A:  The purpose of the project is to reduce the risk of flooding in the vicinity due to rainfall events, but the amount of flood reduction will depend on where your property is located and the severity of the rainfall event. The new Pumping Station will start to operate when the existing Losen Slote pipeline located beneath 15 Liberty Street is approximately three-quarters (¾) full. This pumping station will not prevent flooding caused by tidal storm surge from the Hackensack River. Once the tidal surge waters begin to recede, the Pumping Station project would evacuate flood water from the area more rapidly than in existing conditions.

A:  The location at the end of Birch Street is the optimized location for the outfall based on modelling, cost, and environmental impacts. The pumping station will remove floodwater upstream and the force main will discharge it back to the Losen Slote below the populated area and in a location where the Losen Slote channel has the capacity to accept the floodwater. In addition, the existing decommissioned tide gate structure in Losen Slote downstream of Birch Street was removed to make the flow in the stream less obstructed and reduce flooding under all rainfall scenarios.

A:  The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funds allocated for the Rebuild by Design Meadowlands project cannot be used for maintenance activities. HUD considers dredging to be maintenance; therefore, the Losen Slote channel cannot be dredged as part of this project. This project continues to support this initiative and would encourage maintenance of the Losen Slote by the local municipality to promote additional drainage in the project area.

A:  The goal of improvements in the East Riser Ditch is to increase capacity in the waterway, whereas the goal in the Losen Slote is to bypass the restricted capacity. Improvements such as those being made to East Riser Ditch would have resulted in encroachments into residents’ yards along the Losen Slote. Some residents would have permanently lost portions of their backyards and any structures adjacent to the waterway.

A:   This scenario is unlikely to occur.  The Pumping Station will be equipped with an emergency generator that will operate the pumping station on natural gas in the event of power failure.  The Pumping Station will also be equipped with three pumps, one of which is a spare.  In the unlikely event that the Pumping Station stops working, flooding will occur as it does in existing conditions.

(This pump station is located downstream at the mouth of Losen Slote, adjacent to the Bergen County Utilities Authority)

A:  The Losen Slote upstream of the tide gate would essentially fill up with water if the downstream pumping station stops working during a storm event.   However, this existing pumping station has an emergency generator designed to operate the pumping station in the event of a power outage therefore it is unlikely that this pumping station would stop working during a storm event.

A:  The Losen Slote flows within an underground pipe on the 15 Liberty Street property. The Pumping Station will turn on when the underground pipe is approximately three-quarters (¾) full.  This underground pipe is a choke point in the conveyance system and is why the pumping station and force main (bypass) is needed to reduce flooding in the area.

A:  No, the Pumping Station will not be loud.  The emergency generator is the main noise-producing equipment associated with the pumping station.  The generator would only operate in the event of a power loss during a storm event.  There will be noise-attenuating features incorporated in the generator enclosure that are designed to meet Little Ferry and Federal Noise Ordinance criteria.

A:   No.  Modeling was conducted to demonstrate that the flows in Losen Slote would be no different than what is currently experienced at Birch Street.  In fact, this modeling showed a minor decrease in water levels due to the removal of the existing decommissioned tide gate structure from Losen Slote.

A:  No.  The discharge velocity of water from the force main will be reduced via an energy dissipation structure prior to discharge into Losen Slote. Reducing the discharge velocity of the stream means that there will be less energy available to cause erosion. Additional erosion protection in the stream is provided via a riprap/stone design.

A:  No.  The flap gate will ease open or closed based on water flows.