Briefing Document provides details of the March 11, 2026, Newtown Township Board of Supervisors meeting, covering legislative actions and community concerns.

Key administrative outcomes included approving conditional use for a new P.J. Whelihan’s restaurant, updating landscaping ordinances, and authorizing the purchase of a dump truck.

During public comment, residents raised urgent issues regarding missing buffer fences, recurring sinkholes caused by failing storm pipes, and a request for solar-powered speed signs.

Local activist John Mack specifically advocated for reconstituting the Environmental Advisory Council and preserving abandoned sewer authority land as permanent open space.

Additionally, the police chief provided a significant report on recent criminal activity, including a local connection to a thwarted terrorist plot investigated alongside the FBI.

The Pennsylvania Environmental Cleanup and Responsibility Act (ECRA)

• Mandatory Residential Standards: Cleanups would be required to meet residential safety standards rather than looser industrial standards.
• Immediate State Action: The bill empowers the state to take immediate action when hazardous substances are released.
• DEP Authority: The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) would have the power to step in if responsible parties fail to act.
• Financial Accountability: The legislation ensures that "the polluter, not the taxpayer, pays" for cleanup efforts.

This Deep Dive podcast is focused on the January 2026 Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) reorganization meeting, where members reappointed leadership and address local environmental initiatives. The meeting - as always with EAC meetings - was open to the public.

Key agenda items included managing a native plant project at Robert’s Ridge Park, coordinating a tree giveaway, and exploring solar energy grants for a local 100-acre parcel fo land. The plans for a partial ban on gas leaf blowers was also discussed.

A significant portion of the dialogue focuses on a controversial proposal for a pedestrian bridge over Newtown Creek, highlighting disagreements regarding floodplain protection and the impact on natural resources.

The meeting concluded with tension over the EAC’s authority to issue formal opinions to the Board of Supervisors without further data or consensus.

[Source of original article: The Economist]

Leaf blowers have emerged as a surprising source of political and cultural conflict, as municipalities across the U.S. move to restrict or ban gas-powered models due to noise, air pollution, and quality-of-life concerns. More than 160 cities now have some form of restriction. In Lower Merion Township (PA), the township commission adopted an ordinance on November 19, 2025, following nearly three hours of public comment from more than 50 residents. Supporters described gas leaf blowers as excessively loud and toxic, while opponents—particularly landscaping business owners—warned the ban would hurt small businesses operating on thin margins.

The issue has taken on clear political overtones, with bans more common in left-leaning communities and pushback framed around property rights and local control. As suburban communities continue to wrestle with environmental regulation, neighborhood harmony, and economic impacts, the humble leaf blower has become an unexpected symbol of America’s deepening civic divides.

As the bans spread, and Democrats and Republicans compete harder for the votes of residents of leafy suburbs, rancour will surely grow. At last year's Democratic convention Barack Obama compared Donald Trump to "the neighbour who keeps running his leaf blower outside your window every minute of every day". Mr Trump's supporters say: sure, your neighbour might suck, but that's his right. Leaf him alone

The September 2025 EAC Meeting Highlights outlines several environmental and community initiatives in Newtown. It details the progress of a pollinator garden project at Roberts Ridge Park, including planting schedules, volunteer recruitment, and community outreach efforts.

The highlights also mention a planned native planting event with Newtown Borough, the installation of nesting boxes for Prothonotary Warblers at Silver Lake Park, and a discussion on restricting gas-powered landscaping tools.

Furthermore, it covers the use of tree bank funds for the pollinator project, updates on a native plant ordinance, and the ongoing water testing by the Newtown Creek Coalition.

Finally, it addresses the closure of Nature Center trails and the construction of a PFAS filtration plant by the Newtown Artesian Water Company.

More details...

This presentation made before the #NewtownPA Planning Commission on 2 September 2025 focuses on the revised landscape ordinance for the township, specifically the new requirement for 100% native plants.

Kim Flanders, a registered landscape architect at CKS Engineers, defines native plants as those that have evolved in a given place, forming complex relationships with their environment and other organisms, and distinguishes them from cultivars, hybrids, and adaptive plants.

The discussion highlights the benefits of native plants for wildlife, particularly insects and birds, and addresses common misconceptions, such as them being easier to grow or immune to diseases.

Challenges with implementing the new ordinance are explored, including plant availability, specific growing conditions, and the need for planting diversity to mitigate disease impact.

The presentation also touches on practical considerations like street tree placement to avoid infrastructure damage and the importance of professional landscape review.

Upper Makefield residents are suing the pipeline operators after an undetected crack leaked jet fuel into their private wells, contaminating at least 12.

The complaint, which was filed March 27, accuses pipeline operator Sunoco LP and its parent company, Energy Transfer, of negligence. Plaintiffs alleged that the companies failed to properly maintain the 70-year-old pipeline, identify leaks and investigate potential damage.

Following the leak in the Mount Eyre Road neighborhood, which the companies apparently did not detect for at least 16 months, 12 homes have tested positive for chemicals related to jet fuel, including benzene.

Although residents of the Mount Eyre Road neighborhood reported an unusual odor in their water as early as September 2023, the pipeline operators failed to detect a leak, and additional residents reported water taste and smell changes in 2024.

In 2023, the pipeline companies dug just yards away from where the leak was ultimately discovered*, but they didn't find the leak until January 2025 after consulting service records and digging at the location of a 1990s dent repair.

At the January 22, 2025, Newtown Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting, Middletown resident Ray Post - a professional engineer with 49 years of experience in water treatment - commented on the amount of Phosphorus and Nitrogen that the proposed #NewtownPA Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) will release into the already environmentally "impaired" Lake Luxembourg.

Mr. Post used numbers from the Wolcott WWTP to calculate his estimates for the Newtown plant that will be patterned after the Wolcott plant.

Read the Patch article "Water Treatment Expert Comments on Proposed Newtown WWTP" for more details.

At the January 22, 2025, Newtown Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting, Middletown resident Gloria Post commented on the potential for releasing PFAS "forever" chemicals into Lake Luxembourg via the effluent of the Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) proposed by the Newtown Sewer Authority.

I mentioned this at aSewer Authority meeting as well as at the Newtown Environmental Advisory Council (EAC). At the Sewer Authority meeting it was suggested since PFAs will be removed from Newtown drinking water (read "#NewtownPA Artesian Water Wins Zoning Variances to Build PFAS Filtration Facility"; https://sco.lt/7nmpd2) and thus not be present in Waste Water processed by the WWTP. Ms. Post pooh poohed this notion, pointing out sources of PFAs other than drinking water that end up in waste water sent to the plant and then onward to Lake Luxembourg in the effluent.

At the 16 December 2024 Middletown Township Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting, Middletown Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) Vice Chair Andy McAloon expressed concerns about potential flooding caused by the plant, which will dump million of gallons per day of effluent into Core Creek.

At the 16 December 2024 Middletown Township Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting, Kevin Deeny - a member of Middletown's Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) - expressed concern about the environmental impact of the planned sewage treatment plant on Lower Silver Lake Rd bordering Middletown.

Middletown Township residents packed the Board of Supervisors meeting Monday evening to sound off against a planned wastewater treatment plant.

The Newtown Bucks County Joint Municipal Authority, responding to an invitation from local officials, detailed plans for a $128 million wastewater treatment facility intended to address capacity issues and provide greater local control over wastewater management.

Environmental Concerns

Andy McAloon, the vice chairperson of the Middletown Township Environmental Advisory Council, raised concerns about flooding that could come from the plant putting water in area waterways, like the Core Creek.

Kevin Deeny, a member of the Middletown Township Environmental Advisory Council, said he only heard of the plan after reading news reports about it recently. He stated that he has concerns about environmental impacts of the plant, including potential water quality impacts on Core Creek Park.

[Read FULL TRANSCRIPT of their comments.]

Read More...

At the November 26, 2024, BOS meeting, Swan Point, Middletown resident Bill Everett expressed concerns about the environmental impact of the proposed sewage treatment plant on Lower Silver Lake Road.

Mr. Everett spoke about the impact on Core Creek - the “Crown Jewel” of the Bucks County park system. He noted that the delay in Wawa construction was due to the need to drill a waste water tunnel in bedrock UNDER Core Creek. He recommended an INDEPENDENT environmental impact analysis.

At the 13 November 2024 Newtown Township Board of Supervisors (BOS) public meeting, Friends Village residents Tom Cadwallader and Kip Cherry as well as Terry Christiansen requested that the township pass an ordinance to ban gas-powered leaf blowers.

"This would cut down on exhaust and noise and be safer for workers. The noise and the pollution are major, major problems,” said Cadwallader, president of the Residence Association at Friends Village.

“We’ve been cursed with a lot of leaf-blowing activity at our village and it has really brought it to our attention - the fact that these leaf blowers that use gasoline are creating a lot of noxious fumes, a lot of noise, are very hard on the workers and are more expensive to use than the electric and battery-operated leaf blowers," said Cherry, vice president of the association.

Mr. Christian noted how the noise of gas leaf blowers were a danger to seeing impaired pedestrians who use hearing to avoid cars when crossing road.

Rick g. - a Newtown Township resident - was “hoping the berm would obstruct the view from the bypass to help preserve the rural ‘ambience’ along most of the bypass. The berm across the street looks like it's 4-5’ higher and obstructs the view of the church.”

I decided to see for myself what was going on with the berm by driving by the site with video rolling. I posted what I saw on Youtube (view it here..). To date (29 July 2024) the video has been viewed more than 1,900 times!

More comments, questions, and answers...

A new study by economists from West Virginia University (WVU) has found hot spots of harmful per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) “forever chemicals” in United States public water systems, including in higher-income, densely populated areas, as well as those that use groundwater.

At least four PFAS contamination hot spots were identified in the eastern U.S. by Levan Elbakidze, a resource economics and management professor at WVU’s Davis College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and Nabin Khanal, a doctoral student, a press release from WVU said.

The hot spots identified cover 10 states and 149 counties. The hot spot with the greatest number of counties spans across Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. A second spans New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware and Connecticut. The third largest hot spot sits on the border of North Carolina and South Carolina, and the smallest is in Colorado.

“Ninety-five percent of US adolescents and adults are exposed to PFAS, primarily through drinking water. Between 16 and 270 million people in the US rely on PFAS-contaminated drinking water. Therefore, it is important to understand the incidence and distribution of PFAS in public water systems,” the authors wrote in the study.

There are more than 9,000 PFAS, a group of synthetic chemicals known to cause serious health issues like heart and thyroid disease, cancer and infertility. The hazardous substances are found in many common products such as nonstick cookware, waterproof clothing and firefighting foam. They are also used in industrial processes because of their resistance to heat, water, grease and stains.

The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission on Monday hired an international engineering firm to conduct a multi-year environmental review to help determine whether the 119-year-old Washington Crossing Toll-Supported Bridge should be replaced.

The commission awarded the $8 million contract to HDR Engineering, Inc. of Philadelphia to carry out a process that will include preliminary engineering, environmental services, alternatives analysis, public involvement, documentation, and other services following the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

If the environmental review process were to identify a complete bridge replacement as the “preferred alternative” and that designation were to result in a favorable decision document from an applicable federal lead agency, then – and only then – could the commission pursue possible design and construction of a prospective new bridge, the commission said.

The review is expected to take an estimated 30 months to carry out, including receipt of a ruling from an applicable federal oversight agency. A 30-month time frame conceivably would take until 2027. But the process could always take longer than that, the commission said.

Source: PhillyBurbs.com

Hundreds of public water suppliers have wells containing toxic “forever chemicals” at levels over regulations set by the Environmental Protection Agency in April.

Recent testing data by the EPA released earlier this month show at least 40 water suppliers across Pennsylvania have tested at or above the agencies limits for a family of thousands of compounds typically referred to under the umbrella term PFAS.

In April, the EPA set a Maximum Contaminant Level for two of the most common compounds, PFOA and PFOS, at 4 parts per trillion. Three other PFAS compounds — PFNA, PFHxS, and Gen X chemicals — each of an MCL of 10 ppt.

Two wells in the Upper Southampton Municipal Authority system tested between 3.2 to 4.1 times the 4 ppt MCL for PFOA and PFOS in test results taken on July 21 and Jan. 23 last year.

The Newtown Artesian Water Company also tested about 2 to 3 times over the MCL for PFOA and PFOS when samples were collected in January.

Newtown Artesian CEO Dan Angrove told this news organization Friday that the company received all its necessary approvals in April to build an additional treatment building to reduce the PFAS chemicals in its water supply. Read “#NewtownPA Artesian Water Company Plans a Filtration Facility to Remove PFAS from Drinking Water”.

Currently in the design phase, the building should see construction through 2025 with an "in service target date" set for March 2026, Angrove said. The new filtration systems should bring PFAS levels down to non-detect once completed.

In order to have a rain water drainage system separate from the sewer system, the Township must have a plan to reduce rain water drainage into the streams, which can become polluted when the rain water carries in pollutants.

To do this, the Township came up with a pollution reduction plan to convert some open fields to meadows that will absorb rain water before it can enter the streams. The open fields at Roberts Ridge Park are key components of that plan.

Regarding this plan, the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources  (DCNR) sent this message to the #NewtownPA Township Manager:

"PA DCNR is inching closer to advertising your lawn conversions for public bid."  NOTE: This includes the conversions planned for Roberts Ridge Park (see image). This was a bone of contention among residents who demanded - and eventually got - a change in the plan that would preserve the open field that is often used. For more on that, read "Supervisors Approve REVISED Pollution Reduction Plan."

"The speed bumps have been their own execution of grant funding contracts and legal review of landowner agreements," said DCNR. "I’m told they fully expect work to begin – turfgrass kill – later this summer for a fall seeding. Worst case scenario is preparation and seeding spring 2025."

"So, as the grass starts to grow, please mow. I cringe just a little bit but if you stop mowing, in invites invasive weeds to grow and seed, exactly what we don’t want to happen."

This was discussed at the March 25, 2024, Meet Mack Monday...

Environmental Advisory Council met Monday, 12 February 2024.

In case you missed this meeting here's what was discussed:

• Single-Use Plastics Ban
  • Requests for compliance extension beyond effective date of April 9, 2024 (e.g., Pennsylvania and Delaware Cleaners Association request). NOTE: All Newtown cleaners are expected to comply with the ban.
  • Businesses are reminded to display poster explaining the ban to customers. Display must be at cash register.
  • What kind of alternative bags are allowed? Some are not recyclable! Refer to the Plastic Ban Toolkit.

• Proposed Steeple View Pedestrian Bridge
  • Jan Filios expressed concern that the construction of this bridge in a flood plain area would be environmentally unsound and unsafe. She will prepare notes for future discussion. For background, read "Steeple View LLC Representative Answers #NewtownPA Borough Council Questions About Pedestrian Bridge"

[Image: 1 & 2: Signage, 3: Supervisor Elen Snyder, 4: Faran Savitz, 5: McCaffrey's VP of Operations, 6: ;Alisa Shargorodsky]

The Newtown Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) held a special meeting on April 3, 2023, to educate local businesses and residents about a proposed ordinance to ban single-use plastics by township restaurants and retail businesses.

The main attraction was a presentation (see below) by Faran Savitz, Zero Waste Advocate, PennEnvironment, who summarized the environmental and health problems posed by non-recyclable plastics and made a case for banning single-use plastics.

The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer session:

• Newtown Chocolatier
• McCaffery’s Market
• Why Not at State/Federal Level?
• Echo Systems

More…