Long Island is about to replace its cesspools and septic tanks. Nassau County has 140,000, Suffolk 360,000. Suffolk intends to launch a pilot program that will deploy 400 units over the next two years. Albany is chipping in with $2 billion to address the issue at scale. Yet more will be needed, but everyone, seeing the problem, is stepping up. At the same time that we do this, we need to stop polluting our waters with lawn fertilizer and pesticides.
Long Island is about to replace its cesspools and septic tanks. Nassau County has 140,000, Suffolk 360,000. Suffolk intends to launch a pilot program that will deploy 400 units over the next two years. Albany is chipping in with $2 billion to address the issue at scale. Yet more will be needed, but everyone, seeing the problem, is stepping up. At the same time that we do this, we need to stop polluting our waters with lawn fertilizer and pesticides.
DID YOU KNOW THAT THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS OF CESSPOOLS AND SEPTIC TANKS ARE SEEPING NITROGREN INTO OUR GREAT SOUTH BAY…?
THAT NITROGEN HAS ALL BUT WIPED OUT OUR SHELLFISHING INDUSTRY BY TRIGGERING MASSIVE ALGAL BLOOMS.
IF WE CAN REPLACE THE CESSPOOLS CLOSE TO THE BAY WITH SEWERS, WE CAN GET THE WATER CLEAN ENOUGH TO BRING BACK CLAMMING AND OYSTERING, AND REVIVE A $500 MILLION INDUSTRY.
GIVE THE CLAMS AND OYSTERS A CHANCE, AND, AS FILTER FEEDERS, THEY WILL HELP TO CLEAN THE WATER WHILE BRINGING PROSPERITY TO THE SOUTH SHORE, AND RESTORING A WAY OF LIFE.
$383 MILLION DOLLARS HAS ALREADY BEEN ALLOCATED TO SEWER ALONG FOUR MAJOR RIVERS EMPTYING INTO THE GREAT SOUTH BAY.
WE SAY ‘LET’S PUT THAT MONEY TO WORK SO THAT WE AND THE SHELLFISH CAN GET TO WORK.’
THE RONKONKOMA HUB, A LARGE SCALE PROJECT JUST NOW BREAKING GROUND, NEEDS A ROUTE TO THE BERGEN SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT.
WE ARE PETITIONING THE COUNTY TO ‘ROUTE IT SOUTH’ THROUGH SAYVILLE, WEST SAYVILLE, AND OAKDALE, SO THAT WE CAN REPLACE THE LOW LYING CESSPOOLS CLOSE TO THE SHORE. YES, IT WILL COST MORE THAN WHAT WAS INITIALLY PLANNED, AROUND $24 MILLION MORE. BUT LET’S LOOK AT THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT.
WE COULD OPEN UP THOUSANDS OF ACRES TO SHELLFISHING AGAIN, AND WITH EVERY ACRE OF OYSTERS GENERATING UP TO $100,000 A YEAR IN REVENUES, EVERYONE WINS, ESPECIALLY THE BAY.
WE URGE YOU THEN: SIGN THE PETITION.
VOTE YES ON THIS PLAN TO CLEAN OUR WATERS. VOTE YES ON THIS ECONOMIC INVESTMENT. YOUR LOCAL OFFICIALS NEED TO HEAR YOUR VOICE, AND THIS PLAN NEEDS A FAIR HEARING.
Nice to see our Peconic Baykeeper, Kevin McCallister being interviewed by News12 on the topic of aerial spraying of larvicide for the control of …
