Study lists likely sites for water
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
By WILLIAM J. KEMBLE
Correspondent
A REPORT to the Hurley Conservation Advisory Council tonight will recommend potential sites for new water sources to supply the hamlets of West Hurley and Glenford.
The council’s 7 p.m. meeting at the West Hurley Firehouse on Wall Street will focus on the report by consultant Steven Winkley of the New York Rural Water Association.
Among the report’s findings is the susceptibility of properties in West Hurley to contamination due to the underground flow of water from at least 20 locations where state Department of Environmental Conservation pollution response cases remain active.
“A number of petroleum spills have been investigated in the area by the NYSDEC Spill Response Unit,” Winkley wrote. “Many of these spills were found to not be of serious concern and their cases were closed. However, some of these spills were investigated further and cleanup activities were undertaken. Some of these spills have not been closed in the area ... (and) are either still being investigated or have not met cleanup standards.”
Other potential sources of contamination include abandoned petroleum bulk storage facilities and waste chemicals that pose problems despite longstanding state and federal cleanup efforts.
“Two hazardous waste sites are mapped in the West Hurley area,” Winkley wrote. “One is the so-called Rotron-Woodstock site located just to the north in the town of Woodstock. A groundwater extraction and treatment system and soil-vapor extraction system were installed here and continue to operate.”
The second hazardous waste site, the Numrich Arms Gun Parts Corp. off Williams Lane, was once listed as a Superfund site in the 1990s, Winkley wrote. “It is no longer on the current Superfund list and is now listed as a (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) waste handler.”
The report recommends seven sites that should be tested as potential sites for municipal water. However, the report noted three of the locations are on properties owned by the Onteora school district and should be reviewed for potential contamination.
“Data indicated two underground petroleum storage tanks exist on the school property: a 10,000-gallon fuel oil tank installed in 1990 and a 2,000-gallon fuel oil tank installed in 1987,” Winkley wrote. “Locations of these tanks should be documented as part of an environmental assessment.”
Another potential source of contamination on the school district property is an underground wastewater disposal field.
“A spill of petroleum was reported in 2000 at 76 Cedar St.,” Winkley wrote. “This property is less than 500 feet from the (West Hurley Elementary) school. The spill impacted groundwater and the case remains open as of the writing of this report.”
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