Union Bridge News Briefs

(3/1) At its February workshop meeting, the Union Bridge Town Council discussed housekeeping items and community news.

According to Town Councilman Bret Grossnickle who is responsible for the town's water and sewer systems, Union Bridge water department will soon be investigating for lead service lines.

Through an unfunded mandate from the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), municipalities are required to identify and verify lines, what material it is, and when it was put into service. Every property must be verified and checked for lead service lines as part of the mandate, he said.

Homeowners will be asked to look at the water pipes coming into their house, take a picture of it and stick a magnet on it. "If it sticks to it its galvanized, if it doesn’t stick to it, it is either lead or copper," Grossnickle said, noting homeowners will be able to distinguish the difference between lead, copper and even plastic lines.

"I doubt seriously if we’ll find any lead service lines," he said.

The department does not even have to evaluate any houses built after 1986, as that is when the Carroll County plumbing code was changed to forbid lead as a water service line, he said.

"Unfortunately, we have very few homes that were built that late," he said. Still, Grossnickle was confident the town wouldn’t find lead lines.

The Sewer System Evaluation and Rehabilitation Program will also be assisting the town with the project. This program helps municipalities identify and address structural and mechanical deficiencies in the wastewater collection system and to ensure adequate system capacity.

With residents’ assistance, the water department can then send the collected data and recording of service lines off to the MDE, he said.

The more cooperation from the community the easier and quicker the process will go, Grossnickle said. The mandate requires completed evaluation of municipality systems by October 2024.

The town is in the process of collaborating talking points to help make residents aware and encourage questions. More information is expected to be presented at a later date.

In other news, Mayor Perry Jones informed the Council that Potomac Edison will be doing major work at the power plant. The work is expected to last approximately three months.

Jones was not sure about the exact extent of the work.

The fire company will be sending official letters not to park in the lot, he said, as the area from Stoner Street halfway down to the parking lot will be fenced in to house equipment and

The fire company is hopeful the work will be done by the time carnival rolls around, Jones said.