Joint municipal initiatives work best when the municipalities involved are willing to commit to full cooperation.

While that might have been the intent with Evans City and Callery boroughs when entering into their sewage service agreement about two decades ago, the two municipalities have over the years drifted from their early cooperative spirit.

The two communities’ deteriorating relations have reached the point where Callery currently is seeking to block an impending sale of Evans City’s sewage treatment plant, while at the same time considering divorcing itself from the Evans City system.

Callery is considering entering into an agreement with the Breakneck Creek Regional Authority (BCRA).

Ed Conway, Callery Borough Council president, said a feasibility study commissioned by his borough determined that, with Breakneck, each Callery customer would save more than $30 a month.

As a result of that study, Callery officials have offered to end their opposition to the treatment plant’s sale if Evans City agrees to end the Callery-Evans City agreement.

In a letter to the state Department of Environmental Protection — a letter whose goal obviously is to put pressure on Evans City to agree to Callery’s departure — Callery asked that the state agency block the plant sale because of the two-year disagreement between the boroughs over the sewage rate offered to Callery.

In the plant sale, Evans City would transfer all Evans City sewer operations to the Evans City Water and Sewer Authority.

The two boroughs, instead of maintaining full cooperation over the years, have allowed their relations to deteriorate to the point where the two now are blaming each other for the situation that currently exists.

Callery has accused Evans City of being unresponsive regarding past sewage rate disputes, refusing to negotiate a new bulk water agreement and not communicating with Callery about the proposed plant sale, which, under the terms of the boroughs’ agreement, requires Callery’s approval.

Meanwhile, Paul Foster, Evans City Borough Council vice president, has accused Callery officials of “holding up a lot of things in Evans City.”

Foster said Evans City has offered to settle the rate dispute.

“Callery accounts for 10 percent of the (sewage) flow that comes to the plant, and what they’re currently paying is less than 10 percent,” Foster said. “They’re getting away cheap and now complaining that we’re overcharging them.”

A badly needed window for new dialogue has been opened by Phil Lope, water and sewer authority solicitor. He has requested a meeting of officials of the two boroughs.

All considered, it would seem Evans City could be the loser if Callery were to opt for Breakneck, due to the loss of Callery customers’ revenue. But the long-term impact of the change for Callery might be impossible to know, despite short-term numbers looking good.

For now, Callery also is right to be concerned about the financial impact of Evans City’s proposal to build a new treatment plant costing about $7.6 million.

From all that’s been said in recent days, it’s clear that, over the years, Evans City and Callery didn’t do enough to understand each other’s concerns. The current dispute could have been averted if the two boroughs had maintained consistent openness, dialogue and understanding.