There has been progress in solving the problem of cloudy water in the borough’s pool from this past summer, officials say.

“This week before our regular pool commission meeting, we had a meeting at the pool to discuss and evaluate the filtration issues that we had during the summer,” councilman Peter Cammarano said at the Borough Council’s Oct. 5 meeting. “The meeting included the mayor, our business administrator, our public works director, the manufacturer of the filter, the installer of the filter, the aquatics services company that provides ongoing maintenance, as well as pool management and some others. It was a very good meeting because what we were able to do was bring together all of the parties and try to pinpoint the issues and problems.”

The pool was closed on at least two separate days this year due to the problem, although there were more closures in the summer of 2008. In the off-season between the two summers, more than $100,000 was spent on the pool’s filter system in an effort to fix the problem.

Although he did not go into detail, Cammarano said that they had found two issues with the pool.

“I wouldn’t want to go into too much detail because we are doing additional testing of the particulates in the pool, but I feel very comfortable and confident that we have identified the areas of concern, and they should be relatively easy and inexpensive to correct,” he said. “One issue that seems to be partially contributing, without getting too technical, is a product of the retrofitting into the old tank, and it is easily corrected. The other issue is that there was a slight leak of diatomaceous earth getting from the filter into the pool.”

Diatomaceous earth, also known as DE, consists of fossilized remains of diatoms, a type of hard-shelled algae, and is found in nature as a chalk-like sedimentary rock that is easily crumbled into a fine white powder. The most common use of diatomaceous earth is as a filter medium, such as in swimming pools, because it can filter very fine particles that would otherwise pass through or even clog filter paper.

Cammarano said that engineers used sophisticated tests including dropping cameras into the tanks, which are things that can only be done during the off-season.

“The good news is that everyone seems to be in agreement as to what the issues were, including the manufacturer, installer, and the company that does the routine maintenance that didn’t install the filter,” he said. “We are making progress in dealing with the issues now while the pool is closed and not waiting to deal with them in the spring. Planning for next season takes a long time, but these are issues we need to resolve as quickly as possible. Whether it takes two weeks or two months, I don’t know yet, but I am pretty confident we will get there.”