Bringing local problems to Albany politcians

The Long Island Lobby Coalition, comprised of businesses and union leaders, groups rebuilding after Hurricane Sandy and environmentalists from across Long Island brought local complaints and problems to political leaders in Albany Feb. 24, for the 7th annual Lobby Day.

Island Park resident Tommy Asher, representing both Operation Splash and the Island Park Business and Residential Chamber discussed the need for funding the relocation of the outflow pipe from the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant from Reynolds Channel where it is now to two miles out into the Atlantic Ocean. The project, which has money pledged from various sources is just $150 million short.

During Hurricane Sandy, the Bay Park plant was hit with a 9-foot tidal surge and knocked out of service for two days. It dumped an estimated 2 million gallons of raw sewage and 2.2 billion gallons of partially treated sewage in the bay waters in the 44 days after the storm — the worst sewage overflow in New York state and the second-worst in the Northeast, according to scientific researchers at Climate Central.org. Another 3 million gallons were released into Reynolds Channel on May 9, 2015 due to an hour-long power outage at the plant.

Studies by the Army Corps of Engineers, among others, have shown the effluent never flushes out into the ocean before the tide turns. That effluent has been settling and building up in the channel for years the studies found.

Environmental organizations, like Operation Splash, have been calling for the extension of the pipe but the State has refused to fund the entire project, and FEMA said it would not pay at all because it says the pipe itself was never damaged during either Hurricane Irene or Sandy.

Asher explained that funding the extension would be an economical boon to the western bays of southern Long Island, as the clean water would bring back commercial shell fishing, recreational fishing and tourism by removing toxins from Reynolds Channel. “Now that we have convinced all the local, town, county, state and federal representatives and agencies about the damage being done to our area we need to get a shovel in the ground NOW since this project will take six years from start to finish,” Asher said.

The 90 members of the coalition also discussed an $800 million fund for water infrastructure to fix Long Island water quality issues, downtown sewer investments, transportation including rail and bus, walking and biking projects, savings programs to help small business in hard economic times, shop local programs and abandoned “zombie” homes which are hurting our neighborhoods and other issues.

The coalition met with New York State Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan and Senators Jack Martins, Phil Boyle, Carl Marcellino and Kemp Hannon and Dean Murray, and Assembly members Fred Thiele, Kimberly Jean-Pierre, Michaele Solages, Andrew Raia, Michael Montesano, Edward Ra, Chad Lupinacci, and Joseph Saladino.