"Orange Goo" found by NYS DEC Region 3 Solid Waste (Landfill) Inspector at Village of Saugerties Landfill on Ulster Avenue. A "Significant Impact" was determined by visual inspection and remediation will be required. Village Mayor Yerrick recently relieved neighboring property owner of $17,000.00 in back taxes and passed a law to purchase part of neighbor's contaminated property this past March. Village Board Meeting resulted in no plan of action or report made to DEC officials concerning the "Iron Floc" that colored the water flowing from underneath the landfill.
Below is the unedited DEC report -
Facility Name/Location:
Village of Saugerties Landfill, Ulster County
Date of Site Visit:
May 7, 2008
DEC Staff Present:
J. Giordano
Persons Interviewed:
N/A
Background Information:
This inactive landfill was used by residents of the Village of Saugerties
for disposal of solid waste beginning in 1969. It is not known when
regular disposal activities ceased at the landfill, however a review of
DEC records indicate that the landfill was operating as late as 1978.
There are several monitoring wells situated at the landfill site, however
the details of their construction and the current subsurface condition of
the wells are also not known. Additionally, the size of the landfill is
unknown however, based on topography and vegetation is estimated as
approximately 7 acres. The landfill is located at 169 Ulster Ave. (NY-
32) and is adjacent to the defunct “Weekend Liquidators” warehouse
store.
Purpose of Site Visit:
This inspection was conducted in response to a complaint received by
DEC from a member of the local community.
Notes:
See attached photos.
Required Follow-up:
Violations of 6 NYCRR Part 360 (New York State Solid Waste
Management Facility Regulations) were noted during this inspection
pertaining to the following: presence of exposed solid waste,
unauthorized disposal of solid waste, and uncontrolled discharge of
solid waste leachate to surface water. Solid waste staff will transmit this
inspection report to the Village and begin discussions on corrective
actions which must be taken to address the regulatory violations at the
site.
Report Prepared by:
J. Giordano
Report Date:
May 12, 2008
Figure 2: The orange deposits seen in this photo are iron flocs which are typically associated with surficial discharges of landfill leachate or leachate-impacted groundwater. There is a spring emanating from the toe of the slope of the additional landfill area (inset photo) which is the source for this large area of iron floc deposition. At the time of the inspection, this particular spring exhibited a very high flowrate. Also note the eroded slope and exposed solid waste in the foreground and in the inset photo. It is possible that the source of the spring is a damaged drainage structure or natural groundwater discharge area.
Figure 3: The side slope of the additional landfill area has eroded, uncovering solid waste including but not limited to household garbage, furniture, lumber and concrete.
Figure 4: The Village operates a yard waste management area on the footprint of the old Village landfill. This area includes an active street sweepings landfilling operation, storage areas for yard waste, as well as recently deposited solid waste including furniture, tires, garbage, and construction & demolition debris. There is spring and associated area of iron floc deposition emanating from the toe of the landfill.
Figure 5: The southern portion of the Iron floc deposition area (wetland) extends South to Route NY-32.
