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Ridgewood officials: Lead is not in water supply

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Ridgewood officials: Lead is not in water supply

JANUARY 9, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2015, 11:11 AM
BY STEPHANIE ALBERICO AND DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

During a presentation at a council work session on Jan. 7, Ridgewood Water Business Manager Dave Scheibner reiterated facts from a notice that the water utility distributed to its customers last month and confirmed that there is no lead in the water supply.

“As your water system, we are required to conduct public education in regards to lead contamination,” said Scheibner. “I understand that this notice has created some concern among some of the residents in our community. Please know that the language in the notice is prescribed by regulation and my appearance here tonight is for the purpose of providing facts and context to help our residents put this issue into proper prospective.”

“The water supply by Ridgewood Water does not have lead in it,” he continued. “Regulatory agencies require that water utilities test for lead by setting up worst-case scenarios at locations with increased risk such as those knowing to have lead service lines.”

Ridgewood Water, during regular testing performed in June 2012, detected elevated lead levels in “drinking water found in some buildings.” Testing took place at high risk locations in the service area, which includes residential and commercial addresses in the village, Glen Rock, Midland Park and Wyckoff.

According to Scheibner, Ridgewood Water was required to develop a treatment strategy to address the situation. Water officials are currently testing phosphate additives that remediate lead corrosion, which “effectively stops the leaching of lead into the water.”

“This treatment provides other official benefits for the water system and has no negative health effects,” said Scheibner. “A permit to allow this treatment to be implemented permanently is pending with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Until this treatment plant is in full effect, residents can take one simple step to eliminate their exposure to lead in drinking water. Let the faucet run for several seconds before drawing water for cooking or drinking. If your service line is made of lead, run the water for a longer period to clear all the water from the service line.”

Scheibner provided information, material and handouts for residents with contact information about service lines, testing for lead, phosphate water treatment, health effects of lead and also answered any questions posed by the public at the meeting.

Mayor Paul Aronsohn asked Scheibner if there was a reason to be concerned.

“There’s a reason to be cautious,” said Scheibner. “Getting in the habit of running the faucet if it hasn’t been used for awhile is just a common sense habit to get into. You don’t need to be concerned about it. It’s just a good habit to get into.”

https://www.northjersey.com/news/ridgewood-officials-lead-is-not-in-water-supply-1.1188868

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Harding Pharmacy and Liquor Auction to be held Thursday in Ridgewood

 

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 Auction to be held Thursday in Ridgewood

JANUARY 9, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2015, 3:43 PM
BY LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

A coveted Ridgewood liquor license – plus Beanie Babies, greeting cards, and back supports – will be up for grabs at a public auction next week at Harding Pharmacy and Liquor.

The auction will take place on Thursday, Jan. 15 at 11 a.m.

According to David Edelberg, a lawyer for the landlord plaintiff, Clotco, Inc., the total amount owed to the landlord, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the state is “approaching a half-million dollars.”

His client was owed more than $200,000, he said, and around $40,000 was due in sales taxes.

“I would say my client who knew [the owner] was overly accommodating for too long a period of time,” said Edelberg, who became involved in June. “A lot of landlords, you’re behind 18 months to two years, [they] do something.”

His client started an eviction against the owner, but was able to settle on terms “whereby he agreed to vacate” and proceed with the auction sale, he noted.

According to auctioneer Michael Sklar, of A.J. Willner Auctions, the lucrative Ridgewood “D” liquor license is expected to go for around $250,000.

Other items for sale include 600 bottles of wine and liquor; the alcohol can only to go to a licensed liquor holder, Sklar said.

“Someone who wants to buy it for a New Year’s Eve party, they can’t buy it,” he said.

The rest of the items at the auction, including the store fixtures, will be for sale to the public. A minimum of a 25 percent deposit is due at the time of a successful bid, in cash, certified or cashier’s check, according to the auction website.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/business/auction-set-for-thursday-1.1189281

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Record 92,898,000 Americans Not In The Workforce

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Record 92,898,000 Americans Not In The Workforce

A record 92,898,000 Americans 16 years and older did not participate in the labor force last month, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The BLS defines people not in the work force as people 16 years and up who are not employed and haven’t “made specific efforts to find employment sometime during the 4-week period ending with the reference week.” The labor force participation rate — or the “The labor force as a percent of the civilian noninstitutional population” — also dipped back down to 62.7 percent, from 62.9 percent in November.

September also saw a labor force participation rate of 62.7 percent, however prior to then, the last time the rate hit 62.7 percent was in February of 1978.

While the level of labor force participation declined — due not only to potentially discouraged workers but also baby boomers hitting retirement age — the BLS reported Friday that in December the unemployment rate declined to 5.6 percent and payroll jobs increased by 252,000.

“Today’s solid employment report caps off a strong year for the U.S. labor market, which achieved a number of important milestones in 2014,” Jason Furman, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, said in a statement. “Total job growth last year was the strongest since 1999, while the unemployment rate fell at the fastest pace in three decades.”

https://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/01/09/record-92898000-americans-not-in-the-workforce/

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3D printing could revolutionise war and foreign policy

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3D printing could revolutionise war and foreign policy
by Staff Writers
Paris (AFP) Jan 05, 2015

3D printing will revolutionise war and foreign policy, say experts, not only by making possible incredible new designs but by turning the defence industry — and possibly the entire global economy — on its head.

For many, 3D printing still looks like a gimmick, used for printing useless plastic figurines and not much else.

But with key patents running out this year, new printers that use metal, wood and fabric are set to become much more widely available — putting the engineering world on the cusp of major historical change.

The billion-dollar defence industry is at the bleeding edge of this innovation, with the US military already investing heavily in efforts to print uniforms, synthetic skin to treat battlewounds, and even food, said Alex Chausovsky, an analyst at IHS Technology.

Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have already invented “4D printing” — creating materials that change when they come into contact with elements such as water.

One day, that could mean things like printed uniforms that change colour depending on their environment.

https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/How_3D_printing_could_revolutionise_war_and_foreign_policy_999.html

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‘Fears of man-made global warming exaggerated’

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‘Fears of man-made global warming exaggerated’

By Anahita Mukherji, TNN | 7 Jan, 2015, 04.49AM IST

MUMBAI: Two of three scientists at a session on climate change and society at the Indian Science Congress on Tuesday felt fears of man-made global warming were greatly exaggerated. Their presence at the conference was particularly significant in light of the current ‘development-versus-envir- onment’ debates.

“While I agree that glaciers are melting because of global warming, if this is because of man, then what was the reason for the melting of the glaciers in the Gondwana period long  ..

Read more at:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/45786412.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cpps

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Streaming Devices Poised to Dominate Viewing Preferences As Seven in 10 TV Viewers Stream Programming

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Streaming Devices Poised to Dominate Viewing Preferences As Seven in 10 TV Viewers Stream Programming

Second NATPE||Content First and Consumer Electronics Association content delivery study shows live TV decline, rise of multi-screen viewing

Las Vegas, Nev. (January 8, 2015) – While the television continues to provide the best quality picture and viewing experience, the way content is being discovered and consumed is changing dramatically, especially for millennials. According to the preliminary results of the second NATPE||Content First and the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® joint research study on consumers’ attitudes toward television viewing, just 55 percent of millennials use TVs as their primary viewing platform, while streaming devices – laptops, tablets, and smartphones – are poised to dominate their viewing preferences.

CEA and NATPE commissioned the study, conducted by E-Poll Market Research, to evaluate the TV content distribution landscape, explore the dynamics at play against the background of exploding consumer choices and determine how consumers find TV content and view it across different platforms. The initial findings were released today during a panel session held at the 2015 International CES®. Owned and produced by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, the 2015 CES, the world’s gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technologies, runs January 6-9, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

https://www.broadcastingcable.com/thewire/streaming-devices-poised-dominate-viewing-preferences-seven-10-tv-viewers-stream-programming/136884

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Ridgewood Wrestling riding momentum from solid finish in counties

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Ridgewood Wrestling riding momentum from solid finish in counties

January 9, 2015    Last updated: Friday, January 9, 2015, 12:31 AM
By Matthew Birchenough
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR |
The Ridgewood News

The Ridgewood High School wrestling team passed an early-season test with a strong performance at last week’s George Jockish Bergen County Coaches Association (BCCA) Holiday Tournament, giving the squad some early-season momentum heading into its dual-match schedule.

The Maroons scored a team total of 78.5 points, which was good enough for 12th place overall in the tournament held Dec. 29-30 at Rockland Community College in Suffern, N.Y., and second among Group 4 schools, finishing only behind Old Tappan (seventh, 87 points).

“We were fortunate enough to come out with five medal-winners, which is the second-highest total we’ve ever had,” RHS coach Torre Watson said earlier this week. “We were really very happy about how we did.”

Senior Nick Saglimbeni (152 pounds) and junior 182-pounder Kyle Inlander — Ridgewood’s captains — both earned third in their respective weight classes after falling in the semifinals to the eventual champion.

https://www.northjersey.com/sports/high-school-sports/wrestling/rhs-captains-coming-up-big-on-the-mat-1.1189261

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Ridgewood Boys Basketball upshifts, downshifts during six-game win streak

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Northen Highlands at Ridgewood file photo

Ridgewood Boys Basketball upshifts, downshifts during six-game win streak

January 9, 2015    Last updated: Friday, January 9, 2015, 12:31 AM
By Greg Tartaglia
SPORTS EDITOR |
The Ridgewood News

MIDLAND PARK — Jon Davila went from being a passenger in a Ferrari to being the driver of a Volkswagen in a 24-hour span.

On Tuesday, the Ridgewood High School senior was one of five Maroons to score in double digits in a quadruple-overtime, 89-87 win at Indian Hills.

“We were trying to tell kids about the game in school [Wednesday], and I couldn’t remember one thing that happened after the third quarter,” Davila said with a chuckle. “The game was going way too fast.”

Such was not the case later that day, when the 6-foot guard was Ridgewood’s top scorer with nine points in a 45-33, non-conference victory at Midland Park.

“Last night was full-court man-to-man, both teams, virtually the whole game,” RHS head coach Mike Troy said Wednesday. “This one was, they [Midland Park] sat in a zone and made us work the ball side-to-side. The complexion and the strategy of the games were far different.”

https://www.northjersey.com/sports/high-school-sports/boys-basketball/rhs-upshifts-downshifts-during-win-streak-1.1189187

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Which States Rely the Most on Federal Aid?

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Which States Rely the Most on Federal Aid?
January 08, 2015
By
Liz Malm,
Richard Borean

Though taxes are the most common and recognizable source of state government revenues, it’s important to remember that they’re not the only source. In fact, state governments received 31.5 percent of their total general revenues from transfers from the federal government in the 2012 fiscal year.

That number varies pretty widely for specific states, however. For example, Mississippi obtains 45.3 percent of its total state general revenues from the federal government (the largest share in the country). Also on the high end are Louisiana (44.0 percent), Tennessee (41.0 percent), South Dakota (40.8 percent), and Missouri (39.4 percent).

On the other end of the spectrum are those states who receive a much smaller share of general revenues from the federal government. The lowest federal share occurs in Alaska at 20.0 percent, followed by North Dakota (20.5 percent), Virginia (23.5 percent), Hawaii (23.5 percent), and Connecticut (23.6 percent).

For all fifty states, see the map below. Note that this measure of general revenue includes tax collections but excludes utility revenue, liquor store revenue, and insurance trust revenue.

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Ridgewood may bar ‘ugly’ housing

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Ridgewood may bar ‘ugly’ housing

JANUARY 8, 2015, 9:16 AM    LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2015, 9:19 AM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

RIDGEWOOD – The village could impose restrictions on buildings within one of its proposed redevelopment areas to prevent the construction of “ugly” housing complexes downtown, an official said.

Village Planner Blais Brancheau’s comments came at Tuesday night’s Planning Board meeting, under cross-examination by Ira Weiner, an attorney representing Citizens For a Better Ridgewood.

For more than two years, the Planning Board has heard testimony on the master plan change, which, if approved and then adopted by the Village Council, would permit high-density housing complexes.

Three developers are seeking the master plan amendment, and each plans to build multifamily, high-density housing downtown if it is adopted.

Citizens For a Better Ridgewood is a grass-roots organization that says it endorses comprehensive planning, but opposes the village ordinance that allowed the three developers to request the master plan change.

Brancheau on Tuesday night responded to Weiner’s question, saying “standards could be drafted” into the master plan amendment “to avoid” certain design elements in future construction.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/ridgewood-may-bar-ugly-housing-1.1188596

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Ridgewood water supply free of lead, utility reports

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Ridgewood water supply free of lead, utility reports

JANUARY 9, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

RIDGEWOOD — Ridgewood Water has declared that the village water is free of lead — a move made in response to concerns following a 2012 report that showed the chemical had leached into the system.

The utility’s business director, Dave Scheibner, addressed the council this week to allay fears created by the water analysis, which was sent to customers last week.

“The water supplied by Ridgewood Water does not have lead in it,” Scheibner said, adding similar notices were issued in 2012 and 2013.

An analysis determined higher-than-acceptable lead levels in the water, Scheibner said, attributing the spike to homes in the utility’s territory that use plumbing materials that can leach the chemical into the water.

Scheibner made the comments after Catherine Gray, the mother of three children, asked the council whether her children’s health was at risk.

“Our population seems at risk for lead exposure,” Gray said. “We are worried, we are concerned and we are here for answers.”

https://www.northjersey.com/news/ridgewood-water-supply-free-of-lead-utility-reports-1.1189353

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Ridgewood, fire department’s union come to terms on contract

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file photo by Boyd Loving

Ridgewood, fire department’s union come to terms on contract

JANUARY 8, 2015, 8:04 PM    LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2015, 8:05 PM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

RIDGEWOOD – The village and the fire department’s union have come to terms on a new four-year agreement that the council is expected to accept the agreement when it meets next week.

The new contract was agreed to by both sides on Dec. 17, said Ridgewood’s Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld, who detailed the agreement’s terms at the council’s meeting Wednesday night.

Sonenfeld said that both sides worked together during negotiations to avoid arbitration “and heavy use of lawyers.”

Under the terms of the new agreement, the council agreed to raise the starting base salary for a firefighter to $36,000 from $32,000, while creating three additional pay-scale steps, stretching the time in which a firefighter can obtain the top pay level to 13 years from 10.

The new contract eliminates longevity payments for new hires, and puts a cap on top terminal leave at $15,000 for those with at least a year of banked sick days, Sonenfeld said.

The union agreed to forgo pay raises for the first three years of the deal, with a 1.5 percent salary increase guaranteed for 2018, the final year of the contract.

“In recognition of our mutual commitment to growing staff and future leaders, we put in place an education benefit that provides for partial tuition reimbursement for job-relevant degrees and courses,” Sonenfeld said.

Sonenfeld projects the new contract will save the village approximately $170,000 per new officer over the course of their career with the fire department.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/ridgewood-fire-department-s-union-come-to-terms-on-contract-1.1188958

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If the Internet becomes a public utility, you’ll pay more. Here’s why.

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If the Internet becomes a public utility, you’ll pay more. Here’s why.

By Grover G. Norquist and Patrick Gleason
January 6, 2015

The Federal Communications Commission is in the middle of a high-stakes decision that could raise taxes for close to 90 percent of Americans. The commission is considering whether to reclassify broadband as a telecommunications service and, in doing so, Washington would trigger new taxes and fees at the state and local level.

The agency would like to make Internet service a public utility, placing broadband under Title II regulation of the Communications Act of 1934. This move would make broadband subject to New Deal-era regulation, and have significant consequences for U.S. taxpayers.

Under this decision to reclassify broadband, Americans would face a host of new state and local taxes and fees that apply to public utilities. These new levies, according to the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI), would total $15 billion annually. On average, consumers would pay an additional $67 for landline broadband, and $72 for mobile broadband each year, according to PPI’s calculations, with charges varying from state to state.

https://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2015/01/05/treating-internet-like-a-public-utility-brings-a-new-tax-for-the-new-year/

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FCC Chairman Strongly Hints He’ll Favor Internet Reclassification – CES

The FCC Holds Open Internet Roundtable

FCC Chairman Strongly Hints He’ll Favor Internet Reclassification – CES

Chairman Tom Wheeler didn’t say so directly, but he left little doubt that he and fellow Democrats on the FCC will stand up to cable and telco Internet providers next month by adopting net neutrality rules that redefine broadband as a regulated, communications service. ISPs have said that such a move would chill investment. But for the last 20 years the wireless industry has been regulated under so-called Title 2 rules — with provisions limiting the FCC’s ability to set prices —  and it “has been monumentally successful,” Wheeler said today at the International CES conference in Las Vegas. “There is a way to do Title 2 right …A model has been set in the wireless business.

https://deadline.com/2015/01/fcc-chairman-tom-wheeler-net-neutrality-title-2-ces-1201343353/

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“Time’s up for denial and hypocrisy,” Le Pen

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France’s Front National leader Marine Le Pen said France has to confront the beliefs of the gunmen who stormed the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo this morning. Photographer: Aurelien Meunier/Getty Images

Le Pen May Gain as Magazine Attack Strains French Divide

By Angeline Benoit, Sandrine Rastello and Caroline Alexander January 07, 2015

France’s Front National leader Marine Le Pen pinned the blame for the killing of 12 people in Paris yesterday on Islamic radicals, as mainstream leaders tried to downplay the religious dimension of the attack.

While President Francois Hollande called for national unity in an attempt to deter the public from demonizing the country’s 5-million strong Muslim community, Le Pen said France has to confront the beliefs of the gunmen who stormed the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

“Time’s up for denial and hypocrisy,” Le Pen, who has railed against immigration, said in a video posted on her party’s website. “The absolute rejection of Islamic fundamentalism must be proclaimed loudly and clearly.”

Story: How French Weekly Charlie Hebdo Became a Terrorist Target

The lessons voters draw from the deadliest attack on French soil since World War II will shape the political debate as the country looks toward the 2017 election. Hollande, the most unpopular president in modern history, is struggling to make up ground on Le Pen, who’s seen her support surge as she blames immigrants for France’s near-record unemployment and deepening inequalities.

https://www.businessweek.com/news/2015-01-07/le-pen-may-benefit-as-magazine-attack-exposes-french-divisions