Olympian Water Testing™

The history of Bergen County water supply development represents a fascinating journey from individual municipal wells to sophisticated regional water systems. Long before the Bergen County Utilities Authority was established in 1951, individual municipalities throughout the county operated their own well water systems in Bergen County, often struggling with water quality and capacity challenges that would eventually drive the need for regional cooperation.

 The commission’s crowning achievement was the Wanaque Reservoir, dedicated on March 20, 1930, which became New Jersey’s first large-scale regional water supply system serving multiple Bergen County municipalities.

Prior to regional consolidation, most Bergen County communities relied on local wells and small treatment facilities. The Bergen County municipal water history shows that many collection systems predated 1947, often constructed with inferior materials and methods. Post-1950 improvements brought better pipes with fewer joints, significantly reducing groundwater infiltration issues that plagued earlier well water systems.

The modern era began when the BCUA started constructing its collection system in 1948, building trunk and intercepting sewers that allowed municipalities to abandon individual treatment plants. By 1992, this integrated system encompassed 108 miles of sewer lines serving 46 municipalities, fundamentally changing how Bergen County water supply infrastructure operates and establishing the foundation for today’s sophisticated regional water management systems.