Committee Formed Over Seaweed Issue

Local residents will serve on an ad-hoc committee, organized by the township council, to help township officials keep tabs on the seaweed situation in Brick's Seawood Harbor development.

Several residents came to Tuesday's council meeting to thank the council for its efforts last month to clean up rotting seaweed which was releasing hydrogen sulfide gas into the air. The hydrogen sulfide gas emitted a foul odor and caused some homeowners in the neighborhood to get sick. But while the residents were appreciative of the township's in removing the seaweed, several wondered if the situation would happen again.

"The area is a catch-all," said Christina Papianni, a Seawood Harbor resident. "And we all know the history [pertaining to seaweed] going back to the ‘60s."

"We used to have the seaweed cleanup on a regular basis, but for some reason, that was discontinued," said Linda Chris, another resident of the bayfront neighborhood.

Chris told council members that she had suggestions to keep the problem with the hydrogen sulfide buildup from happening again, including training for township workers and improvements to the area's sewer system.

Mayor Stephen C. Acropolis recommended forming a committee to discuss potential long-term solutions to alleviate the problem, a recommendation with which Council President Brian DeLuca agreed.

The residents will work with council members Ruthanne Scaturro, Michael Thulen and John Catalano on the issue.

Last week, Brick Patch reported that, since township officials worked with a local resident to remove the rotting seaweed from the area, it .