Sewage in the Hudson needs addressing
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- May
- 23
After a Stony Point woman asked him the status of the Hudson River when it came to sewage treatment plants, the director of the DEC’s local regional office appeared to speak bluntly.
“We’re not where we should be,” said William Janeway, who leads the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s Region 3 office. Region 3 includes the Lower Hudson Valley.
The remarks were made during a program on the status of Rockland’s water supply Wednesday.
Janeway said many existing treatment plants were old and needed updating, in part, because they overflow when rain infiltrates them, sending sewage into the Hudson.
The Journal News focused on the problem in a special report published in 2007. We noted it wasn’t just older systems needing updating that posed a problem, but that several upstate communities have no real treatment operation and simply discharge their sewage directly into the Hudson. The practice harkens back to earlier days when many held the belief that “dilution is the solution.”
Riverkeeper, the environmental watchdog that advocates for the health of the Hudson, also issued a report in 2007 after conducting water sampling. The results, compiled in partnership with the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, showed that on certain days and in certain places along the river, the water was simply too dirty for ingesting, as can occur when swimming, etc.
Janeway said a recent state report determined that more than $30 BILLION in clean water projects are needed throughout New York. He also said that New York state now ranked 49th out of the 50 states in lowest per capita spending when it came to funding clean water and other environmental projects.
Compounding the problem is the fact that the state also no longer reimburses municipalities to help them build or update sewer treatment plants, Janeway said. The projects often cost millions of dollars.
Janeway said the state is trying to find solutions.
Coming up next: Why some opposed to the re-licensing of Indian Point want to know if you’ve got goats. Check back later for more.
This entry was posted
on Friday, May 23rd, 2008 at 1:55 am by Laura Incalcaterra.
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Journal News staff writer Greg Clary writes Earth Watch, reporting on environmental issues in the lower Hudson region. Clary has been a reporter, editor and columnist at the Journal News since 1988 and has covered police and courts, transportation, municipal government, development and the environment in the Lower Hudson Valley, among other topics. 
Laura Incalcaterra covers the environment, open space and zoning and planning issues for The Journal News. A Boston College graduate, Laura grew up in Rockland, attended East Ramapo schools and has worked for The Journal News since 1993. Laura has written features and covered North Rockland, crime, government and a host of other issues.
Mike Risinit covers Patterson and Kent in Putnam County, as well as environmental topics touching on the Hudson River and the Great Swamp. Risinit has been a reporter at The Journal News since 1998.
