If Fredonia doesn’t do something about its water system health violations quickly, it could get fined up to $2,400 a day by the state for each one.

That was just part of the stark report on Fredonia’s water system offered by the Chautauqua County Health Department in a presentation at a village Board of Trustees meeting.

The problems, including three boil orders since 2020, spurred Mayor Douglas Essek to declare a state of emergency over the water system later in Monday’s meeting.

Health officials assured Fredonia users their water is safe to drink — for now. They also repeatedly promised to work with Fredonia officials on a concrete plan to fix water system problems, such as at the treatment plant. That was about the only light in a presentation full of dark news about the water infrastructure.

“It’s time to stop doing engineering studies and address what’s wrong with the water system,” county health department senior water specialist Natalie Whiteman told Fredonia officials. She later added, “We can’t wait months or years to make it happen. The system is too fragile.”

“Unfortunately, we’ve seen repeat significant deficiencies with the Fredonia water treatment plant and some of these … date back to 2008,” said Jessica Wuerstle, county environmental health director. “We just want to make sure we have your attention and highlight some important aspects that need to be highlighted.”

Whiteman said a May 23 inspection of the plant, conducted with state Department of Health officials, identified multiple repeat significant deficiencies.

The village has until Sept. 30 to send the county health department a written plan on how it will address the deficiencies. The deficiencies must be corrected, or the village must comply with a corrective action plan, by Nov. 15. Otherwise, it faces regulatory action at the state and federal levels.

Essek closed Monday’s presentation and discussion about the water system with a statement that ended with his state of emergency declaration.

He read a lengthy list of water system concerns, dating back to 1998, to make a point that the problems are the result of long-term apathy about the water system.

“We’ve had all these studies all these years and we’ve done nothing with them. We’ve done nothing at all,” he said.

Essek again pushed for improvements at the reservoir dam and spillway, another water storage tank, water main infrastructure renovation, and a new interconnection with the city of Dunkirk that could handle all of Fredonia’s water needs in an emergency.

“To obtain this goal, and to not make it so that we’re not kicking that water bottle down the road, as of (Tuesday), I will declare a state of emergency,” he said, before reading out the declaration.

The order is for 30 days and may be extended for another 30 days. Water is currently safe to use, Essek said.

“I cannot rely on hesitation from anybody any further and I am taking this matter into my own hands,” he said.

“Don’t throw us under the bus,” commented Trustee Michelle Twichell.

“The new trustees … knew coming into these two years here that water was the main concern of village residents and it needed to be addressed,” Essek replied. “I’m not throwing anybody under the (bus), I’m making sure there is no more hesitation on these matters.”