Palmerton looks for water leak

Borough Manager Rodger Danielson warned Palmerton residents that there is a significant water leak within the town.

“We haven’t located it yet, but we’re working on it. If anybody hears water running into a catch basin, or sees water where they don’t remember seeing it before, don’t just ignore it. It may be a leak,” he said.

Officials noticed the problem when the borough’s water pumps stopped operating as they usually do. When running normally, the pumps will shut off overnight, allowing the reserve tanks to refill.

“Now, they’re pretty much working 24 hours a day,” Danielson said. “We aren’t losing too much, but we can’t shut the pumps off.”

The water system in the borough consists of four wells, along with a reliable groundwater supply, that was largely established in the early 1900s. It services about 2,750 hookups throughout Palmerton, including households and businesses, as well as a few locations in Little Gap.

The difficulty with finding the location of the leak stems from winter weather.

“In a best-case scenario, a leak in a pipe will go to the surface. With the frost we’ve had, a leak may go up to the frost line and travel, making it hard to locate,” Danielson said.

Any residents should keep aware of the problem, and contact the Borough Hall if they notice any unusual water presence.

In other news, council renewed an annual lease with the Palmerton Memorial Park Association for $1.

Council approved the 2017 per capita tax exoneration list for those who either moved from the area or passed away.

Berkheimer Associates was approved to collect the balance of the 2017 per capita taxes, amounting to $6,369.