Electric Trail makes connection

RAVENA-COEYMANS-SELKIRK — They may still be a couple of months away from graduation, but the list of the top 10 students in the Class of 2023 at RCS High School has been announced.

This year’s valedictorian is Sulamita Voronko and the salutatorian is Howard (Brady) Engel.

Students ranked No. 3 through 10 are, respectively: Jenna Grogan, Ian Brisco, Elizabeth Robertson, Colin McDermott, Maximilian May, Emily Robbins, Sara Hotaling and Elizabeth Baldes.

Here are the top 10 students in the RCS Class of 2023:

Digital mapping project mandated under federal law

By Melanie Lekocevic

Capital Region Independent Media

RAVENA — Village workers are going door-to-door seeking information on residential water lines to comply with a new federal mandate.

Village Foreman Henry Traver said at the Jan. 17 meeting of the village board that the Department of Public Works is required to obtain photographs of water service lines into all homes to help determine residences that have water lines made of lead or copper.

“Starting next week, my guys will be going around door to door doing the lead/copper inspection,” Traver told the board. “These are federal mandates that we have to go around and do by October of this year and try to get as much information as we can to see who has lead and copper in their houses.”

According to a letter to residents from the DPW, residents can help facilitate the process by taking photographs of their home’s water connections and submitting them to the village clerk’s office. Requests were sent to all water system customers in their last two utility bills.

“This request was due to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently making revisions to the Lead and Copper Rule for local drinking water sources,” according to the DPW letter. “Within these revisions is the requirement for all water providers to develop an inventory of all service lines in their systems to identify potential sampling locations and to better communicate with residents and property owners that are or may be served by lead service lines to inform them of the actions they may need to take to reduce their risks.”

The photos, taken either by village employees or the homeowners themselves, will help to create a digital map of the municipality’s water system connections.

“This is the beginning,” Traver told the board. “We need to do all the houses on the inside and then we can do spot checks on the outside at certain locations to see what areas have copper, what areas have lead. I believe by 2025, we have to start replacing these service lines. It’s going to be another big cost to the village unless we get grants for this.”

“Of course, these are mandates that have to be done,” Traver added.

Traver and DPW employees have been meeting to come up with a strategy for getting the project done.

“We are way ahead of the game,” he said. “There are many municipalities that haven’t even looked at it yet.”

The response from residents to the request for photographs has been good, he said.

“We have gotten a lot of responses when we sent these letters out with the billing,” Traver said. “There are several hundred people who have responded with pictures already. It will take a lot of the burden off of us.”

As DPW workers make their way around the village seeking access to homes for photos of the water connections, Mayor Bill Misuraca asked that they have proper identification with them

“Please make sure our guys have their IDs on a lanyard,” Misuraca said. “I would also suggest they have a sheet with the mandate on it.”

For residents that are unavailable during the day but want a DPW worker’s assistance with obtaining photos, an appointment can be made with the department by calling 518-756-8233 weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

“We may have to do some night work, but we will work that out logistically later on,” Traver said.

Residents who take their own photographs can email them to ravlinecheck@gmail.com. The email address is monitored by village employees.

According to the DPW letter sent to residents, “The vast majority of properties in the village of Ravena water district do not have lead lines.”

Residents who do have concerns about possible lead exposure can take the following steps, according to the DPW:

• Use only cold water for drinking, cooking and preparing baby formula. Hot water dissolves lead more quickly.
• Flush your pipes anytime water has been unused for more than four to six hours. Lead levels are highest when the water has been sitting in pipes. Run your cold water for three to five minutes to ensure complete flushing. Discoloration of water is not an indicator of lead.
• Routinely clean faucet screens, which can accumulate lead and rust particles.
• Use a water filter that is certified NSF 53 to remove lead.