Hinchey promises Swinging Bridge will rise again

But probably not in time to rescue this year’s summer season

By FRITZ MAYER

FORESTBURGH, NY — Congressman Maurice Hinchey told reporters on Monday that officials at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) have said the water level in the Swinging Bridge Reservoir will be raised again.

“They said the water level would be raised gradually, perhaps by this fall, and I have no reason to doubt their sincerity,” Hinchey said.

But on Thursday, March 2, at a meeting at the Forestburgh Firehouse, Gus Tjoumas, FERC director of dam safety, said he could not guarantee that the water would be brought back to its previous level. Mirant, the company that generates electricity at the reservoir, has applied to FERC to surrender its license to produce power.

A walking tour

Hinchey walked to the center of the dam with several reporters and photographers for a first-hand look at the project. He said that the electricity produced is a valuable commodity, and would increase over time as energy prices rise. He said he hopes a way will be found to continue to utilize the facility for that purpose.

Hinchey also took the opportunity to take a swipe at President Bush. He said, “We don’t have an administration in Washington that is meeting the challenge of maintaining infrastructure.” Dams such as the one at Swinging Bridge are infrastructure, he said.

Studies are ongoing

FERC and Mirant completed “phase one emergency repairs” to the power-generating dam at the reservoir on March 15. Phase two of the repair project is expected to be completed this summer. Meanwhile, “hydraulic and hydrologic” studies are being performed to examine the potential for property damage and loss of life downstream in case of a major flood. The results of the study are due on March 31.

Recreational activities on the reservoir have been banned since a sinkhole was discovered in the Swinging Bridge Dam in May 2005. Recreational activities were also banned at the Rio and Mongaup reservoirs, located downstream.

The water level of the reservoir was drawn down 45 feet at the time, to prevent any possible breach of the dam. Mirant, which owns all three reservoirs, is actively looking to sell them.

Sullivan County Chairman Chris Cunningham, who accompanied Hinchey on the dam walk, said the momentum to have the reservoir filled to the top is going in the right direction. He said he believes, however, that in the long term, the reservoirs will come under public ownership, perhaps in a partnership between the state and the county.