UPDATE ON DEC SEWER PLANT MANDATE
At its May 2012 meeting, the Village Board awarded contracts to three businesses
to perform work on the Village’s wastewater treatment plant. The project,
mandated by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
(DEC), will begin this June and is scheduled for completion in June 2013.
The capital improvement project includes the installation of new equipment to
expand the capability of the biological treatment process, and the replacement of
aging and inefficient equipment. The estimated cost of the project is $3.5 million.
The Village secured low interest financing for the project under the Clean Water
State Revolving Fund.
Completion of this capital project will replace the aged plant with one that has
new and modern equipment, meeting the updated State agency discharge
standards and mandates, and one that will meet the needs of the Village for many
years.
The DEC has monitored the operation of Altamont’s wastewater treatment plant
for many years, as it has other municipalities which are in the Hudson River
estuary and which potentially affect surrounding water sheds. In March 2010,
DEC placed the Village under an Order on Consent and fined the Village $1,000,
citing violations involving the overflow of untreated sewage during high water
storm events the previous two years.
The Department ordered that the Village submit and implement a plan to
upgrade the wastewater plant to correct the problem, with a completion date no
later than June 2013. Prior to DEC’s actions, the Village Board had been studying
and planning the implementation over time of a major improvement project for
the wastewater treatment plant, and threes plans were integrated into the plan.
The improvement project increases the processing capacity of the Plant to treat
the inflow of sewage, and eliminates the occurrence of untreated sewage
discharge during weather-related, high water events.
All users of the Village sewage system will pay for the cost of the project spread
over 20 years. Beginning in 2013, each household will be charged so the Village
can make payments on the project’s low interest loan. The capital charge is
estimated to be $90 annually which would mean $45 per current billing period,
approximately 25 cents a day per household.
No one welcomes an increase in user fees no matter how small, but it is necessary
because the Village is under a legal mandate from the DEC to remedy treatment
deficiencies. To ignore their mandate would result in severe penalties, including
possible closure of the treatment facility and additional fines from DEC. It is a
small price to pay to have efficient, dependable, and well-run water and sewage
treatment facilities critical to a community’s quality of life.
The Altamont Board regularly discussed the reports and decisions made on the
project during the past years. The discussions have been reported periodically by
the Altamont Enterprise and can be accessed through its on-line search engine. If
you have any questions regarding the project, contact the Village office, monitor
local media coverage, or attend Village Board meetings where updates are
provided regularly.
COUNTY EXEC VISITS JUNE 5
Daniel McCoy, Albany County’s new County executive, will attend the Village’s
June 5 meeting as part of his “listening tour.” This is one of his last visits to
municipalities across the county to ask for residents’ input on important services
and issues, and to explain the changes the county is considering which affect us.
The meeting starts at 7 PM. It’s your opportunity to talk directly to the county
executive about the things that matter most to the Village of Altamont. Hope to
see you there.
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