Marcellus, New York Water Supply
Rockwell Reservoir
The Rockwell Springs water supply has served the primary needs of the Village of Marcellus
since its development in 1908. Prior to this time, the Village of Marcellus utilized a series of
wells and individual springs within the Village for its water supply.
granted approval to develop the spring supply including the construction of a 600,000-gallon
storage pond created by the installation of a dam across the outlet. The yield of the supply
was measured during 1908 and estimated to be approximately 200,000 gallons per day.
It should be noted that the Syracuse Weather Bureau shows that 1908 is the driest year on
record with only 26.96 inches of precipitation recorded.
Rockwell Springs
The source of water at Rockwell Springs is from ground water springs surfacing in the
bottom and sides of the ponds. Geological studies of the area indicate that natural
depression in which the springs occur was formed during the receding of the massive ice
front during the Glacial Age. Melting waters moving along the face of the ice mass in an
east-west direction eroded the soft shale bedrock creating this melt water channel. Although
the exact source of the springs is unknown, most probably the springs are a result of small
quantities of water moving through the surface layer of glacial till over a very large area.
When this water reaches the bedrock layer, it moves laterally along this confining layer
until reaching the surface outlets at Rockwell Springs.
Fencing
In 1912, the Village contracted to build a four-foot fence completely enclosing the Rockwell Pond,
for $250. The contract guaranteed the fence structure for 20 years. In 1999, the fence, having fulfilled
its contract, was replaced with a new eight-foot fence. The cost was dramatically different - $16,000. -
but the effect has been even greater protection for the Village water supply. When the original fence
was installed in 1912, the local Boy Scout troop in Marcellus decided to plant a number of saplings
on the banks of the pond. In the years since, those saplings have risen to great height and offer even
more protection to this natural watershed.
Total annual consumption by the
559-metered customers in 1980 was
approximately 50,000,000 gallons
or an average of 138,000 gallons per day.
That figure has risen dramatically in the
last twenty years.
The number of metered customers rose
to over 860, as parts of the town were
added to the Village water supply and the
addition of the Village of Marcellus Water
Pollution Control Plant to the Village
supply in May 1982 with an annual
consumption of about 6 million gallons.
This has resulted in an average daily rate
of about 175,000 gallons per day,
Water Tank
The Village has since enlarged the storage capacity of Rockwell Springs to 1.2 million gallons and
in 1949-50 installed a 250,000-gallon storage tank above Highland Drive west of the Village. This
water tank was reconditioned in the early 1970s. and needed some surface preparation and
repainting in 1990. The Village also added chlorination and metering building downstream of the
springs to chlorinate the water supply, and in 1987, the Village of Marcellus, having come under a
consent order from Onondaga County, agreed to add fluoride to its water supply.
Water Fund
The Village’s primary means of financing the annual costs of owning and operating its water system
is through revenues derived via user charges and credited to the Water Fund. Should the revenues
not meet the expenditures required to own and operate the system, the Village must draw upon its
taxing and assessment authority and meet the balance through its General Fund. Marcellus residents
are billed quarterly for their water usage.
Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA)
The Village of Marcellus is also connected to the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) at the
Marcellus Booster Pump Station on North Street within the Village. This water source has been used
periodically as a standby source to supplement Rockwell Springs since its connection in the early
1950’s.In recent years, the quantity of water purchased from the OCWA has substantially increased
as production from Rockwell Springs has gradually decreased. In 1981, the Village contracted to
have the upper two ponds of Rockwell Springs cleaned of sediment that had accumulated over the
years in an attempt to uncover the spring sources that feed the storage ponds. Unfortunately, the
water production rate has continued to decrease creating an increased purchase demand from the
OCWA. Whether the cause of the problems is related solely to dry weather and may correct itself
after normal precipitation resumes or is a more permanent problem caused by damage to the
springs during clearing adds difficult to the problem.
Conclusion
In recent years, the public water supply for the Village of Marcellus has been
labeled as “ground water under the influence of surface water.” Because of this
classification by the New York State Health Department, the Village of Marcellus
has been forced to look at other options for its water supply, including the
possibility of abandoning Rockwell Springs. What has been quite successful
as a public water supply for the Village for almost 100 years may eventually be
eliminated in favor of other sites, including full connection to the Onondaga County
Water Authority system.
and an annual consumption of about 65,000,000 gallons. At present, there are no plans to add more
customers to the Village water supply, which includes about 5.5 miles of water pipe and the use/maintenance of 59 hydrants.
Water
Department
Established 1853
