NEWARK – The City of Newark continued the practice of full and complete transparency over its water quality by notifying residents about the most recent testing of the water for HAA5, a by-product that forms when chlorine used to kill bacteria reacts with naturally occurring organic matter in outdoor water supplies, such as reservoirs.

HAA5 refers to five haloacetic acids, that the federal government requires exceed not more than 60 parts per billion. Testing of city water from its distribution system showed an exceedance rate ranging from .9 parts per billion to 7.1 parts per billion in some locations.

“These exceedances continue to drop,” said Kareem Adeem, the City’s Acting Director of Water & Sewer Utilities. “We have modified treatment and invested $10 million in our filtering and purification processes and technology, and we are confident our levels will soon drop to federal standards in the next few reporting cycles.”

The most recent testing for HAA5s was conducted between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 of 2019.

“Our water is constantly being tested to meet federal standards,” Adeem said.

The results and further explanation of this testing cycle will be posted on City websites and social media and is being sent through the mail to every resident as of this morning.

Please be advised this is NOT a water emergency.

While certain HAA5 may increase certain individuals’ risk to cancer, the exposure must be over a long period of time and at doses many times higher than 60 ppb federal level. As always, we remain dedicated to the safety of residents and staying transparent in our water safety reporting. Be assured that if there were a true water emergency, residents would be notified within 24 hours.

‍

Jerry Notte, the City’s water operator, is available to answer questions about this latest report at (973) 697-5458.

‍

Public Notice: