Schumer: Extra Federal Funds Found For Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant Outfall Pipe
BAY PARK, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Federal money has been found to bring sludge from a sewage treatment plant on Long Island into the ocean instead of local waters, Sen. Charles Schumer announced Monday.
An outfall pipe is the final piece of the puzzle for the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant, which was nearly destroyed by Superstorm Sandy.
The feds have been helping rebuild the plant, but balked at paying for an outfall pipe to stop polluting local waters, 1010 WINS' Mona Rivera reported.
Extra Federal Funds Found For Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant Outfall Pipe
"This is one of the largest sewage treatment plants in the country -- close to half of Nassau's residents depend on this plant," Schumer said. "An outfall pipe would push wastewater into the ocean."
Schumer said $210 million in federal money has been found for the pipe.
"There's hundreds of millions of dollars potentially available, federal dollars, to the Bay Park ocean outfall pipe," Schumer said.
The funds must now be allocated by the state.
Recreational fishermen, boaters and swimmers said the pipe can't be built soon enough.
"I've been here since Sandy, so it's definitely going to benefit the water, make the water cleaner," David said.
"It would clean the water up and have more fish around here," Paul said.
Superstorm Sandy knocked the plant offline when nine feet of saltwater submerged power supplies. Sewage spilled into the streets, Reynolds Channel and the bay, and made its way into the Atlantic Ocean.
