Bank of river won't be stabilized
The Watertown City Council has decided to let Mother Nature take her course.
Lawmakers said they will go against a recommendation made by the state Department of Environmental Conservation and GYMO Architecture, Engineering & Land Surveying, Watertown, to stabilize an eroding Black River bank.
The barrier's design would have cost the city $18,750, which doesn't include construction or installation. The council rebuffed the groups, saying the request was not only unfair but, according to Councilman Peter L. Clough, "lunacy."
In June, city representatives and Edward P. Blackmer, DEC Region 6 solid and hazardous materials engineer, toured a portion of Bicentennial Park along the Black River thought to be a dump site that included mercury-filled thermometers.
The park is behind the Watertown Municipal Arena at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds.
"Upon seeing the test pits, Mr. Blackmer was satisfied that there was not a contaminated disposal area," City Planner Christine E. Hoffman wrote in a memo to the City Council. "There are a few broken, but empty thermometers along the shore, but in no great quantity and none were found in the test pits."
The dump site, with the help of bottle collectors digging into the ground, is eroding faster than the surrounding area.
That's when Mr. Blackmer, apparently at GYMO's request, asked that the nearby bank be stabilized because of extensive erosion.
"That doesn't make any logical sense," Councilman Jeffrey M. Smith said at a work session Monday. "Do we have to go dump stone back in the river because the bottom has gotten eroded over the years, or if a tree falls down in a forest do we need to plant another tree? That's nature."
"Only if the DEC sees it and tells us we do," City Manager Mary M. Corriveau replied.
Mr. Blackmer said Friday that he has made no such demand and that he is an "in-between guy with the city and GYMO."
The engineer said he agrees with GYMO's recommendation but "the DEC is not demanding that they do anything."
GYMO has submitted a quote of $18,750 to design a plan to stabilize the bank.
"I don't think we can afford this nickel and dime stuff," Mayor Jeffrey E. Graham said. "You gotta pay an engineer to do this or sweep up some thermometers, which most of us would sweep up and throw away. I would recommend not doing anything; let it get nasty."
The council's inaction toward the recommendation leaves questions about whether any results will come from a year-long study being performed by GYMO at the city's request.
The engineering firm was hired by the city in December to perform an erosion study of the Black River. The $26,500 study is funded from a larger state Environmental Protection Fund grant.
The report will label unstable river banks, adjacent construction projects and drainage discharges. It will suggest locations to construct reinforcing structures like gabions, riprap or retaining walls.
Mrs. Hoffman said the report likely will be ready this winter.
As for the thermometers, Mrs. Hoffman said the site of the former Black River Brew Pub, 456 Newell St., was home to a thermometer company at the turn of the 1900s. Either the company's wares were dumped at the site or the thermometers were washed downriver.
