The River Reporter Online - Letters to the Editor

[EDITOR'S NOTE: The River Reporter welcomes letters on all subjects from its readers. They must be signed and include the correspondent's phone number. The correspondent's name and town will appear at the bottom of each letter; titles and affiliations will not, unless the correspondent is writing on behalf of a group.

Letters are printed as they are received, or at the discretion of the editor, and without correction to grammar or spelling. It is requested they be limited to 500 words; correspondents may be asked to cut longer letters. Deadline is 1:00 p.m. on Monday.

Since your letter was printed, several seniors who are not in National Honor Society have told me that they did not agree with what you said in your letter; it did not speak for them. So, before you sign as the “Rest” of the Senior Class, you should make sure you are actually expressing their feelings.

While on our Honor Society trip, besides going to Great Adventure, we toured Wagner College, went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, went to Ellis Island and saw a Broadway show. It was a very educational trip. We were also held accountable for all schoolwork missed while we were on the trip.

I am as saddened and angry as anyone about losing our senior trip, but refusing to attend the Honor Society Trip would have served no purpose. Many seniors, including Honor Society members, attended board meetings, fighting to keep the senior trip. That was when we were showing our leadership, honor and character, while trying to preserve an over 30-year tradition at Eldred. You are right to question the reasons given by administrators and board members. They did cite legal issues. Why don’t the same legal issues pertain to other overnight trips? I don’t know, but you should not be angry with your classmates. Your argument is with the school board and administration.

Kristen Borstelmann
Senior Class Vice President
National Honor Society Member
Eldred Central School
Eldred, NY

We have a major environmental problem in the Sullivan West (SW) School District.

The Sullivan West high school site in Lake Huntington is a mosquito-infested waterhole. Rumors that have circulated countywide for over two years about toxic waste and illegal dumping on and around the site appear to be true.

Having received SW Superintendent Michael Johndrow’s permission to walk the site at any time, I finally decided to do just that. Somehow, I doubt if Mr. Johndrow, BOCES Superintendent Martin Handler or any of the SW [original] school board members ever bothered to check the site out before they acquired it.

What I discovered is that the property is surrounded on three sides by major swamps and much of the actual property we own is, itself, mosquito-infested swampland.

While there was a countywide “NO BURN” order to reduce forest fires, and soil in most areas had been reduced to dry powder, this property had water all over it [May 4, 2001]. Wetland signs are posted throughout this property; the mosquitoes are unbearable. Would you want your kids subjected to this?

Since you can’t legally eliminate protected wetlands swamps of this size, every student and faculty member at the new high school will be continually exposed to West Nile fever which is transmitted by mosquitoes. This has been in Sullivan County already and can cause death.

There are even more public health issues involving this site. Extensive illegal dumping has taken place on this property for decades. The signs are obvious. Bottles, cans, rusted scrap metal, 55-gallon metal drums, commercial milk calls, the ruins of at least one old car and a separate engine, chemical containers, septic system, rusted out cans of what appears to be lead-based paint (bottoms fall off when can is picked up), etc. are scattered throughout the Sullivan West Nile property for about a quarter of a mile. The litter is everywhere.

Samples of the materials found on the site were taken for laboratory testing. Photographs were taken of the above dumping grounds.

These are just surface indicators of major dumping. We have no idea of what is buried underground or that is submerged underwater in the beaver ponds. We have had anonymous phone calls and letters recently to where things are buried and unknown contents in the containers.

From what we could see, the flags for the core sites (if any) are currently missing. Large amounts of foundation rubble and construction action debris are either on or next to the property. Such materials are now considered toxic by state.

The Sullivan West site presently has three sets of ditches on all sides and down through the center to drain the property. Much of this property will be under water in normal weather conditions. What happens when the property is leveled off with bulldozers and grass is seeded? Where will the massive amounts of runoff go? From what I can see, it is obvious that tremendous amounts of sediment from the newly worked ground will wind up in Lake Huntington with or without catch basins.

How is an unpolluted Lake Huntington going to survive all runoffs and sediment deposits from the new site during major storms? This is a situation which could contaminate the lake for many years to come.

From what we see now, much of the toxic debris on the site will ultimately be buried under the new building or the playing fields. With water tables so high, you can expect contaminated water containing toxins to seep through the foundation and floors of the new buildings. That could mean different cancers, asthma reactions and other pollution-related diseases for students and staff in the near future.

As you can see, we are faced with the possibility of creating a love canal, environmental hazard in our own school district with taxpayers’ money which will jeopardize the health of future generations. Shouldn’t something be done about it before it is too late?

My wife and I, along with our 13-year-old daughter, have been planning to move up to our house in the area for the last four years. This coming year, our daughter will be entering ninth grade.

In anticipation of our move, we explored the Delaware Valley Central High School a few years ago, along with the Roscoe High School. Both schools were satisfactory. Small, intimate, with caring teachers which is just what we wanted.

Then last year, we found out about the Sullivan West merger. We contacted Mr. Tony Wayne recently and examined the property the new high school is scheduled to be built on with Mr. Wayne. We were shocked.

The only good thing about the property is the view. We couldn’t believe the swarms of mosquitoes and other bugs that infest the building site, let alone the garbage.

From what we were able to see, this property is a former dumping ground and totally unsuitable for a school building.

We found out that the structure will be adjacent to protected wetlands, which are fine for insects but not a proper environment for children; that is, unless you plan to use insecticide on the place regularly.

Apparently, no one cares what is happening here or this site would not have been selected.

You have to judge people by their track record. If the site selection process was this poor, what else is wrong with the plans for the school? Remember, school construction companies are notorious for cheating the public and installing substandard equipment if they can get away with it.

Based on what we have seen, there is little likelihood that the health and safety of local children will be adequately protected at this location.

We have decided to send our daughter to another school since we can’t be guaranteed her health and safety will be properly protected at Sullivan West.

As a resident of The Bronx, NY and the Honesdale/Beach Lake area of PA I often stop in Milford to buy gas and a have a bite to eat.

After reading the remarks of the politically correct spineless Tri-State Unity Coalition concerning Mr. Hauser and his right to fly a piece of history (the Confederate Flag), I will pass Milford in the future. I for one am sick and tired of groups which would deny America its history, and certainly the proud men and women who died for the South are a part of America, like it or not. May God bless Mr. Hauser and what remains of America!

NEEDED: Class-action law suit against NYC to protect Delaware/Broome County trout fishery and loss of economy from low water flows from NYC reservoirs.

WANTED: Good lawyer with the guts to fight the powerful NYC water commission and to protect the trout fisheries and economy of upstate NY. This is a battle that has been going on for 45 years since the first water supply dams were built to supply water for NYC. Water in all the dams, but no cold water releases for the best trout streams on the east coast. The East and West Branches of the Delaware River over the years, TV, DEC, DRBC, etc. have all tried to deal with the NYC commission and have gotten no place. Only a 160 cfs min. release from 1 June to the end of September has been established. 16 cfs is not enough cold water flow to protect the Upper Delaware trout fishing and provide for sufficient stream protection during the summer months.

What we want is simple. We need a minimum flow of 800 cfs from May to Sept. at Hancock’s Junction pool. This amount of water can include rain, overflow from the two dams and bottom releases from the dams. Also, it would include runoff from the Beaverkill River. We would like bottom releases of water to come from both the Cannonsville and Downsville dams. If this can’t happen, at lease we would like it from one of these dams. We need cold-water releases (50 degree approximately) to protect the upper Delaware River. This, in turn, would protect the total upper river system. We do not want the majority of the water flow (1750 cfs min. in NJ) to come from the lower Delaware River (Lackawaxen River, Mongap, etc.). This would do nothing to protect the Upper Delaware.

The DRBC has only confused matters by trying to accommodate the whims of the five states that have their own various pet projects for the Delaware River. TV and the NY DEC have not the power to rule over the NYC commission.

We have the Yellowstone Park of the east in our own back yard and NYC does not want to provide any water. The last time I checked, the city was still part of New York State. Let’s fix the leaking system and get some water meters in the city. They make money; isn’t that what NYC’s all about?

I urge you to call your state senator and/or congressman to help us in this fight. We need the little guys to win this battle against the big bullies of NYC. It will make us all feel good to save and protect upstate New York.

Delaware River Coalition 607/637-3220, Jim Serio 570/224-6969, Gillespie Ngillespie@T.V.org

U.S. Offices: Senator Charles Schumer 607/772-6792, Congressman Maurice D. Hinchey 773-2768

The recent page one article about the formation of a Catholic-run community in the area is disturbing. While I am a person who firmly believes in freedom of personal belief and the rights of guaranteed individual spiritual choice, the formation of a complete community founded upon the rules of one faith and organized over articles determined by leaders from a pulpit is quite un-Constitutional.

Questions rise over things such as the following: Who will be in charge? Washington or Rome? Which laws will be followed? Those set by the government or the bible? Where is assistance coming from? Albany or heaven?

After all, historically in the 1800’s, NYS had already seen the rise of a theocratic society at Palmyra. The followers later moved on and then settled in the frontier. Eventually, before being allowed to join the Union, that group was required to open the borders of Utah to faiths other than Mormonism.

Thus, why, and how can our area, in the 21st century, allow a religious controlled township to be established and create a location for theocratic inspired discrimination?