I wrote desalination-or-obscurification-in-north-rockland, a blog about the United Water Suez desalination proposal almost 18 months ago, when I saw the first mentions of a desalination plant as a solution to the P.S.C. Rate Case United Water had recently settled. The Town of Haverstraw, always quick to latch onto a solid ratable, has positioned itself as the siting community. United Water Suez has made a commitment to the project, and are going through the permitting process post haste, and are still running behind their settlement schedule.

The public as always were late to catch on, but they may have waited a little too long to organize real opposition to the project. I say this simply because the arguments made against the project would rarely outweigh the benefits in the eyes of the P.S.C., local government, and the taxpaying public. The other unknown is the future of Ambrey’s Pond if Suez United Water no longer needs the land. Will it be sold and developed?  Will school taxes increase another 20%?  Will the Town of Stony Point and Suez United Water see eye to eye?  Click HERE to see how Suez United has worked with other counties to protect and preserve the environment in and around their watersheds.

So, whats the rush?

The rush is in the numbers. According to historical data, water use in Rockland County is rising. They look at both peak day demand (the highest water use day of the year) and average water use (average daily use for a year). Although conservation methods and other factors apply here, the numbers are increasing every year. There is a link HERE to see Rockland County’s projected water demands.

We got plenty of water, right?

It’s a fact of life, the water supply doesn’t recognize County or State borders, and strictly speaking, United Water doesn’t either. Even though we could argue all day about that, good municipal planning requires cold hard facts. Water demand in Rockland County is rising every year. Even if  we kept all of Rockland County’s capacity we will eventually run out, especially during drought years.

What many conservationist’s don’t acknowledge is that as the supply dwindles, the cost skyrockets. As the cost skyrockets, our local economy must pay the difference. There is no doubt in my mind that the price we pay today for water is well below its true ‘value’, and in the next 20 years or so, we will see the price of water worldwide skyrocket. The problems the world faces with the price of oil today, and it’s associated disruptions, pale in comparison with the looming Water Crisis. The fact is the world’s supply of fresh water is running out. Already one person in five has no access to safe drinking water. In my mind, if United Water can stick their little intake into the Hudson right here in North Rockland, the residents at least won’t be buying water from some where up in Canada, and paying $$millions for the price of poor municipal planning.

Why would we want 2 billion gallons of water above our heads?

Good question. Although the use of dams in this country for drinking water, irrigation, power production and such are de rigueur, who in their right mind would propose putting a dam up in the middle of a suburban New York neighborhood? Does a State where they regulate the kind of grease you can cook your french fries in seem like the kind of State that would permit such a project when there is a viable alternative that doesn’t include a worst case failure plan? My gut reaction is that it wouldn’t happen in a thousand years. Click HERE for regulations regarding dams in New York, and click HERE to read about the poor state of those same dams. Clich HERE for a list of Dams in New York State under construction and the deficiencies noted.

Whats the environmental impact?

If you ask me, it’s minimal. United Water is required, by law, to prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement. They have done this and you can see it HERE. They have also produced some drawings and conceptual work and have a WEBSITE to inform the public about the plant. So as long as United Suez or the Town of Haverstraw don’t do anything stupid to piss off the DEC, the plan looks somewhat bulletproof. Environmentalists can scream at the top of their lungs about the amount of energy needed to desalinate river water, the impact the water intakes have on the River, and the long term cost of disposing post process waste from the plant. Either way, I find it hard to compare these factors against a major water supply disruption, especially with the projected demand in Rockland increasing every year.

The future of  our groundwater.

Our ground water is safe, clean, and available today and it will be in the future. There is no doubt that United Water will continue to use the wells and lakes it uses today, and will not replace these sources at a much higher cost, just because they build this plant. That is why all of North Rockland should demand that United Water Suez leave the Ambrey’s Pond property as open space, for the simple reason it is our watershed, and we expect it to remain our main source of supply.

The desalination concept is one of replenishment and added capacity to existing supplies. Like having a ‘rainy day on demand’.  To think they will close all the low cost wells  just to start producing river water makes no real sense since desalination costs  far more than pumping and filtration. So as long as there is a cheaper alternatives, and the P.S.C. continues to regulate prices to reflect this, I would expect the public would be protected. The real time bomb here is that the PSC won’t have a chance if the water company needs to import the water. The cost of transporting the water is the wild card and the market will set that price, and we know how volatile those markets tend to be.

If  you ask me, I’d rather have a safe steady supply of water using a combination of wells, lakes, and the Hudson River to make us water independent before demand surpasses supply, and water costs $2.00 a gallon. I can’t afford a $20 shower.

Take a quick ride around the eastern shore of Ambrey’s Pond below.

The Town of Haverstraw has come to an agreement with United Water Suez concerning the desal plant down by the river. Supervisor Phillips has announced that the former landfill property on Beach Road along with riverfront property owned by The US Gypsum Company will be the permanent site of a desal plant.

I applaud Mr. Phillips and the Town Board for working with Suez United Water and others in securing this most important plant, and I hope that for many years we as a siting community will benefit from this 21st century ratable.

I still have a sinking feeling that in the long term, this ‘solution’ to the PSC rate case could cost us in North Rockland untold millions. The Ambrey’s Pond property in the Town of Stony Point I assume will now be sold and developed regardless of current zoning, adding an additional burden on the North Rockland School District. It would be nice if Suez were to leave the land in trust for future generations, but that would be wishful thinking. I guess the real impact of this whole project will never be known until we find out about the future of Ambrey’s, until the impact of all of Suez United Water proposals to Haverstraw Town have been revealed, and we get our first water bills.

As I have said any number of times here, the long term solution for a safe, secure water supply as well as settling of the PSC Rate Case could be had by simply siting a desal plant at the river. It just seems that a whole different group of environmentalists come out when these issues involve the Hudson River. I just hope Suez Environment and Haverstraw Town can battle Riverkeeper, S.P.A.C.E. , and the FUD these left-wing radicals employ. A safe secure supply of drinking water without a drastic increase in taxes due to the sale of Ambrey’s Pond are what the residents deserve. Let’s just hope this plan works.

The Complete Draft Enviornmental Imact Statement , including maps traffic, ect.

Here

Riverkeeper Testimony to the NY State Assembly

The times they are changing, and that includes where we get our water from. If you were to believe United Water Company, read the proposals and think about it, your probably convinced as I am that a new desal plant located on the Hudson River can supply Rockland with a safe and secure supply of drinking water for the future . Ambrey’s Pond, United Water’s property in Stony Point, isn’t really feasible anymore and who wants a billion gallons of water up hill from them any way?  United also has a gun to their heads in the guise of a Rate Case . They can comply, if they choose, without building a desal plant, but the pressure is on to provide us in Rockland with at least a steady water supply, without facing shortages while complying with all the other regulations currently on the books for Lake Deforest. Either way, if United can site the plant in North Rockland it will solve at least the basic supply problem, it will settle the rate case, and allow future development in the County without thought to water supply.

This whole story has yet to be told. Below are some links to the issue. With the cost of energy now twice the price it was last year, will the fuel costs associated with desalination make the numbers go upside down ?  The water produced by desalination still costs at least $2 per 1000 gallons , more than twice the cost of conventional water treatment. A large part of this cost comes from energy use, and this rate doesn’t take into account the large increase in the cost of energy over the last 6 months. Who said the environmentalists would roll over on this? And what about the waste these plants generate ? You know the media loves to write stories about shit , but yet they never asked what happens to Ambrey Pond in the end. There’s no doubt as it stands the Town of Stony Point has strict zoning for that property, but if United Water invests $60 M + on new technology down by the river, methinks the Courts may see things differently. Especially if United had shown good faith. Either way, that would be an epic battle for the Town of Stony Point.

The S.P.A.C.E. group. They deserve their own billboard on issues such as this. Even the testing building would have been a wonderful ratable .

Mr. Potanovic and the Sierra Club.

Do you want to drink Hudson River water? from the

TerraFirma Newsletter

The D.E.C. region 3 meeting in Suffern.

I still have to stick to my original point. Desalination is a great idea, but when these things involve the Hudson River, a whole different group of environmentalists take the stage. Not only that, I am quite sure the price of energy, the transport of waste from the plant, and the community opposition will change things. That doesn’t bode well for a quick resolution to our water problem, and maybe United Water knows that.