Olympian Water Testing™

The Passaic County New Jersey water supply history dates to the mid-19th century, amid industrialization along the Passaic River. In 1854, the Passaic Water Company formed to supply Paterson, with intake below the Great Falls completed in 1857, pumping river water to reservoirs. By 1926, the Passaic Valley Water Commission (PVWC) consolidated operations, serving Paterson, Passaic, Clifton, and parts of Woodland Park and Prospect Park from the Little Falls Treatment Plant.

Municipal water development in Passaic County, NJ, expanded with the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission (NJDWSC) in 1916, building the Wanaque Reservoir by 1930 to provide supplemental supply from the Wanaque River, serving multiple counties including Passaic. Groundwater from aquifers like the Brunswick Formation supports public wells, with yields up to 1,000 gallons per minute in southeastern areas. Total water use averaged 106 million gallons daily in 1965, rising with population.

Well water systems in Passaic County include municipal wells in towns like Hawthorne and Ringwood, drawing from glacial deposits and limestone aquifers. Private wells serve rural areas, regulated under the Private Well Testing Act since 2001 for contaminants like VOCs and PFAS. Pollution from Superfund sites, including the Lower Passaic River, has prompted remediation.