MONROE – In the center of the downtown area of the Village of Monroe are two ponds separated by a street. The two waterbodies are popular for walkers and joggers who do laps around them.
The ponds have fallen victim over the years to invasive species, algal blooms, and excessive silt.
Work to begin the remediation process will now begin with a $565,000 infusion of cash from the State Senate, delivered Monday by Senator James Skoufis (D, Cornwall).
Mayor Neil Dwyer said the ponds are attractions for the village, but also environmentally sensitive.
“We get thousands of visitors a day that come through here. They just walk the ponds for some peace and quiet and for some opportunity to reflect on a day. We want the ponds to be that tool that they use and it’s important to have quality of water in the ponds to do that,” he said.
The mayor said downstream, those ponds are a source for water systems that run down into Rockland County and New Jersey.
Skoufis said the village will have to contribute to the funding to meet the cost of the remediation.
