Town of Spencer

SPENCER TOWN BOARD TOLD BY EPA TO FIX HIGHWAY BARN'S DRAIN SYSTEM:

The Spencer Town Board received an unpleasant surprise recently.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent the town a registered letter saying the town highway barn on East Tioga Street is in violation of regulations because the floor drains do not meet anti-pollution standards for collecting fluids and solvents that drain off the trucks or are used by the highway crew. The EPA gave the board until July 14 to seal the drains and provide picture documentation of the sealing. The drains are believed to flow into a dry well, but no one knew for sure if there is a collecting tank of any kind.

Under pressure of a deadline three days off, the Spencer Town Board voted on July 11 to authorize Town Supervisor Arvo Rautine to hire a qualified engineering firm to investigate the current drainage system and come up with a remediation plan that meets EPA code. TG Miller recently did a similar job for the town of Danby, with a roughly $70,000 price tag. “This can get ugly,” said Town Supervisor Arvo Rautine. “We didn't budget for this expense.”

In the past, the town has talked about building a new barn for the highway department. That option may be discussed again, depending on the findings of the engineers. The new drainage system must separate oil and heavy metals from wastewater for the five drains, so the pollutants can be contained and then pumped out later for safe disposal.