So far taxpayers have forked over more than half a million dollars, By Terry McGahan WEST MILFORD A small stink is brewing surrounding a debate in West Milford on whether to remain a member of a local sewage authority. There’s no odor to be concerned with but the question of $510,000 is on the minds of many. The Wanaque Valley Regional Sewage Authority is a partnership comprised of three towns - Ringwood, Wanaque, and West Milford. All hold equal share in the authority’s management and voting rights but most crucially of all, in its future. On July 10 of this year Wanaque Borough Council voted unanimously to dissolve the authority. Wanaque wishes to own and control the sewage facility outright, mainly due to the fact that by a vast margin it is the plant’s biggest user. The action taken however, by itself, is ineffectual as the authority can only be dissolved if all three partners agree to such. Hence, the debate began. Former West Milford Mayor Bob Moshman is one of the board members of the authority and at the council meeting on Wednesday night spoke strongly in favor of retaining the authority’s status quo. Moshman said, “It’s a no-brainer that we should stay associated with the authority.” Although West Milford does not now, nor ever has pumped sewage to the facility, Moshman believes continuing membership has benefits. Moshman admitted the plant is at present close to capacity and any future prospect of sewage from West Milford finding its way to Wanaque is virtually zero. “It’s a bit like joining a country club but not attending,” said Moshman. Using the facility in the event of a failure of sewage plants in West Milford and having cost-free access to the laboratory services there are the former mayor’s prime arguments for staying on board. The Wanaque authority has $17 million in bonds outstanding and recently applied for a further $1.5 million to provide a cash flow. One of the concerns of West Milford Council members is that this debt hurts the town with its bonding rates, and that perhaps some day down the road, the town might get roped in to paying off these financial liabilities. Council President Bill Gervens said, “I would like our financial people to look into the fact of how many millions of dollars in bonds are out, what this does to our bond rating and what our liability is in the future.” West Milford pays nothing to be a member of the authority and while no sewage gets pumped to the plant, a half million dollars of taxpayers money has. A lawsuit carried out by Wanaque Borough regarding the sharing of the plant’s development costs seven years ago resulted in a settlement which cost West Milford $510,000. The pertinent question of asking for this money be repaid if membership is withdrawn was raised. Bob Hadley, chair of the authority, also present at Wednesday night’s meeting, said, “They have no intention of refunding that money.” Councilman Phil Weisbecker wants West Milford to stay on board with the authority, “I think it’s in the best interest of the municipality [to remain] ... the future repercussions for future councils, for future taxpayers, is huge.” The council agreed to continue to discuss the issue and bring it back for further debate. Ringwood Borough is debating its membership also and the decision it reaches will prove significant in what action the West Milford Council can take.