Maybrook has initiated an effluent disinfection project that carries an estimated cost of $1.4 million. The village board voted recently to bond up to that amount, but a $383,680 Water Quality Improvement Project (WQIP) grant from the N.Y.S. Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) will help offset the project cost. Village Engineer Sean Hoffman said the village also intends to utilize American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds it has received.

Hoffman explained the project involves utilizing ultraviolet light to disinfect treated wastewater. The DEC currently permits Maybrook to discharge wastewater to a wetland east of the railroad tracks, which is a tributary to the Otter Kill. The new effluent disinfection system will improve the water quality by reducing potential pathogens in the wastewater treatment plant discharge.

The new system will be housed in a 35x20-foot structure at the rear of the existing wastewater treatment plant. The village expects construction to start in early spring. The project includes two contracts, one for general construction and one for electrical. At a meeting earlier this month, the village board awarded each of the two contracts to firms that were the second lowest bidders because, Hoffman explained, both bids included “discrepancies which were significant and required the village to reject those bids and move on to the next lowest bidders. Gallo Construction was awarded the general construction bid for $1,044,000. Sausto Contracting was awarded the electrical bid for $49,800.