§ 40:14A-2 — Declaration of policy; purpose

It is hereby declared to be in the public interest and to be the policy of the State to foster and promote by all reasonable means the relief of waters in or bordering the State from pollution and thus to reduce and ultimately abate the menace to the public health resulting from such pollution. It is the purpose and object of this act to further and implement such policy by (1) Authorizing counties, or municipalities either separately or in combination with other municipalities, by means and through the agency of a sewerage authority, to acquire, construct, maintain, operate or improve works for the collection, treatment, purification or disposal of sewage or other wastes, and, if necessary, works for the impounding, transportation and release of water for the replenishment in periods of drought or at other necessary times of all or a part of waters in or bordering the State diverted into a sewer, sewage treatment or sewage disposal system operated by the sewerage authority; (2) Authorizing service charges to occupants or owners of property for direct or indirect connection with and the use or services of such works, and providing for the establishment, collection and enforcement of such charges; (3) Creating as a body corporate and politic sewerage authorities to have full responsibility and powers with respect to such works and the establishment, collection, enforcement, use and disposition of all such service charges; (4) Providing for the financing of such works, for the issuance of bonds therefor, and for the payment and security of such bonds; and (5) In general, granting to counties and municipalities and to such sewerage authorities discretionary powers to provide for sewerage services designed to relieve pollution of such waters at the expense of the users of such services or of counties or municipalities or other persons contracting for or with respect to the same. L.1946, c. 138, p. 639, s. 2. Amended by L.1951, c. 127, p. 543, s. 1; L.1953, c. 177, p. 1456, s. 2, eff. May 29, 1953.