BROCTON Upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant in Brocton have given rise to a unique situation for the village of Brocton.
Longtime operator at the Brocton plant, Al Feser, was on hand at the regular monthly meeting of the village board to explain that with the new and improved ultraviolet light treatment process that will now handle the village's wastewater, his current license of operation will need to be supervised.
"With the Department of Environmental Conser-vation laws changing for licensure, my license is not sufficient to run the new sewer plant," Feser said.
Feser attended the meeting with Paul Fisher, a plant operator from Sherman, whom he introduced to the board noting meeting the licensure requirements to run Brocton's upgraded facility will require Feser to work underneath Fisher's license until he is fully credentialed.
A nearly 18-month process for Feser to be credentialed will call for Fisher's Grade 3 operating license to cover Brocton once the plant is fully online with the new system.
Feser will also be required to take courses and training to obtain the same Grade 3 license in addition to being supervised under Fisher's license.
"Thirty years ago, our current RBC system of treating wastewater was state of the art for this type of operation," Brocton's Mayor Dave Hazelton added, noting the new ultraviolet way of disinfecting wastewater of microorganisms is more common today.
In other business:
The village board members scheduled a July 2 date for a joint meeting with the Portland Town Council to discuss shared agenda items. The open meeting will begin at 7 p.m. to be held at the Portland Town Hall.
The mayor and trustees also officially inked an agreement with the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Department, effective immediately and expiring on May 31, 2013 for enhanced police protection for Brocton.
Mayor Hazelton noted the contract is unchanged from the previous contract year, with the exception of the budgeted amount, which is down approximately $8,000 from last year.
Board members, with the exception of Trustee Dale Van Vlack who abstained, voted to approve the contract during Wednesday's meeting.
The board will meet again on July 18 at 7 p.m. at their Village Hall meeting quarters.
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