Town moves closer to landfill cleanup


AMENIA — The Town Board took an important step forward at its meeting March 22 by hiring a remediation consultation firm to aid with cleanup of the former Amenia Landfill.

 

How the landfill was closed


Early last decade, a department investigation showed that the landfill, which has been in operation since the 1950s, held toxic materials. The organization closed the landfill in the late 1990s because of the dangerous waste.

This February, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) held a landfill public hearing at Town Hall. All comments, whether verbal or written, were compiled into a record of decision (ROD), or a plan of attack, for remediation.

The DEC’s recommendation, which the town said it would follow, is to dredge the site’s pond and wetland, placing toxic sediment on the ground and capping it with an impermeable layer.

The DEC settlement states that the Amenia Landfill Group, an organization of 10 companies and municipalities that once used the landfill, and the state of New York will provide funds for cleanup.

The board, along with the help of their landfill attorney, Kimberlea Rea, distributed a request for proposal, or RFP, in order to hire a remediation firm.

The town of Sharon, Conn., one of the 10 members of the group, will be responsible for the yearly monitoring and maintenance of the impermeable cap.

When hired, the remediation firm will have a very close relationship with the DEC, which will cover roughly three-quarters of the remediation costs.

 

Town Board makes its move


 

 

Last Thursday night, Rea said she had settled on a remediation consultation firm and advised the board to seek its services.

The firm, C.T. Male Associates P.C., of Latham, N.Y., was also highly recommended by Malcolm Brown, the town of Sharon’s first selectman.

"I would, in the interest of time, ask for your authorization to go forward with contractual negotiations with C.T. Male," Rea said before the board.

Janet Reagon, the town of Amenia’s supervisor, made a motion to thaat effect, which was seconded by Wayne Euvrard, councilman.

"This was a very hard decision," Reagon said to the crowd, adding that she thinks the firm out of Latham is the best one for Amenia.

Rea said she’s never seen such a high quality proposal.

Reagon’s motion was accepted unanimously.

The Town Board meets next on Thursday, April 5, at 7 p.m.

 

Last Thursday night, Rea said she had settled on a remediation consultation firm and advised the board to seek its services.

The firm, C.T. Male Associates P.C., of Latham, N.Y., was also highly recommended by Malcolm Brown, the town of Sharon’s first selectman.

"I would, in the interest of time, ask for your authorization to go forward with contractual negotiations with C.T. Male," Rea said before the board.

Janet Reagon, the town of Amenia’s supervisor, made a motion to thaat effect, which was seconded by Wayne Euvrard, councilman.

"This was a very hard decision," Reagon said to the crowd, adding that she thinks the firm out of Latham is the best one for Amenia.

Rea said she’s never seen such a high quality proposal.

Reagon’s motion was accepted unanimously.

The Town Board meets next on Thursday, April 5, at 7 p.m.

Latest News

Club baseball at Fuessenich Park

Travel league baseball came to Torrington Thursday, June 26, when the Berkshire Bears Select Team played the Connecticut Moose 18U squad. The Moose won 6-4 in a back-and-forth game. Two players on the Bears play varsity ball at Housatonic Valley Regional High School: shortstop Anthony Foley and first baseman Wes Allyn. Foley went 1-for-3 at bat with an RBI in the game at Fuessenich Park.

 

  Anthony Foley, rising senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, went 1-for-3 at bat for the Bears June 26.Photo by Riley Klein 

 
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

Keep ReadingShow less
Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

Keep ReadingShow less