Full Notification

Below is a letter to residents, from Mayor Ravi S. Bhalla on recent water main breaks and boil water advisories:  

Dear Neighbor, 

I fully understand how disruptive and discouraging the recent series of water main breaks and boil water advisories have been. My administration and I do not take lightly that water is essential to public safety and to your daily life. We share your disappointment and frustration.  

These types of incidents are caused by a variety of circumstances. Some are due to our decades-old infrastructure, some are related to construction, and others happen because of pressure fluctuations within the system. No matter the cause, we are committed to investigating every incident, holding those responsible accountable, and learning from what happened in each situation, so we can make improvements and take proactive action to prevent them from happening again. 

I want to assure you that we are committed to doing all that is necessary, all that is prudent, and all that is warranted to stabilize and monitor the system we all rely on. The water is safe to drink, and the system is currently operating normally, as we continue to do what it takes to reduce the possibility of future disruptions. 

To reduce risk, effectively immediately, I have ordered the suspension of all nonessential construction projects that are either adjacent to, or interface with our water system. I have directed our staff to review all open permits, and take required actions related to system pressure and construction management.   

Other proactive measures include:  

• Termination of all hydrant usage permits, prohibiting the use of hydrants and fire service connections for water needs associated with construction and other temporary projects or miscellaneous uses 
• Requiring full-time inspectors on site during any roadway openings that involve a water main 12” in diameter, or greater 
• Implementing a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for leak detection on milling and paving projects 
• Halting all scheduled water system work, aside from necessary valve repairs 
• Installation of two pressure reducing valves to stabilize system pressure 

Additionally, the City has made large capital investments in smart technology including the installation of a cloud-based water pressure monitoring and management system comprised of 15 high-frequency pressure monitoring sensors to detect harmful pressure variations in real-time, prompting swift action and repairs if necessary, as well as an advanced leak detection system with 260 acoustic monitors to pinpoint underground leaks before they become main breaks. 

Along with these recent or immediate forthcoming actions, we continue to move forward with long-term investments to replace and upgrade Hoboken’s water infrastructure. This cannot be done overnight. It will take years, if not decades, to completely update the City’s water infrastructure, much of which is over 100 years old. We must remember, this infrastructure consists of fragile cast-iron pipes that are prone to breaking, especially during temperature changes and pressure shifts. And prior to 2019, almost no proactive investments were made, with only about 5 percent of the system upgraded for more than 20 years.  

Under my administration, the City has replaced nearly 5 miles of aging water mains, with plans to replace 29,000 linear feet by the end of 2025 and another 12,000 feet by 2030. This would proactively upgrade approximately 20 percent of the entire system. We recently installed a second interconnect to the Jersey City system to improve drinking water reliability and will be launching a lead service line replacement program later this year.  

Just today, the Water Utility, Veolia, and our City engineers held a kickoff meeting for a $2.7 million capital project to mitigate pressure where water enters Hoboken from Jersey City, with two underground vaults containing pressure control valves, flow meters, piping, isolation valves, and system controls. This state-of-the-art pressure mitigation system will work cohesively with our cloud-based water pressure monitoring and management system to help regulate system pressure and prevent main breaks.  

We have come a long way, since establishing the Hoboken Water Utility in 2019, toward improving the reliability of water infrastructure through proactive investments in modern infrastructure, technology, and dedicated professionals with direct oversight of water system operations.  

This process is time consuming and can be frustrating, but please know that Hoboken is moving in the right direction to build a stronger and more reliable water system. 

Respectfully,  
Ravi S. Bhalla 
Mayor