A variety of topics were discussed at Monday's Slatington Water/Sewer/Highway Workshop Committee meeting.

During the public comment portion, resident Ron Blackwell said his complaint is that a portion of sidewalk is now sinking. It was placed there by the borough in 2009 when it added new sewer lines on his Fourth Street property. He said he is afraid someone is going to hurt themselves on it but that the cost to repair it is $380."What are you guys going to do to help me?" he asked.Committee members said they will have someone take a look at it.In sewer Chairman Bob Steets' absence, committee member Bryon Reed delivered an update on the borough's sewer plant digesters.Reed said last Friday he accompanied a representative from Mar-Allen Concrete Products of Ephrata to the plant to give a proposal on how to repair a digester leak caused, at least in part, by prior work done on it.He said Mar-Allen, which is currently working on a digester in Bethlehem, is well-known for its work, including having done work for Disney for several years.Lastly, in regard to his own Water/Special Sewer Committee, Chairman Reed discussed Act 129 legislation, also known as Pennsylvania's energy efficiency and conservation law, which became effective in November 2008.According to the PPL Corporation website, the act requires Pennsylvania Electric Distribution Companies to cost-effectively reduce electricity consumption and peak demand on their systems.Reed said PPL is apparently having difficulty getting people and municipalities to take advantage of a rebate it offers in regard to the act and that the borough is very fortunate to have found out about it just in time, since all paperwork must be filed by May 9.He said the borough plans to replace with LED lights a total of 58 outside lights at four buildings, including the water treatment plant, sewer plant and Vigilant Fire Company, for a net cost of $5,312, plus inside and outside lights at the maintenance garage, for a net cost of $2,680.Because of the rebate, he said, the borough will now be able to have $26,710 worth of work done for just under $8,000, a savings of about 70 percent, plus increased energy savings in the future."The best deal was on the outside lights. That's why we opted for (them)," said Council President Daniel Stevens.Reed said he also recently learned about two grants, both of which may help with repairs and improvements to the borough's sewer system and plant.