Residents within the Woodcliff Section of North Bergen, particularly between and around Broadway and Hudson Avenue between 72nd and 79th Street have been enduring sewer back up into homes for as long as 10 years with the issue becoming progressively worst.

Many residents have approached township officials throughout the past decade with very little assistance or understanding of why the issue occurs.

The community did not organize until recently prior to Ida. Through social media we learned of many similar stories where residents had individually gone to town officials for help although ultimately told there is nothing that can be done besides cleaning the drains. 

The residents of this section of town are dealing with sewer back-ups into the home, which is causing environmental and health issues, and in some cases leading to life threatening scenarios. Some homes have had as much as 5 feet of water prior to Ida.

We believe this is part of a larger issue with antiquated combined sewer systems (CSS) but are asking for help from the town to bring in engineering experts to provide solutions for relief in the most impacted parts of the area. 

We have learned what we did not know before and that is that we have all been suffering with the same issue in silence after being told by town officials that “not much can be done.”

We hope to get the attention of town officials with this petition to help this community.

We hope any findings and solutions applied here can be useful to the other 21 cities in NJ currently suffering with similar issues due to combined sewer systems.