Saugerties Water Plant Superintendent Mike Hopf reported at the Village Board meeting on Monday, October 17 that the Blue Mountain Reservoir dredging was completed on September 28. The final teardown and demobilization is also done, including clearing the surrounding land and reseeding. The project removed about 11,000 cubic feet of silt from the bottom of the reservoir. Hopf praised Metropolitan Environmental Services, the contractor on the job, saying the dredging “was a great success.” The Blue Mountain Reservoir has a capacity of about 12 million gallons, which is supplied from the Plattekill Creek. It serves about 4,200 village connections and 5,500 town connections.
At last week’s meeting, Hopf also reported that the Village of Saugerties wastewater plant has exceeded its daily maximum allowable discharge limit for settable solids. The maximum allowable is 03 ml [milliliters] per liter; the plant recorded 0.6 ml and 0.4 respectively, according to Sewer Plant Superintendent Joe Myers. “We believe a stuck check valve in the secondary may have contributed to the problem; the check valve has been cleaned and a written SOP [standard operating procedure] has been established,” Myers wrote in his report to the board.
Hopf, who is supervising the sewer plant until a permanent superintendent is hired, said, “It’s hard to pinpoint what is causing that. Over that period we had a lot of rain, it was an inch over those two days. That, coupled with a stuck check valve, is most likely the cause. Myers reported that he is working with engineer Dennis Larios to address the odors from the plant, which have drawn complaints from neighbors. Plant upgrades now in the works should address the issue, his report stated.
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