Wallkill River: Village of New Paltz Sewage Discharges

After a local environmentalist documented and revealed a system-wide failure of the antiquated storm and sewage system in the Village of New Paltz, Riverkeeper investigated and confirmed a series of Clean Water Act violations. For years, village neighborhoods have complained of sewage leaks after rain events, caused by overflows of the decaying and over-utilized network of storm and sewer pipes in the village. These sewage discharges create health hazards to residents and flow directly into local streams and the Wallkill River, a tributary of the Hudson.

After Riverkeeper filed a notice of intent to file suit under the CWA, the State Department of Environmental Conservation entered into an administrative Order on Consent which binds the Village to a timetable to identify and correct their sewage woes.

We have been cooperatively negotiating and consulting with the Village to ensure that they meet the milestones in the DEC Order and seek a long-term solution to the sewage problems facing the Village.