When the Generic Environmental Impact Statement on Capacities of the Cooperstown Region (GEIS) is released later this month, it will present residents with a detailed picture of the an area that is facing many decisions about how its future will be shaped.

The study, almost two years in the making, was designed to examine the current environmental conditions and issues of the Cooperstown area; identify locations that have environmental sensitivities and limitations for new building, analyze the area's capacity for future growth and offer mitigation measures and alternatives that could be taken.

To achieve that goal, consultant Nan Stolzenberg and her staff used a broad definition of "environment" that included 20 subject areas ranging from geology to the impact of tourism on the region.

The GEIS encompasses the towns of Middlefield and Otsego and the village of Cooperstown. The towns of Springfield and Hartwick were asked to participate, but declined, however, both were included in the geographic area of the study. The cost of the study was expected to run as high as $100,000 and was underwritten by an anonymous donor or donors. The town of Middlefield acted as the lead agency for the study and town of Middlefield Planning Board Chairman Dr. Henry Weil acted as the liaison between the donor(s) and the municipalities involved in the study.

Before the public gets a look at the document, town supervisors Bill Gates of Otsego and David Bliss of Middlefield and former village mayor Wendell Tripp want a chance to introduce the GEIS to members of their respective town and village boards and planning boards. "Giving them the heads up is proper," Gates said in a meeting Monday morning to discuss how to handle the release of the document.

That process could begin next week as boards start their monthly meetings and is expected to be finished before a formal release of the almost 250-page document in a press conference scheduled for May 21.

When the study was first suggested in November 1999 by National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum President Dale Petroskey, it was billed as a way to help determine the 'carrying capacity' of the area's current infrastructure and resources.

The area is at a "crossroads," and if decisions are made without the facts, we could be going down the wrong path, Petroskey said at the time.

Stolzenberg and local officials may conclude in the yet-to-be-released summary that the area has reached its capacity, but they are not commenting on the study until the press conference later this month.

Last October, Stolzenberg told officials in a meeting that the Cooperstown region is beginning to reach the limits of its environment and infrastructure. "The area is pretty much at capacity for all these things right now," she said. "The village has no capacity for growth because of its infrastructure and the lack of available land and Otsego Lake is already at its capacity."

One example of the limiting factors faced in the village can be found in its wastewater treatment system. According to the most recent version of the GEIS, which was obtained this week through a Freedom of Information request, without additional wastewater treatment capacity, there can be only limited expansion of service to homes and businesses.

Beyond the treatment plant's ability to process wastewater is the limit created by the Susquehanna River.

"Ultimately, the limiting factor is the ability of the Susquehanna River to dilute the discharge from the village system," the report states.

Another instance is the village's drinking water that comes from Otsego Lake. The most immediate limitation it places on growth is the capacity of the water treatment plant which is approximately one million gallons per day, but in the long run the lake itself may be a limiting factor in the foreseeable future.

It is possible, the report states, because the flow of water out of the lake must be maintained at 11 cubic feet per second in order to satisfy the requirements of the wastewater treatment plant down river, that during drought conditions water withdrawal uses for growth may have to be curtailed.

Not all of the area's infrastruture is strained, however. One thing not at capacity is the network of roads in the area. There is some reserve capacity to handle additional traffic loads although delays have become an issue along Route 28 during certain times of the year.

Besides enumerating current conditions and issues, the GEIS also looks at mitigation measures and municipal strategies and policies which could be used to decrease or avoid environmental impacts of growth.

One of things Stolzenberg and her staff suggest is that the areas municipalities work toward the development of a regional comprehensive plan.

"There is a strong need to establish more lines of communication between the different towns in the area and with the village. There is also a need to further the understanding that what one community does impacts the others, and it does so in a cumulative manner," the GEIS states.

Mitigation could also come in the form of regulations such as zoning and land use laws or in a non-regulatory manner through the use of techniques such as binding management agreements, incentive programs technical assistance, land and easement acquisitions and leaseback agreements.

Once the GEIS is released, there will be a period for public comment that may be as long as 60 days. When that is finished, Stolzenburg and her staff will address each of the comments and those responses will be incorporated into what will become the final GEIS.

The public may request copies of the GEIS following its release later this month. For those people not interested in the entire document, executive summaries will also be available. It will also be available on CD and on Stolzenburg's website.

Copies of the GEIS will also be placed in area libraries and town and village offices.