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U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan announces $750,000 federal grant to upgrade Wappinger’s Hilltop water plant
Summary
U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan announced $750,000 in federal assistance to help the Town of Wappinger upgrade the Hilltop water treatment facility, fund membrane filtration to lower operating costs and address localized PFAS contamination affecting one well, officials said.
U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan announced that he secured $750,000 in direct federal assistance to help the Town of Wappinger modernize filtration at the Hilltop water treatment plant, officials said at a July 10 event.
Town Supervisor Joseph D. Cavasini said the funds will pay for a new infiltration and filtration system designed to reduce annual operating and maintenance costs, improve efficiency and allow currently idled wells to be returned to service without raising property taxes. "This facility ... will allow us to improve our efficiency when it comes to delivering one of the most vital services a government can offer to our residents, and that is clean drinking water," Cavasini said.
Ryan framed the award as part of a broader effort to update aging municipal water systems and cited public-health concerns that helped motivate the investment. "We secured $750,000 direct, federal assistance to the town to make sure that this investment can be made in clean safe drinking water without adding to the property tax burden," Ryan said. He also noted that "the PFAS forever chemical contamination situation ... has affected this site," and said upgrades would help remediate those issues.
Michael Tremper, president of CAMO Pollution Control and contract operator for the United Wappingers Water District, described the technical changes the grant will fund. He said the district serves more than 10,000 customers and that typical daily use is about 1,200,000 gallons, rising to roughly 1,600,000 gallons on weekends. Tremper said the town's current cartridge filters are costly disposables and that the upgrade will allow the plant to use membrane filters that clean themselves and route backwash to municipal sewer, cutting replacement waste and recurring expense.
On PFAS and PFOA testing, Cavasini said the town had two "flare-ups" of PFOA at this site that were isolated to a single well—one before he took office and one last year—and that a re-test showed no PFOAs on the second test. "There is not a PFOA issue here," Cavasini said, describing the incidents as isolated and noting the town moved quickly to test and respond.
Officials stressed the grant will improve cost-effectiveness and system resiliency but will not change the permitted volume of water the well field may draw. Tremper said the upgrades "are not going to change the amount of permitted water that can be drawn from this well field," adding the work is focused on operating efficiency and regulatory compliance.
Ryan credited town staff and county partners for rapidly preparing the application and described the outcome as a bipartisan success. Town officials invited attendees to a site tour once federal funds are formalized; Cavasini said they will demonstrate the filter change-out when the congressman "comes with the check." The town did not announce a timeline for installation or the exact federal program that provided the funds.
What’s next: officials said they will coordinate follow-up site visits and provide additional technical details about timeline and procurement as the project moves into implementation.
