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A concrete wall is poured for the underground storage tank at Midland RTF
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Monthly report—September 2005
Harbor Brook public meetings held
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Work activities on the Midland Phase II project
during September included completion of pouring of
the vertical walls for the underground disinfection
tank that was begun in June and continued concrete
pours for the underground storage tank that began in
August: eight wall sections and four base slabs have been
completed. Dewatering of the site continues, and
installation of sheeting along the 144-inch pipeline route
continued.
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Work on the Tallman-Onondaga sewer separation
project has been completed. The contractor worked on
punch list items this month—some completed, some
remain to be done. All street restorations have been
completed. Installation of sewers is complete in all
four CSO basins, and cured-in-place liner has been installed
where designed in Onondaga Avenue in basin 046A and
along Eloise Terrace in basin 046B. This
project eliminated four existing combined sewer
overflows that previously discharged into Onondaga
Creek.
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Public information meetings on the Harbor Brook CSO Abatement Project Facility Plan (Aug 2005) were held on September 14
and 15. Over 700 notices of the meetings were sent to
area residents and interested community groups and
organizations. The public comment period on the draft
plan ends October 17 after which a responsiveness
summary will be compiled on the questions and comments
raised by the public. The next step in the process
will be a public hearing.
(ACJ Completion date for ammonia full-scale—11/3/03—Revision requested)
(ACJ Completion date for Phosphorus Removal Stage II—on schedule)
All major construction work on the project is now
complete, and contractors are working on remaining
punch list items.
Activities related to the start-up of the HRFS
phosphorus removal system:
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BAF effluent is flowing through the HRFS influent
channel, through all four trains and the effluent
channel.
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The 30-day performance test on the HRFS facility
began in February and was completed in March. Results
are under review and analysis by the County and the
project's consultant, EEA.
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October 1 is the target to initiate testing under
the next step of the phosphorus pilot study.
The ammonia-phosphorus removal upgrade to
Metro was fully completed in 2004. This project is
the largest and most costly single project in the
Amended Consent Judgment program and will have the
greatest positive effects on the water quality of
Onondaga Lake by removing more ammonia and phosphorus
from the Metro effluent discharge.
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Work is complete for sewer separation—Midland Avenue at Lincoln Avenue (Aug 2005)
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(ACJ milestone date July 1, 2012 completion of all sewer separation projects)
This project is now completed, and the contractor
worked on punch list items this month. Some punch list
items were completed; some remain to be done.
This project separated four combined sewer areas in
the Tallman-Midland-Onondaga Avenue area and eliminated
CSOs 038 and 040 in the Tallman-Midland area and
046A and 046B near Onondaga Avenue on the city's west
side. C.O Falter was the successful bidder on the
contract.
The total construction of the project is estimated to
cost $4.9 million with 70%-30% reimbursement from the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers. Under this project, new
sewers were installed, and in most areas existing
combined sewers were converted to use by stormwater
only. Now finished, these four sewer overflow
discharge points (038, 040, 046A, and 046B) no longer
discharge a combination of untreated sewage and
stormwater to Onondaga Creek.
(ACJ completion date—Phase II RTF—5/01/04 & Phase III Conveyance—5/01/07 Milestone revisions requested)
Work was completed this month on the placement of
vertical concrete walls for the underground
disinfection tank. Excavation and concrete pouring
continued for the underground storage tank including
completion of eight wall sections, four base slabs, and
partial pours on three mud mats. Installation of
sheeting for the wet well within the RTF footprint was
also completed this month. Additional sheeting was
installed on the east side of the wet well sheeting to
stop excessive groundwater flow into the wet well
excavation.
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At Midland, work on the dewatering wet well
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Installation of sheeting for the Bellevue regulator
structure is complete, and installation of sheeting
along the 144-inch pipeline has resumed beyond the
cemented gravel layer encountered elsewhere on the
route.
Dewatering of the site continued with daily sampling
and flow rates taken.
Upcoming work
Work anticipated for October 2005 includes:
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Continued excavation of the underground storage tank to subgrade
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Continuation of installation of the storage tank slabs and wall pours
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Continued sheet driving for the 144-inch CSO conveyance pipe
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Installation of bypass for 36-inch water line.
Midland Phase III activities
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Phase 1A and Phase 1B archeological work plan completed by subconsultant and under review by EEA
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Draft geotechnical data report completed by subconsultant and under review by EEA
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Draft supplemental environmental information document completed by subconsultant and under review by EEA
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25% plan and profile design continues—engineering report and basis of design being prepared
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Planning continues for part two of the geotechnical investigation program.
(ACJ dates—Commence construction of conveyances and RTF—May 1, 2003—Milestone revision requested.)
Following review of the comments received from the
State DEC (dated May 27, 2005) on the Clinton Street CSO Abatement Project Facility Plan (Feb 2005 draft) and
accompanying Clinton CSO Abatement: Environmental Information Document (Feb 2005), the County responded to the
comments in a letter dated July 22, 2005. The report
recommends construction of a regional treatment
facility using vortex technology and high-rate
disinfection with dechlorination at the Clinton
station site. Conveyance pipes will connect the CSOs
to the facility and also serve as inline storage. A
meeting was planned for October 7 with DEC to
discuss the draft plan and respond to questions.
Following completion of DEC review, the document will
be finalized and a public meeting scheduled.
The County is currently in the process of finalizing
the design contracts for the Clinton and Harbor Brook
projects. EEA was awarded the design services
contract for the regional treatment facilities.
CDM/C&S was awarded the design contract for the
conveyances associated with each project. Regarding
the RTFs, the contract for
Clinton RTF covers only predesign services including
the archeological and geotechnical work. The
contract for Harbor Brook covers all design
services.
The initial draft facility plan was released to the
public in March 2002. The revised Facility Plan includes a
specific recommendation for technology and siting.
The goal of the Clinton project is to
abate ten CSOs between Fayette and Adams
streets to be served by a Clinton area facility
located near downtown Syracuse. The Facility Plan
evaluates alternative technologies to address the
overflows and alternative sites for a
storage-treatment facility and includes a recommended
plan and site behind the elevated railroad tracks from
the Armory Square area.
(ACJ completion date for in-water system—7/1/02—Not implementable—Milestone Revision requested)
Public meetings held on Facilities Plan and Environmental Information Document
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One of the sites for a Harbor Brook CSO abatement facility, near Grand Avenue
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Public meetings on the Harbor Brook CSO Abatement Project Facility Plan (Aug 2005) and Harbor Brook Environmental Information Document (Aug 2005) were held on
September 14 and 15 at locations on the west side of
the city near the proposed project sites. In addition
to a direct mailing to over 700 residents and
community groups near the project sites, the County
placed paid advertisements in the Syracuse
Post Standard
and the Pennysaver newspapers. About twenty-five
people attended each meeting. The public was given
until October 17, 2005, to submit any comments or
questions on the plan. At the close of the comment
period, a responsiveness summary will be compiled.
Request for proposals issued for next steps
The County is currently in the process of finalizing
the design contracts for the Harbor Brook and Clinton
projects. EEA was awarded the design services
contract for the regional treatment facilities and
CDM/C&S was awarded the design contract for the
conveyances associated with each project. Regarding
the regional treatment facilities, the contract for
Clinton RTF covers only predesign services including
the archeological and geotechnical work, and the
contract for Harbor Brook covers all design services.
The initial draft Harbor Brook facility plan was
released in March 2002. The draft plan outlined and
evaluated alternative technologies and sites for
facilities to abate and treat the eighteen CSOs that
release to Harbor Brook. The revised Facility Plan
recommends specific technologies and sites.
The County continues to be an active member of the
Lake Partnership with participation in the Executive
Committee, the Project Committee, and the Outreach
Committee. Articles are written and photos supplied
for the Partnership's newsletter and work done in
preparation for the upcoming annual progress meeting
to be held November 2.
The following is a summary of the projects completed
under Appendix B pages 10-12 of the Amended Consent
Judgment. Each of these ten CSO-related projects had
a major milestone completion date of July 1, 2002.
Some of these interim projects were completed well
ahead of the major milestone date, and all except two
met the major milestone date.
The projects are listed below by date completed:
Sampling conducted this month included:
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Routine biweekly tributary sampling conducted on
September 7 and 30. The quarterly extended tributary
sampling was completed on September 20.
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Special weekly double lake samplings of the
nearshore and South Deep were completed on September
6,13, 19, and 27.
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No special high-flow sampling events were completed
this month. The County has already completed all five
of its required minimum of five annual tributary high-flow
events.
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Conducted monthly full three rivers sampling event
on September 15 in Seneca, Oneida, and Oswego rivers
to support completion of Three Rivers Water Quality
Model. Sixteen river buoy monitoring locations were
sampled along with three outlet sites and four WWTP
effluent locations (Metro, Baldwinsville-Seneca
Knolls, Wetzel Road and Oak Orchard).
Biological monitoring
The following fisheries-related sampling took place
as required under the AMP this month:
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Conducted events 4 and 5 of the juvenile seine
events (6 required) the week of August 29.
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Completed event 2 of the 2 required gill netting on
October 3 postponed from September due to high winds
on scheduled sampling date.
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Completed event 2 of 2 for littoral zone
electrofishing on the week of September 19.
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Initiated laboratory sorting of macroinvertebrate
samples collected in June 2005.
The County's Onondaga Lake Technical Advisory
Committee met on September 14 along with
representatives of Atlantic States Legal Foundation,
NYSDEC, USGS, and County staff. The meeting agenda
focused on the status of the Honeywell remediation
efforts, the County's 2005 AMP water quality data, and
an update on the development of the Lake's water
quality model. On September 13, the lake advisors
along with others attended a workshop on the lake
model which included breakout sessions to discuss
spatial, temporal, and process resolution that the
model needs to address salient water quality
management questions.
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Installing rebar at the location of the influent sump for the Midland RTF
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New contracts: None to report.
Amendments to existing contracts: None to report.
Change orders:
Full-scale ammonia/phosphorus removal:
Contract with Ridley Electric Company amended for
various modifications including rewiring pressure
switches, additional light fixtures, and providing
power and control wiring to overhead coiling doors.
Contract amendment amount: $90,031.00. Executed
9/6/05.
Action items of the County Legislature in September: No items.
Upcoming for October legislative session:
Approving the classification of a Type I action
under the State Environmental Quality Review Act for
the purpose of obtaining EFC funding, declaring lead
agency status, accepting the long environmental
assessment form, and making and declaring a negative
declaration for the biosolids handling improvements
Project.
Upcoming for October committee: No items.
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Pouring concrete: Midland RTF construction site at right, Onondaga Creek in center
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State Bond Act funds
Payments received this month from State Bond
Act funds:
Full-scale ammonia/phosphorus removal: Received request for retainage in the amount
of $4,733,120 on 9/23/05 for total received of
$47,331,203.
Total received to date in State Bond Act funds,
$85,051,323.
Federal EPA funds
Midland Avenue Phase II conveyances & RTF
Received requests in the amounts of $254,827
on 9/1/05 and $260,135 on 9/8/05 for total received of
$6,970,323.
Full-scale ammonia/phosphorus removal: Received request in the amount of $68,652 on
9/8/05 for total received of $51,277,064.
Total received to date in Federal EPA funds,
$58,247,387.
Federal Army Corps of Engineers funds
None to report.
Total received to date from U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers funds: $7,069,365.
The following reimbursement payments were
received from EFC during September:
Midland Avenue Phase II conveyances & RTF:
Received request #11 in the amount of
$919,956.45 on 9/2/05 for total received of
$15,000,000.
Total reimbursement monies received to date through
EFC loans for the funded ACJ projects: $159,069,198
(short term), $10,303,528 (long term).
 Chronology of project construction starts
Contractors for construction projects
Lake Improvement Project Office
Grants and loans applied for—not yet approved
Grants received
Financial status report
—Midland photos by Ken Jackson
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Susan Miller, Project Deputy Director
Onondaga County Dept of Water Environment Protection