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Bridgewater's Water and Sewer, Explained: The Sewer Bill, the Pump Stations and the 2027 Leak Program
How Bridgewater's sewer utility and the regional treatment authority split the work and the bill, what the Middle Brook and Gilbride Road pump-station projects cost and how they are financed, the Headgates Dam sewer crossing, the inflow-and-infiltration problem, New Jersey American Water's main breaks on North Bridge Street, and the Gardens at Warren lawsuit.
The short version
- Who does what. Bridgewater’s sewer utility collects wastewater through about 350 miles of lines and 50 miles of trunk sewer and pumps it to the Somerset Raritan Valley Sewerage Authority (SRVSA), which treats it. New Jersey American Water, a private company, owns the water mains in much of the township.
- Treatment cost: “the 2026 annual treatment cost is $6,075,076,” about $2,934.61 per million gallons, Director of Municipal Services Thomas Genova told the Council on Aug. 20, 2026; treatment is about half the utility’s operating budget.
- Middle Brook Pumping Station Phase 2: a $4.1 million project financed through the New Jersey Water Bank; construction awarded to Sovereign Consulting Inc. for up to $2,946,000 (April 9, 2026, 5-0); contract completion June 30, 2027.
- Next: an evaluation of the Gilbride Road station, a Headgates Dam sewer crossing paid for by a private company, and a phased inflow-and-infiltration program in the 2027 budget request.
The sewer bill
On Feb. 19, 2026 Mayor Matthew C. Moench said the bill has two parts: one funds sewer employees and equipment in Public Works, the other covers the SRVSA invoice. He said “any increase in the sewer bill reflects an increase in the SRVSA invoice,” and that the township is committed to maintaining the system “to avoid the need to sell it to a private entity.”
| Record | Date | Sewer figure |
|---|---|---|
| Res. #26-01-08-029, 2026 Sewer Utility temporary budget | Jan. 8, 2026 | $4,957,755.83 (5-0) |
| 2026 budget introduced | April 9, 2026 | Sewer Fund $13,924,398.82 (5-0) |
| Budget amendment Res. #26-05-07-120 | May 7, 2026 | Included “a minor $100 correction” to sewer debt-service principal, the Mayor said |
LocalWhy has not yet reviewed the adopted 2026 Sewer Utility budget or the sewer rate schedule, so per-customer rates and the change from 2025 are not stated here.
What a former Council member said. In public comment former Councilman Filipe Pedroso said sewer bills were “up over 35% in just 4 years” and that $730,000 had been moved from the sewer budget into the general fund the previous year (April 9); “more than 35 percent” (May 18); and “by 33%” over six years (July 23). These are his figures; the minutes record no figure in reply, and LocalWhy has not checked them against the budget or audit.
SRVSA. On April 23 Councilwoman Ridwana Isla reported that the Planning Board had discussed a proposed SRVSA administrative building, including stormwater requirements. Patch reported (April 29) that the building, at 50 Polhemus Lane, came to the Planning Board for courtesy review on April 21, with a budget of about $6 million and financing expected through the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank, and quoted the executive director saying billing rates have been “inching … up a few percent every year.” The Board’s April 21 minutes record the courtesy review (App. 26-008-PB) with SRVSA director Ronald Anastasio, assistant director Sherwin Ulep and the project’s engineer and architect: Mr. Ulep said untreated water is not discharged, Mr. Anastasio described the authority’s NJPDES permit and sampling, and, asked about flooding, engineer Thomas J. Fik said a compliant stormwater report would be submitted. The minutes give no budget figure.
Middle Brook Pumping Station
Genova described the station on Aug. 20: built in 1969; average dry-weather flow 1.75 million gallons a day, peaking above 4 million in wet weather; serves Bridgewater and Warren. Warren Township accounts for 40.6% of the flow in the Middle Brook trunk; Genova clarified that the figure covers only flow entering this station, not all of Warren’s wastewater. Phase 1, in 2023, added a bypass for temporary pumps.
| Date | Action | Amount | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 6, 2025 | Bond Ordinance #25-13, $4,100,000 for Middle Brook Sanitary Sewer Pumping Station Improvements, Phase 2, introduced | $4,100,000 in bonds or notes, no down payment | 4-0 (Pedroso absent) |
| Dec. 3, 2025 | Public hearing on #25-13; vote carried to Dec. 17 | — | — |
| Dec. 17, 2025 | #25-13 adopted (effective Jan. 11, 2026). Patch reported on Dec. 30, 2025 that $4.1 million was approved to upgrade the station | $4,100,000 | 4-0 (Kirsh, Kurdyla, Ring, Norgalis; Pedroso absent) |
| Feb. 19, 2026 | Res. #26-02-19-069: Colliers Engineering & Design (Jordan R. Volk, P.E.), engineering, construction management, inspection and Water Bank loan administration (tabled Feb. 5) | Up to $327,225.00 | 5-0 |
| March 19, 2026 | Res. #26-03-19-098: a Water Bank construction-financing note to the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank | Principal up to $4,100,000 | 5-0 |
| April 9, 2026 | Res. #26-04-09-104: Sovereign Consulting Inc. (Robbinsville), construction, “funded through the Sewer Bond Ordinance #25-13” | Up to $2,946,000.00 | 5-0 |
On March 19 Administrator Michael Pappas said last year’s sewer bond ordinance lets the township issue the debt, and Councilman Michael Kirsh called it “extremely attractive financing.” On April 9 Pappas said “the lowest responsible bid was $2.9 million, while the highest was $4.4 million.” Genova said the contractor will not mobilize major work until long-lead equipment (pumps, controls, generators) is on hand, to keep the station on bypass as briefly as possible.
Gilbride Road Pumping Station
Built in 1983, the station lifts sewage more than 50 feet. Genova said flow metering shows 70% of its flow comes from Warren Township, all three pumps failed at once in 2021 (an emergency bypass contract followed), and it has had “five pump failures in recent years.” On Aug. 20 the Council approved Res. #26-08-20-192, a Colliers Engineering & Design evaluation of capacity, safety, compliance and reliability with phased capital recommendations, up to $40,500.00 from the Sewer Utility operating account (4-0, Isla absent). Genova said the township plans a Water Bank application in 2026, with construction targeted for completion by 2028. Council President Joan Geiger toured both stations and, on Sept. 3, “highlighted the importance of replacing an aging pump at the Middlebrook station.”
Headgates Dam sewer siphon
The township’s 54-inch North Branch trunk sewer sits just upstream of the Headgates Dam on the Raritan River, built in 1842. Branchburg Township contributes 53.8% of that trunk’s flow, Genova said. After a settlement between NJDEP and EPEC Polymers, Inc. to remove the dam, “part of a broader effort to restore fish migration on the Raritan River,” the sewer would become unstable without it. A dual inverted siphon, about 500 feet long and built by trenchless methods with concrete chambers on each side of the river, will replace the gravity line, with construction “beginning later this year and completion expected in summer 2027.” Genova said all design, permitting and construction costs are borne by EPEC Polymers “at no cost to the Township,” including the township’s engineering review (CDM Smith) and legal fees.
Inflow and infiltration
Inflow and infiltration (I&I) is stormwater and groundwater that gets into sanitary sewers through direct connections or cracked pipes. Genova said a 2-inch, 24-hour rain can raise flows at Gilbride Road by 50–60%, and that a phased I&I program, starting with defective manholes in low-lying stream easements, will be in the 2027 budget request.
In public comment that night:
- Dr. Joseph Lifrieri (1586 Washington Valley Road), an SRVSA commissioner, said the plant, “rated for approximately 24 million gallons per day, can see flows peak above 80 million gallons per day during rain events,” and encouraged the program.
- Robert Albano (1149 Papen Road), also an SRVSA commissioner, said dry-weather flows are about 14 million gallons a day and that the authority must treat whatever enters the sanitary system.
- Curtis Kraut (199 Adamsville Road) described sewer backups along Cuckels Brook during Hurricane Ida and asked about low points near Chelsea Way and Adamsville Road. Genova said such backups are “largely unavoidable” with a gravity system, but that manhole repair and sealing there is a priority of the 2027 program.
Water mains (New Jersey American Water)
On Aug. 6 Pappas reported two breaks on North Bridge Street, a county road: June 11 near the post office (a 16-foot section replaced) and July 27 at Bogart Drive. The water line “is owned and maintained by New Jersey American Water Company rather than the Township,” and the company plans to replace it “sometime in 2027.” On Aug. 20 Councilman Andrew Bucko said he had met the company on July 13 about recurring breaks, and that another break followed.
Gardens at Warren v. Bridgewater
On July 14, 2026 Gardens at Warren, LLC, approved in February 2026 for a 28-unit inclusionary project in Warren Township, sued Bridgewater in Superior Court in Somerset County, Patch reported. The project’s sewage would pass through Bridgewater-owned pipes to SRVSA, and NJDEP requires Bridgewater to act on a Treatment Works Approval. As quoted by Patch, the complaint says Bridgewater “has refused to review, analyze or consider the TWA application” for more than five months; it also links the dispute to a suit Bridgewater filed against Warren Township in November 2024 over sewer usage. The township told Patch it does not comment on pending litigation. LocalWhy has not read the complaint, and no response or ruling has been found.
What is not known
- 2026 sewer rates and the adopted Sewer Utility budget.
- The cost of the Gilbride Road project and whether Warren Township will share it.
- When the 2027 I&I program will be priced.
What residents can do
- Billing: the township’s Sewer Utility office handles sewer bills; New Jersey American Water handles water service and main breaks.
- Budget: the sewer budget is introduced and adopted with the municipal budget at public Council meetings; the 2027 budget, with the proposed I&I program, will come before the Council in 2027.
- Speak at Council in public comment at any regular meeting, 100 Commons Way.