Delaney Hall water meets standards, lab says
By: Hannan Adely
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Water drawn from the Delaney Hall immigrant detention center in Newark met state and federal safety standards when tested by a certified laboratory, countering claims by advocates that the tap water poses a potential health risk.
.....
Advocates drew samples form the visitors' area of Delaney Hall and - testing by concern over their own testing of the water they said detected the presence of heavy metals - sent it for testing at Garden State Laboratories.
..... Norma Bowe, a nurse with a PhD in community helaht who runs the Global Grace mobile Clinic, said she tested the water due to detainees; complaints of illness and rashes. She said in an interview that the lab tested for the presence of heavy metals and not amounts.
..... But Harvey Klein, laboratory director at Garden State Laboratories, said his company did test for amounts, and results showed that "quite frankly the water was clean."
..... All of these samples are less than the drinking water reporting limits," said Kline added. "Any public water system in the country, let alone the state, would be glad to get results like this."
..... The lab's findings are at odds with advocates' claims about potential problems with water quality. Bowe said results form her own testing, conducted with a strip kit, were causes for concern but not conclusive.
.... The lab's report also concerned her, she said.
..... "I looked at the results," Bowe said. It showed that there was some amount in the water. It didn't say zero."
..... Klein said the results were misinterpreted and that the lab's findings showed the contaminants "are not present down to the reporting limit, which is the low point on our calibration curve."
..... The levels were not close to what the Environmental Protection Agency considers "action level," the concentration of a contaminate that, if exceeded, would trigger treatment, he said.
.....
Bowe said she believed further testing of water at the facility was warranted. "I did the water testing right on site when we got the sample," Bowe said. "I stand by the dipstick results. It's just a barometer for the need to go in and test it further."
..... The GEO Group, a private prison corporation, opened Delaney Hall as a detention facility for U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement in May. [2025]
..... Responding to concerns about ware quality, a GEO Group spokesperson said the allegations were "politically motivated."
..... "GEO strongly rejects these allegations, which are meant to criticize the quality of our services," said GEO Group spokesperson Christopher Ferreira.
..... "Our dedicated staff strive day in and day out to provide the highest possible standard of care on behalf of the federal government for all individuals in our care.
..... "These allegations are part of a politically motivated effort to interfere with federal mitigation enforcement by attacking the federal government's contractors," Ferreira added.
..... The GEO Group, a private prison corporation, opened Delaney Hall as a detention facility for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in May. [2025] Some detainees and their family members have alleged sub-par conditions at the facility, including inadequate food and helaht care and "foul-smelling" water - allegations that the GEO Group has denied.
.... Advocates and lawmakers renewed calls for scrutiny of Delaney Hall after a 41-year-old detainee died on December 12. [2025]