Prove That Trumansburg Needs a Second Water Source
David Filiberto’s greatest contribution to the Trumansburg Village Board of Trustees has proven to be his ability to examine the challenges Trumansburg faces, and ask the critical questions that no one else thinks to ask. Filiberto showed this ability at the most recent village board meeting, at which the issue of the proposed Water District 5 came up.
One of the arguments that’s been made for years by those who have been pushing for a fast approval of Water District 5 is that the new water district is necessary because Trumansburg is legally required to get a second water source, even though there has been no water crisis, or anything close to it, in the village.
At the last board meeting, Filiberto asked a simple question that no one else on the board had ever thought to ask: How do we know that Trumansburg is really required to develop a second source of water for its residents?
No one at the meeting could answer the question. No one could cite a source showing that there is any legal obligation for Trumansburg to get a second water source. Everyone had just taken it for granted that there was such a requirement.
I’m no lawyer, and I’m not a development expert. But, I repeat David Filiberto’s challenge here on Finding Ulysses:
Prove to me that Trumansburg is legally required to get an additional water source of the sort used to justify Water District 5.
I want proof, not just hearsay. Show me the documents. Show me the law.
I don’t just want to look at professional guidelines or suggestions. I want to see proof that the there is any law that obligates the Village of Trumansburg to develop another source of water.
It won’t happen, Jonathan, because the “law” probably doesn’t exist
Well, I’m not omniscient, or an expert in any related field, but I can recognize the significance of Filiberto’s unanswered question… and I can see that, so far, Barry Hayes and the usual suspects are not even trying to say that they have an adequate response.
New York State Public Health Law created the state sanitary code. The state sanitary has been adopted and is enforced by the Tompkins County Department of Health.
The law can be read here:
New York State Laws
See PBH for public health law
See Article 2 (Department of Health), Title 2 (Public Health Council), Section 225 (powers & duties, sanitary code). Paragraph 5 spells out what the sanitary code is meant to do.
The sanitary code has the force of law.
You can read the sanitary code at New York State Laws and Regulations
The salient portion is Subpart 5-1 (Public Water Systems). The particular provision is Appendix 5-A (Recommended Standards for Water Works).
The text is not online, but Tompkins County Health faxed me the pertinent information. Section 3.2.1.2 (Number of sources) reads:
“A minimum of two sources of groundwater shall be provided, unless otherwise specified by the reviewing authority.”
The reviewing authority is the county health department. They are apparently OK with use of Bolton Point water instead of ground water.
By the by, the section before this one (3.2.1.1 Source capacity) states: “The total developed groundwater source capacity, unless otherwise specified by the reviewing authority, shall equal or exceed the maximum day demand with the largest well out of service.”
This provision was cited by the Village Board of Trustees in their request (demand) that the quantity of water from WD5 be large enough to serve as a primary source, should the need arise.
The county health department (reviewing authority) specified that this volume was not necessary. The code gives them the power to do that.
Bill, thanks for the information. Does anyone have any reason to think that this code is not legally binding on the Village of Trumansburg, as Bill says?