Save Colonie: A Partnership for Planning has been working for five years to increase transparency and government accountability to residents of Colonie. Our town is now faced with arguably the most consequential decision in a generation, but little information has been provided to residents. When asked directly, the town board and supervisor have not responded. We deserve better.
The purpose of this blog is to provide information we’ve obtained and raise questions for our officials to answer publicly. We believe this process is necessary before a wise decision can be made about selling Stony Creek Reservoir or any other valuable town asset. Here is the first article:
ARTICLE 1: Where your water comes from.
Colonie’s Latham Water District owns a raw water source in the Town of Clifton Park, the Stony Creek Reservoir. (It’s not unusual for a town to own property in another place: New York City’s reservoirs are in the Catskills and there are 20 municipally owned reservoirs in the Capital Region.) Until recently, Stony Creek was permitted to supply 5 million gallons per day (MGD) of water to Colonie. Mohawk River is permitted for 30+ MGD, and the well fields along the Mohawk are permitted for approximately 5 MGD. Unless you live in Menands, like some of our town officials, you are drinking Mohawk River water, treated to neutralize e coli and other dangerous pollutants. That’s chlorine you taste, to kill fecal bacteria.
1. What problems have there been with using the Mohawk as our primary water source?
Chemical discharges?
Knolls Atomic Power lab discharges?
Upstream Sewage Overflows?
Direct sewage discharges?
Upstream agricultural runoff?
Seasonal water level reductions?
Albany County Airport de-icing operations?
Upstream Colonie sewage treatment plant discharges?
2. What hazards, if any, are associated with the breakdown of chemicals from chlorination and disinfection?
Learn more about the Stony Creek reservoir and the town’s proposal to sell it on our webpage.
SAVE Colonie is not opposed per se to the sale of our Stony Creek Reservoir. But without the complete answers to these and other questions, and the data to back them up, it is not possible for residents or for the Town Board to make an informed and rational decision. Sale of a raw water source in a time of climate crisis and development growth in Colonie should be given the highest level of scrutiny - especially when the administration pushing the sale is about to leave town for good.