October 8, 2009
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Hall secures final approval for Lake Oscawana cleanup funds
Rep. John Hall (D-Dover) worked to insert the funding into the fiscal year 2010 Agriculture Appropriations Bill. Without federal funding, the Town of Putnam Valley would have had to pass along the entire cost of this equipment on to local taxpayers. The bill also provides funding for public health, food safety, supporting rural communities, and conservation efforts.
The funding was passed by the House originally in July and has been included in the House-Senate conference report on Agriculture Appropriations. The House-Senate conference report passed the House by a vote of 263 to 162. The Senate is expected to pass the bill next week and then will be signed into law by President Obama.
Oscawana's water quality has been declining for the past 40 years, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation recently concluded that remedial measures need to be taken without delay. Federal funding will support the rehabilitation plan commissioned by the Lake Oscawana Civic Association.
The plan calls for removing existing phosphate in the lake and preventing new phosphate from entering the lake by constructing storm-catch basins and storm drains to capture phosphate from storm runoff.
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