Authorities say a sewage treatment plant in Sullivan County has discharged dirty wastewater daily for at least 15-months into a 47-mile stream that feeds into Wallkill River.

The Department of Environmental Conservation says millions of gallons of untreated and partially-treated sewage has been dumped into the Shawangunk Kill stream in Bloomingburg since Nov. 2022. The discharge location site is 4 Main St., according to the DEC.

The state agency says the village was first notified of “multiple sewer system failures” causing the release of 120,000 gallons of effluent a day during an inspection on Nov. 9, 2022. Inspectors found it was still a problem a year later.

Activists with a local conservation group say private water samples taken last week show high levels of fecal matter and e-coli in the stream.

The DEC says the system failure is due to an overload of non-biodegradable wipes that are clogging filters, valves and pumps.

Village of Bloomingburg officials have not returned News 12’s call and e-mail requesting information and Village Hall was closed on Monday.

A notice outside advises residents not to flush anything but toilet paper and indicates that a recent sewer repair cost $6,000. Folks in the area say they’re concerned that the issue hasn’t been fixed.

“There’s nothing proactive around here. Things get pushed to the side and nothing gets taken care of,” says Patty Bechtold.

The DEC says their “enforcement is ongoing” but hasn’t revealed to News 12 what’s being done.

A state notice issued to the Village of Bloomingburg last November lists 11 violations at the sewage treatment plant for a variety of issues, including disabled and non-working screen, valves, pumps and filters, as well as “rag-like material,” “odorous discharge” and a “visible contrast in water quality” in the stream.

The document says the village can face penalties of up to $37,500 per day for each violation.