BY JEFF CHUDZINSKINorth Country This Week

BRASHER -- Officials with the Department of Environmental Conservation and state Public Health Department attended a public meeting with residents along the Deer River who have vocally advocated intervention by the state to stop the pollution of the river.

DEC officials released a statement earlier this month which said the department determined the growth to be primarily Leptomitus lacteus, “a filamentous microorganism similar to a fungus.”

The growth was later identified to have come from North Country Dairy, a dairy processing plant along the river in North Lawrence that makes Greek yogurt.

No officials from North Country Dairy attended the meeting, claiming in a press release sent to NCTW that they were not given enough notice.

Just days after announcing the department's findings, officials announced that North Country Dairy was cited for polluting the river and killing fish.

That announcement was quickly followed with the announcement of a public meeting between DEC officials and local stakeholders.

Contentious start to meeting

Despite the efforts of DEC officials to address concerns through a public presentation, many residents in attendance were vocal and criticized what they felt was a late response by the state.

Region six Director Randall Young addressed those concerns, telling residents that the state has a long process to go through before getting to this point. He also told attendees that he understood their frustrations and admitted that something should have been done sooner.

"But we're here now and we want to find a solution," he said.

Regional Water Manager Matt Duffany also addressed numerous concerns from residents, walking them through the entire process from initial reports to the meeting on July 23.

"If you look at the numbers and just the numbers, nothing is out of the ordinary in relation to the SPEDES (State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit," Duffany said.

Duffany said DEC officials were informed of a red colored discharge in the river last June but the situation was quickly rectified and "within about six days the river was back to normal."

"When we first received reports of white material in the river, that's when we began to investigate. We knew that it was likely something completely different and that's when we knew the numbers did not necessarily match up to what was seen in the river," he said.

SPEDES Permit Renewals

Residents were also critical of the permitting process, questioning why the dairy plant was able to receive a "rubber stamped permit" every five years.

"It's the same permit from 2004. They said nothing changed but it clearly did over the last 20 years," one resident said.

Duffany also clarified the SPEDES permit process, saying the plant would self-certify the samples taken per DEC regulations, however the samples would be tested at an independent lab in Troy, NY.

"If they were to use tap water or attempt to alter the sample it would be very obvious when it is tested," Duffany said.

Microorganisms, or a lack there of, and other markers would be the tip off, he said.

Young followed up on the point, saying that of thousands of documents submitted it is exceedingly rare for someone to tamper with a sample.

"To do so is a felony. People have gone to jail over these things. They've lost their right to own firearms. They've lost jobs. When the samples and permits are submitted, one person's name is on them, not the facility. So, that person alone is in trouble, not the facility. No one is willing to stake their life or livelihood on falsifying documents like that," he said.

Residents also questioned if the DEC would issue a new permit with looser restrictions, which in turn would allow the dairy plant to continue to operate as it is.

But Young attempted to assuage those concerns, saying it would not even be legal to do so.

“We would not do that. It is not possible to issue a less stringent permit for a facility that has already been permitted,” he said.

Young told onlookers that the DEC would issue a modified permit with tighter restrictions and less output, if a new permit were to be issued.

Current steps being taken

As for the current steps being taken, Young said the DEC has issued two notices of violation in recent weeks to the plant.

"They know action needs to be taken and they know what the violations are. They were cited for the discharge as well as for killing fish, so it's two separate violations," Young said.

Residents said that isn't enough though, saying the DEC needs to do more to stop them from polluting.

"Are they still able to dump into the river?" one resident asked.

"Yes, they are still allowed to operate. For us to just shut them down is an extremely difficult process and it's the last thing that we want to do," Young said.

A plan has since been pitched to plant officials, according to Young.

"What we want to do is to stop the pollution that is currently happening, to rectify that situation first and foremost," Young said.

Regional Attorney Jennifer Dougherty spoke to the current steps being taken, noting that the DEC would litigate with the plant if necessary.

"That is ultimately not what we want though. We hope to have a plan in place that we can all agree upon so we can avoid a lengthy process like that," she said.

Young chimed in, saying that the plant is able to take action immediately if they so choose.

“It is our hope they are already taking corrective action. If they are wise, they are already working on that,” he said.

Remediation efforts could vary 

Just how can the DEC remediate the situation was another topic raised by attendees, with some questioning whether the river would be able to rebound.

Regional Fisheries Manager Jana Lantry touched on those questions, saying that the majority of fish and other wildlife in the 12 mile stretch of river that has been affected most likely moved further down stream.

"This happened over an extended period of time. It gave the fish time to migrate further down the river. Once it begins to clear up and the crustaceans and other smaller organisms begin to inhabit that stretch of the river again we think the fish will also come back," she said.

The idea of dredging the river to remove a black sludge that has settled on the bottom of the river was also raised, however Regional Engineer Gary McCullough said that may not be the best solution.

"Once we stop the source of pollution we will know more but dredging could potentially do more harm than good. I know the original thought would be to dredge the bottom of the river but sometimes that is not the best course of action," he said.

Young commented on the question as well, saying that using a chemical to treat the affected area, as some suggested, could also have a negative impact.

"It takes extensive research to find a solution like that. We could use something organic to treat it but we need to study the wildlife in the area to find a solution that would not impact any of the specific species. That is a very slow, difficult process and a lot of research," he said.

Young spoke of a situation in Herkimer County he encountered years ago in which a municipality accidentally discharged chlorine from a water treatment facility directly into a trout stream, instantly killing all fish over a significant stretch of the river.

"Obviously the municipality was horrified and they even offered to pay for remediation, to pay to have the river stocked again. Biologists said that wouldn't be necessary and the river would rebound, which it did not long after," he said.

“Our main goal right now is to stop the pollution. If further remediation is necessary we will obviously take action but right now we need to stop the pollution, first and foremost,” Young said.

Is the river safe?

While many questioned if the natural habitat would ever restore itself or would require more help, James Gurrola questioned whether the river water is potentially contaminating resident's wells.

"How do we know if this is in our wells? Is it seeping into the groundwater? Because I can tell you those lagoons are not working the way they're supposed to," he said.

New York State Department of Health District Director Ronald Sheppard said that shouldn't be an issue with soil acting as a natural filter.

"The water from your well comes from groundwater, not river water. The soil around it should act as a natural filter as well, that's how they are designed. So, if you do test and find irregularities it would most likely be an issue with the well itself and how it was made," he said.

Residents also questioned whether it was safe to fish or swim in the river, with many speaking to generations of residents doing so.

Sheppard said residents should follow DOH guidelines for fish consumption, however he could not offer a definitive take on swimming in the river.

"Every body of water has microorganisms that can make you sick by ingesting them or by entering through an open wound. Obviously, we would say to swim in DOH tested waters but safe is not always quantifiable," he said.

In the meantime, many residents said they would no longer recreate in the river, whether through fishing, kayaking, canoeing or swimming.

"Just say it isn't safe, that's all we need to hear. It's really simple," one resident chimed in.

Praise for DEC

Despite a contentious tone throughout the majority of the Q&A by attendees, Gurrola offered praise for the DEC officials in attendance.

"I want to thank each of you for coming here, for speaking with us and for informing us. We aren't here to beat you guys up over this. We need your help. This is our community, we live here and we want to be able to enjoy our community. We aren't against you at all, we are with you guys and we just want to be able to live normal lives," he said.

DEC officials did not specify if further punishments would be coming in the future but Dougherty did say that the plant had "about two to three weeks" left to respond to the DEC's plans to address the violations.