver, the Board approved the purchase of insurance comparable to that for the Ridings Plant from Hornung and Associates to be effective August 23 for the Turners Mill plant.

Chadds Ford Township Sewer Authority

Minutes Of The Meeting Of June 17, 2008

Page 5

 

NEW BUSINESS

1.      The Board discussed that there is no process to deal with a collection system emergency outside of office hours, specifically to determine if the issue is the responsibility of the CFTSA or an individual property owner. Delcora is responsible for emergencies at the plant. There is a need to engage someone to determine if the issue is a collection system issue and then contact Delcora; and/or determine if the issue is a property owner’s responsibility. Mr. Klaver has vetted a local contractor who performs a similar service for neighboring townships. On a motion from Mr. Altman and a second from Mr. Martin, the Board authorized Mr. Klaver to negotiate with the local contractor. If the issue is to be determined to be the responsibility of the property owner, that owner can either authorize the “on-call” local contractor to complete the work or engage a contractor of the property owner’s choosing. However, the property owner will be billed for the initial response to the emergency call. A letter outlining the emergency call process and a list of contractors will be sent to all users.

2.      On a motion from Mr. Altman and a second from Mr. Klaver, the Board changed the date of the July meeting from the 15th to the 22nd. The asst. secretary/asst. treasurer will place the appropriate ad.

3.      The Board briefly discussed the need to take advantage of the strengths and professional skills of its members in delegating responsibility for specific issues and action items prior to monthly meetings. Mr. Klaver requested each member to consider areas to be assigned future responsibilities.

 

At 9:12 p.m. the Board convened an Executive Session. The Board adjourned the Executive Session at 9:27 and reconvened the public meeting. Mr. Klaver announced that the Board discussed potential litigation. On a motion from Mr. Altman and a second by Mr. Martin, the Board authorized the chairman to negotiate with the owner of Parkside Associates to identify the appropriate EDUs to be charged at some number less than the 28 EDUs fully owned by Parkside Associates for Ethan Allen and the potential restaurant but no less than 4 EDUs.

 

 

PUBLIC COMMENT: None

                       

ADJOURNMENT   The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 p.m. on a motion from Mr. Klaver and a second by Mr. Martin.

 

Respectfully submitted,

Mary J. Walter, Asst. Secretary/Asst. Treasurer