FRANKLINVILLE, N.Y. (WKBW) — Earlier this week, we told you that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation launched an investigation into a significant fish kill along Ischua Creek, a popular recreational waterway in Cattaraugus County.
Now, the DEC says that it has directed the Great Lakes Cheese facility in Franklinville to take immediate actions to address ongoing impacts related to the discharge of organic waste to Ischua Creek.
"The facility today advised DEC it is pausing the operations of its discharge outfall to Ischua Creek," the DEC said in a release early Friday evening. "The actions follow reports earlier this week involving visible effluent discharge and odors from the facility’s outfall to the creek and a significant die-off under ongoing DEC investigation that is affecting tens of thousands of fish and many aquatic species."
According to the DEC, it is requiring Great Lakes Cheese to:
- Implement a suite of operational improvements and enhanced monitoring to immediately address effluent exceedances from its wastewater treatment process
- Improve the quality of the facility's digester operations
- Continue data collection to fully assess impacts to the creek
The DEC said the New York State Department of Health and Cattaraugus County Health Department are evaluating whether there might be potential impacts to wells in the area immediately adjacent to the plant.
"At this time, there is no indication of impacts to drinking water supplies," the DEC said. "Local water systems have been notified and are taking precautionary monitoring steps. The County Health Department is conducting limited sampling from a few private wells in the area. Residents with private wells who have questions about any potential impact can contact the New York State Department of Health at bpwsp@health.ny.gov or reach out to the County Health Department. The State Department of Health has information about private wells on its dedicated website, Private Wells."
The DEC, along with the state Department of Health, issued a joint advisory Thursday urging the public to avoid all contact with the creek downstream of Franklinville. That includes recreational activities such as fishing, boating, and swimming. Authorities have emphasized that, at this time, there is no evidence of any impact on public drinking water.
“Ischua Creek is a vibrant, healthy ecosystem and the environmental damage witnessed this week is significant. As DEC’s investigation continues, we’ve directed Great Lakes Cheese to prevent ongoing impacts to the creek to help protect water quality and creek habitat. DEC and our partners at the Department of Health will continue to coordinate assessing any potential public health impacts and encourage the community to follow the recreational use advisory that remains in place at this time.”
