Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Water Quality topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident urges town-led response after tests find high fecal coliform at Courtland Lake
Summary
A Continental Village resident told the Philipstown Town Board that pre‑Memorial Day testing showed fecal coliform levels about 30 times the regulatory limit at Courtland Lake, prompting a month‑long beach closure. He urged a multi‑jurisdictional workshop with Putnam County health officials and neighboring towns to identify and address failing septic systems.
Continental Village resident Jesse Lovers told the Philipstown Town Board that water tests taken before Memorial Day showed fecal coliform levels roughly 30 times the regulatory limit at the beach on Courtland Lake, forcing the beach to close for about a month.
Lovers said Putnam County Department of Health conducted broader testing that found elevated counts in inlet streams and at the beach and that local sampling of nearby septic systems was inconclusive. "Before Memorial Day weekend, we had elevation or levels of fecal coliform like 30 times the limit," he said, pressing the board to coordinate a workshop to identify likely sources and next steps.
Board members and Lovers discussed likely causes, including failing older septic systems in the lakeside neighborhood, warmer and shallower lake conditions that can worsen blooms, and heavy rains that may temporarily overwhelm septic systems. Lovers noted prior county and DEC programs that supported septic upgrades in other watersheds and suggested the town explore options such as subsidized testing or targeted replacement programs for failing systems.
Town officials said they will reach out to the Town of Cortlandt and Putnam Valley and to the Putnam County Health Department to convene a small working group before next season. The board agreed to facilitate communication and asked Lovers to collect historical closing data and testing history to share with health authorities.
Next steps: the board committed to contact neighboring jurisdictions and county health staff to plan a workshop; logistical details and potential funding approaches were left to follow‑up between staff, the resident and county health officials.
