Horizons at Franklin Lakes

Gabrellian Development had held a parcel of property in affluent Franklin Lakes, New Jersey for a number of years, waiting for an appropriate development plan. In 1999 GGA Engineering was approached to plan, design and obtain permits for a cost– effective waste treatment facility that would make the site buildable.

A site evaluation indicated that although most of the property was wet and inappropriate for subsurface discharge of wastewater, there was a large natural mound of very sandy soil that provided a barrier between the buildable land and an adjacent interstate highway. Unfortunately this mound was so close to the property line that it was impossible to meet ground water quality standards through conventional means.

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) guiidelines require that any treatment sewage discharged into ground water must maintain the groundwater quality at every property line. Through the use of conventional waste–activated sludge treatment combined with vacuum filtration in a proprietary process by Zenon Corporation, GGA packaged the entire facility in a single story structure with below–grade tanks that blended with the primary condominium structure design.

The disposal "mound" was landscaped and finished into a park–like area. The twin disposal beds have been in operation since 2001 with no impact on the ground water quality.Unbuildable site made profitable.

Benefits

Sewage disposal system blends with housing.

No adverse impact on local groundwater.

Zenon filtration treatment replaces the conventional septic system.