MONTICELLO – On Thursday, January 22, the Sullivan County Legislature passed a resolution to execute a contract with Labella Associates, an architecture and engineering firm based in Rochester, to conduct a countywide study of groundwater resources. The resolution authorized the Legislature to spend $200,000 on the study to learn more about the aquifers under the surface of Sullivan County’s 997 square miles of land. 

The action was moved by District 5 Legislator Cat Scott, seconded by District 9 Legislator Terry Blosser-Bernardo, and passed by a 6-0 vote, with Legislators Matt McPhillips and Brian McPhillips abstaining and Legislator Joseph Perrello absent.

Matt McPhillips, who abstained from the vote because his father is a contractor for Labella Associates in a division of the company unrelated to groundwater, applauded the move, saying, “I think this is going to be an awesome thing for the county—to be able to know exactly what our resources are, where they are and how we can best use and protect them. This is going to be really transformative.”

District 2 Legislator and Chair Nadia Rajsz added, “We’ve been talking about this for a long time as well, so thank you for getting this off the ground.”

Planning Commissioner Heather Brown said the Labella contract has yet to be inked but that the scope of services will include “establishment of historic conditions and background development, hydrogeologic analysis to evaluate current conditions and challenges, and recommendations for improvements, which will include a hydrogeology report, groundwater planning recommendations report, and training and education materials.” 

Brown anticipates a project timeline of approximately 12 months and said the Department of Planning’s goal is to provide municipal leaders with a better understanding of Sullivan County’s groundwater resources. 

“The data collected and evaluated will hopefully better inform our boards about the land’s capacity to support development,” said Brown. “And that information can then be incorporated into the decision-making process as far as what areas may be better suited to support more intense development, versus other areas that should be considered for conservation/preservation efforts in order to protect resources in the long term.” 

Brown hopes that the data, coupled with the ongoing assessment of potable water and wastewater treatment infrastructure, will help local officials make smart investments in municipal infrastructure.