The public meeting in Middletown Township one night had gone on for some time with a series of quarrelsome, contentious questions and discussion about allowing a wastewater treatment plant to set up in town not far from the Swan Pointe development. Residents said they opposed the project targeted along Newtown Township’s southern border with Middletown Township, and wanted local officials to put an end to it. What about the plant’s impact on our air quality, they asked, and about the effect on our property values. After listening to the worries and hearing the demands, township supervisor Chairman Mike Ksiazek summed up deliberations. “We get it,” he told the packed room. “We’ve heard your concerns and share your concerns. And this board is committed to working with our legal counsel, our township engineer and our professionals to figure out what our options are to move forward to best protect the residents of our township.” Representatives from the Newtown, Bucks County Joint Municipal Authority at the meeting told attendees that operating their own treatment plant for the authority’s 9,000 Newtown Borough and Newtown Township customers makes financial sense over remaining a wholesale customer of the Bucks County Water & Sewer Authority. “We have a fiduciary responsibility to protect our ratepayers,” said Jerry Schenkman, authority vice chairman. “We take that very seriously.” The authority in August condemned 17 acres along Lower Silver Lake Road as a potential site for the plant. It paid $9 million for the tract. “We’re very concerned about the impact of not doing anything,” he said. Among those engaged in the lengthy discussion was longtime Swan Pointe resident Gary Sondermeyer, who said his 45 years as an environmental professional gives him the knowledge to believe the plant is going to sink. “I’ve been to many wastewater treatment plants and I haven’t been to one that doesn’t sink,” he said. “These things rum 24/7, 365 days a year, and this thing could be in our backyard for the next 30 to 40 years, and it’s going to sink along the way.” Supervisor Chairman Ksiazek said more information was to be learned about the project. “I can only tell you that this is the beginning of the process of us learning more, getting more information and seeing what out options are as a neighboring municipality,” he said.