BRUTUS - No outdoor furnaces can be set up within the town of Brutus for the next six months as a moratorium was established on Monday by the town board, 4-1, with Jeffrey Hinman voting against.

The vote amends the town zoning law and establishes Local Law No. 5, the moratorium, which has no impact on existing systems.

Hinman had earlier said that maybe the whole town should not be included in the moratorium because the main concern was the effect of outdoor furnaces on the village, which has a high-density population.

Town clerk Mary Kae Brentlinger has 10 days to file the paperwork with the state; once the state receives it, the moratorium will go into effect. An enacted moratorium may be extended for another six months.

The moratorium allows the planning board to examine the issue and develop guidelines for outdoor furnace installation.

“Outdoor furnace” is defined as “any device, appliance, equipment apparatus or structure that is designed, intended and/or used to provide heat and/or hot water to any associated structure that operates by burning wood or any other fuel, including, but not limited to, paper pellets and agricultural products, is not located within the structure to be heated, and includes, but is not limited to, devices referred to as wood furnaces, outdoor boilers and outdoor stoves.”

The board acted on recommendation of the Joint Town of Brutus-Village of Weedsport Planning Board. It had identified public health and safety issues concerning outside furnaces that were raised by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and independent researchers. The joint planning board may hold special work sessions on the regulations.

The moratorium was considered at the last board meeting, but the town waited for a response from the county planning board, which sent a letter saying it had no opinion because the issue wasn't intermunicipal.

In a letter to The Citizen, Jim Sullivan, planning board member, clarified that “Brutus Code Enforcement and Zoning Board of Appeals should be contacted to review and comment on any draft the Joint Planning Board presents, prior to submission for the Brutus Town Board to act on.”

He also said laws in other towns will be reviewed for comparison, with the most recent being Lysander in Onondaga County.

At the last meeting, James Hotaling, town supervisor, said he hoped the ordinance would be in place by mid-December or January.

In other news:

* The board heard a report on East Brutus Water District No.2 from Bill Kinch, water operator. Kinch said he had tracked water loss in that district at the pumphouse for nine days and at Kenyon, Route 5, Shady Brook, and Hillside. After making his calculations, there were still 38,000 to 40,000 gallons of water unaccounted for.

Kinch still had a couple of theories to consider. When water samples are taken, they are thrown away, but the town still has to pay for them. Also, he plans to check if the pump has a stop valve to prevent a backflow or if the same water is counted again. No leaks were found.

The town could install a valve in every house 7 or 8 inches before the water goes through the meter at a cost of $50 per house in 112 homes. That way water that flows at one gallon per minute through the meter, as in a slow leak, would be metered once the pressure built up. The meter doesn't move for that little water loss now. The town has reserve monies that could pay for the valves.

* The low bid of $14,000 for construction in Water District No. 7 came in at $30,000 less than the $44,000 estimated cost. The town will now go out and bid the pipes.

* The permit for cell towers expired Oct 9 and electrical inspection has not been completed. The town agreed to give the company a 30-day extension.

* The board unanimously agreed to give $500 to the Cayuga County Veteran's Service Agency. There are 27 vets in the town.

Staff writer Kathleen Barran can be reached at 253-5311 ext.238 or kathleen.barran@lee.net