Nov. 5 — Tonight, voters in Gloucester Township rejected the sale of their sewer collection system to New Jersey American Water, the state arm of the nation’s largest investor owned water corporation. Preliminary results show that the ballot measure failed by a vote of about 81% to 19%.

In July, the Gloucester Township council voted to accept NJ American Water’s bid of $143 million for the sewer system. As of October 23, the company had spent more than $1 million trying to convince residents to approve the sale. A grassroots campaign of residents, union workers, and even the girl scouts came together to counter the corporate agenda.

“Residents saw this deal for what it was—a billion dollar corporation and machine politicians trying to enrich themselves on the public’s dime. The engineering reports make plain that there’s nothing wrong with the Gloucester Township sewer system. Mayor and council were trying to break something that wasn’t broken just so they could sell it off. Grassroots leaders came together from across the political spectrum to work together to save the public utility and to ensure that the people get the final say in what happens in their community. We may be one of the few groups in the entire country where Democrats, Republicans, Independents and third party members were all celebrating together. We were celebrating the truth of that favorite rally chant–the people united will never be defeated,” said Kate Delany, South Jersey organizer for NJ Food and Water Watch.

Residents raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest involved in the deal. Gloucester Township Mayor David Mayer works for NJ American Water as its Director of Government Relations. Filings from the NJ Election Law Enforcement Commission show he is a registered lobbyist for the company.

“This election is a powerful reminder of what we can achieve when we come together as a community. The defeat of the sewer sale shows that our voices matter, and we have the ability to shape the future of Gloucester Township. It proves that when residents unite with a common goal, we can hold our leaders accountable and make decisions that protect our town’s interests. This victory belongs to everyone who stood up and spoke out, showing that we do have a say in what happens here,” said Denise Coyne, Gloucester Township resident and community leader.

Residents had called into question potentially inflated estimates of infrastructure improvements. It also proposes $90 million worth of infrastructure upgrades when the township has only identified $21 million in needs. 

“I’m not a fan of political parties. This sewer sale has helped confirm that your neighbor is not your enemy. The military industrial complex is your enemy. Big pharma is your enemy. Wall Street is your enemy. Big insurance is your enemy. Big water is your enemy.

We the people do still have the power; we just need to organize in order to use it. I hope the small group of us who organized and fought against this can be an inspiration and a resource to our neighbors around the country in stopping the spread of Big Water,” said Keith Gibbons, Gloucester Township resident and co-director of the citizen run news source, the Gloucester Township Observer

Residents were concerned about massive rate increases after privatization. New Jersey American Water’s rates in Haddonfield are nearly three times as much as the township charges currently. From the beginning, the public had raised concerns about a promised rate stabilization plan. New Jersey American Water proposed rate increases that combined would total more than 9 percent over 5 years, exceeding the rate cap stipulated in the request for proposals. It was further revealed that the proposed rate schedule would be subject to the approval of New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, which has rejected similar plans. 

The township will continue to run its sewer system as a public asset, and it can seek state and federal funds to help mitigate the cost of necessary improvements.