Posted on August 17, 2017
By Robert Harding, auburnpub.com
Cayuga County has received federal approval for the Owasco Flats restoration project, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved federal wetland permits for the project. The county needed the permits to advance the restoration work.
A spokesman for the Army Corps of Engineers said Monday that an unvalidated permit was sent to the county Thursday. The next step is for the county to review the permit and, if they agree to the terms, sign it and return it to the agency.
The Army Corps will then validate the permit. Once the permit is validated, work may commence.
The state issued its permits for the restoration initiative in July. But it couldn’t proceed without federal approval. That’s when Cuomo and Schumer, D-N.Y., intervened.
Schumer visited Owasco in July and urged the Army Corps of Engineers to expedite its review process and approve the permits. Days after Schumer’s visit, Cuomo sent a letter to the Army Corps’ Buffalo district office supporting the Owasco Flats restoration initiative and calling on the agency to quickly approve the work.
“The Owasco Flats restoration project is a critical tool for local officials to beat back algal blooms and protect the county’s largest source of drinking water — which is why I asked the Army Corps to act fast when granting necessary approvals,” Schumer said Tuesday. “Today I am pleased to announce the Army Corps has heeded our calls and delivered federal permits that will allow this long-awaited project to begin.”
Cuomo added that he’s pleased the Army Corps of Engineers is “fulfilling its duties” by signing off on the project.
“I am directing state agencies to assist the county to expedite the implementation of this critical project and help make a stronger, healthier New York for all,” he said.
The restoration project is years in the making. The state awarded the county a $712,500 grant for the first phase of the work in 2011, but the project has faced regulatory hurdles.
The goal of the initiative is to reduce sediment plumes and prevent algal blooms from developing in Owasco Lake. Basins will be constructed to prevent nutrients from flowing into the inlet and, eventually, Owasco Lake.
Now that the permits have been awarded, the bidding process may begin. Bruce Natale, an environmental engineer for Cayuga County, said Tuesday that the project will be advertised in the next week and bids will be due by mid-September.
The Cayuga County Legislature may award the bid by the end of September.
There was a new development in the project after the Army Corps of Engineers’ review. The county will be required to survey reed canary grass in Owasco Flats. Because reed canary grass is considered an invasive species, the county must monitor it so they avoid spreading it to other areas.
Staff from the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s regional office in Syracuse will assist the county with the invasive species survey.
Source: auburnpub.com
