FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT: Office of the Mayor, Honorable Helmin J. Caba
Email: [email protected]
(732) 826-0290 ext. 4005
PERTH AMBOY STUDENTS ACCEPT CHALLENGE ON WORLD WATER DAY
The City of Perth Amboy hosted a tour of its watershed to raise awareness about the importance of water and its conservation.
PERTH AMBOY (MARCH 25, 2022) - The City of Perth Amboy hosted an educational event in celebration of World Water Day on Tuesday, March 22nd, for high school students from the Academy of Urban Leadership Charter School (AULCS) at the Runyon Watershed located in Old Bridge, N.J. The event was coordinated by the City of Perth Amboy’s Green Team, an advisory group reinstated under Mayor Helmin J. Caba in 2021, with a four-hour program designed to inform about Perth Amboy’s water treatment process. Event presenters included Jersey Water Works and the Middlesex Water Company, followed by a tour of the city’s treatment plant and the 100 acre Ranney well site.
“Today is about giving everyone a complete understanding of our city’s water, its importance, and how we can protect it", stated Mayor Helmin J. Caba. “Understanding environmental problems will help us become the problem solvers of the future."
Following introductions, Jersey Water Works, a collaborative of diverse organizations and individuals transforming New Jersey’s water infrastructure, hosted a ‘Be the Change’ presentation by steering committee members Rachel Dawn Davis and Patricia Lindsay-Harvey. The Green Team members also gave presentations that included water trivia questions and giveaways.
“It’s been many years since we have held a tour of the facility with students,” stated Luis Perez Jimenez, Director of Operations of USA-PA, a subsidiary of Middlesex Water Company. “It was encouraging to observe their enthusiasm and interest learning where their water source comes from.”
The Runyon Watershed, purchased by the City of Perth Amboy in the late 1800s, is bordered by Bordentown Avenue and Route 516 in Sayreville, stretching its eastern border to Old Bridge’s Peter Mannino Park. Perth Amboy’s Water/Sewer utility is subcontracted to Utility Service Affiliates, a subsidiary of the Middlesex Water Company. The latter provide the day-to-day operations of the City’s Runyon Watershed and its combined sanitary/storm sewers. “The fact that five million gallons of water are pumped to Perth Amboy every day could be very wasteful,” stated Gabriella Almanzar, AULCS student. “I think we need to educate ourselves more on water conservation.”
World Water Day is one of several programs led by the Perth Amboy Green Team, including community cleanups hosted monthly from May to November, the first one scheduled to take place at AULCS school grounds. Green Team members meet on the 3rd Tuesday of each month to discuss methods for sustaining the environment against wet weather conditions, pollution, greenhouse gases, and events.
For more information about the Perth Amboy Green Team and its community volunteer opportunities, please contact Brenda Delgadillo, Green Team President, at [email protected].
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