Palmerton will be adding a new tank to an overworked pump station thanks to a grant from the Commonwealth Financing Authority.

Borough Manager Rodger Danielson said that over $256,000 in funding, granted by the Pennsylvania Small Water and Sewer program, will help to ensure water service to area.The Small Water and Sewer Program helps municipalities construct, improve, expand and repair their water supplies and sewer systems. Palmerton’s new tank was the only Carbon County project funded.The new tank will be installed at north end of West Edgemont Avenue.“There are 125 homes that will directly benefit from this,” Danielson said. “There will be water in reserve now.”A new tank, with a capacity of 100,000 or 150,000 gallons, would be able to supply the area from two and a half to four days, based on an average daily household usage of 300 gallons.It would also prove valuable during fires and other emergencies.“Currently, there is no water holding capacity which would serve in case of a fire or electrical outage affecting the pump. The proposed new tank should help stabilize water availability during times of high use,” Danielson said in a letter to the Planning and Development office in late October.The approval for the funding came through earlier this year, and was announced in a statement from state Sen. John Yudichak, D-Luzerne/Carbon, and state Rep. Doyle Heffley, R-Carbon.“I am glad to see funds available for this local infrastructure project that will increase water pressure in the west end of Palmerton,” Heffley said.Although Palmerton has until June 2019 to use the funding, the borough is jumping on the water project that will guarantee water access for daily and emergency use.“We have already received the documents, we signed and returned them, and engineering is underway as we speak,” he said.