Armed with a National Emergency Grant and 60 workers hired through an arrangement with the State Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Schoharie County plans to spend the next three months cleaning flood debris from the Schoharie Creek.
And if the money holds out, its tributaries as well.
The grant will reimburse the county for up to $701,000 to purchase the necessary equipment for the cleanup and for project supervision, said Zachary Thompson of Planning & Development.
A separate DOL grant will pay the wages of the laborers.
Removal of the debris will be done by hand and with hand-operated tools under the guidance of the Schoharie County Stream Team.
The contract runs through September 30, Mr. Thompson said, but there's one key point:
Private landowners must go to their village or town clerk and sign an application and a release if they want the work crews to be allowed to come on or cross their property.
Completed applications must be mailed to the Schoharie County Soil and Water District, 108 Holiday Way, Suite 2, Schoharie 12157.
This project is different from the one funded in part by a grant through the Natural Resources Conservation Service through the USDA; that work will focus on almost $23 million in stream stabilization.
The Stream Team's cleanup will focus on removing vegetation and things like plastic, tires, and other debris along the 37-mile Schoharie Creek channel.
If time and money hold out, workers will then move onto 20 miles of tributaries, and finally, to the Catskill and Charlotte Creek and their tributaries.
"What's really important is that people sign the necessary releases," Mr. Thompson said. "Workers won't be able to go on private property without them."
For more information, contact Mr. Thompson at 295-8770.