Fort Drum Sewer Line

Watertown to Fort Drum Sewer Line  

One of the Authority’s first projects was to construct a wastewater line between Fort Drum and the city of Watertown. The pipeline was successfully completed in 1987. Wastewater is pumped from Fort Drum to the City of Watertown sewage treatment plant for treatment. The Authority owns a pumping station, known as Warneck Pumping Station, at 23557 NYS Route 37 in the Town of Pamelia that helps safely pump the wastewater approximately three miles for proper treatment.

By the mid-1990s, it was clear that the sewer infrastructure in the communities nearest Fort Drum needed to be updated, as sewage was being discharged to the Black River. Water and sewer districts are formed around the people that use those services and those people pay a user’s fee. Typically these districts are located within a single municipality. In this case, because of its regional reach, the Development Authority was able to bring five communities together in an unprecedented alliance that meets their wastewater needs and provides the capacity for growth and economic development. The robust system now serves Fort Drum and four town sewer districts in Champion, LeRay and Pamelia. Oversight of this line’s operation is provided by the Route 3 Sewer Board, which is comprised of representatives of the municipalities that benefit from and fund the line.