Lloyd updated on water and sewer issues

By Mark Reynolds
Posted 4/17/24

The Town of Lloyd Water & Sewer Administrator Adam Litman started his report to the Town Board by saying,”Let’s talk about water; it’s been raining and raining and raining. So …

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Lloyd updated on water and sewer issues

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The Town of Lloyd Water & Sewer Administrator Adam Litman started his report to the Town Board by saying,”Let’s talk about water; it’s been raining and raining and raining. So reservoir water is making up 98% of daily production, because we are still down by one well pump. We’ve been kind of flip-flopping back and forth between reservoir and a blend of the [Hudson] river. The river hasn’t been lasting so long because the reservoirs go down and then they reach full capacity, which they are again now.” He noted that the pump that he referenced will be pulled out next week and even though it is only a few years old he suspects that it might have been ‘surged out’ by a lighting hit.
 
Litman said production time at the water plant is averaging 10 hours per day, rather than 14, 16 or up to 20 hours daily. In addition, spring cleanup and maintenance is taking place and the town’s highway crew has been cleaning up around the new water tank as well as at reservoirs #4 and #5.
 
Litman said after excavating the site for the new water tank, a large amount of rock and dirt was left behind and separated into piles. The rock will be reused as retaining material around the base of the hill to the left side of the tank. He is looking for material to cover it with some type of fabric so it does not deteriorate and to suppress the growth of grass. He used the dirt to backfill along the backside of the concrete dam on reservoir #4 and, “we’re increasing the slope so that it is easier to maintain, mow and weed wack.”  
 
Litman said they located and repaired a footing drain on the earthen dam of #4 because the area had begun to fill in over time and is now draining properly. He noted that his crew has also been clearing away a few trees and brush in the area of the reservoirs, the spillway and the water plant, something that has not been done for about 20 years.
 
Litman said influent wastewater line of clarifier #3 has been fixed, “but we still have to revisit what we’re going to do with the backwash tank. I have Earth Care there once a month pumping and have still have not determined if it’s a line or pumps, but we’re working on it.”
 
Litman said the emergency generator for Mike Artega’s that the town received a month ago has been installed and is running.
 
Litman highlighted an advisory letter on sump pumps that was sent out in a mass mailing to residents.
 
“It is against the law to have a sump pump discharge into a sewer lateral. When that happens it becomes and I&I [inflow and infiltration],  which is an infiltration issue where it overwhelms our collection system and our wastewater plant,” he said.
 
Litman said people who received the letter, whether they have a sump pump of not, must contact the town to be put on a list. The town will be testing in the future and will find pumps that may be in violation. For more information or if help is needed, contact the Water Department at 845-691-2400. Supervisor Dave Plavchak noted that the town is purchasing a camera that will be used to check old pipes and drainage areas to see where water may be coming in and being processed by the plant rather than just sewage. A recent report the town received noted that the town has considerable I&I problems.  
 
Litman said the new water tank, “is working great. We’ve gotten through a couple of hiccups as an open hatch that wasn’t secured because the wind blew it open.” He said they also fixed a few electrical issues due to the transfer of equipment from the old tank to the new one. He said a date for when the old tank will be taken down has not yet been scheduled, “but it could be within the next month or so. I’m hoping to make it go away and everything will look nice up there and get it all finished.”
 
Plavchak said, “the good news is it’s in and yes it’s in service for the next 100 years.”