Image by Heiko Stein from Pixabay
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Highlights
Victory! $255 Million Going to Fix Water Infrastructure
We joined Governor Kathy Hochul in July for an exciting announcement on clean water funding. New York state will be issuing $255 million in grants for clean water programs across the state, including funding for upgrading sewage treatment plants and addressing emerging contaminants, such as PFAS and 1,4-dioxane, in drinking water. This also includes $20 million for Suffolk County and $2 million for Nassau County to replace antiquated septic systems. This is great news for clean water!
$2.6 Billion Coming to New York to Replace Dangerous Lead Pipes
We joined with U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in Buffalo to highlight historic funding coming to New York to replace lead drinking water pipes. The recently passed bipartisan infrastructure bill will provide $2.6 billion in federal funding to help improve water infrastructure and replace the roughly 360,000 lead service pipes across New York State. There are approximately 100 miles of lead pipes in Buffalo that provide water to 60% of the homes, and Buffalo suffers from some of the highest rates of childhood lead exposure in the nation.
Victory! Suffolk County Votes YES on Offshore Wind
Last month, the Suffolk County Legislature passed two bills that allow the Sunrise Wind cable connection infrastructure to be installed underground in county parkland and roadways—enabling the project to bring renewable energy to over half a million homes! Based on the environmental impact review, the cable infrastructure would be minimally disruptive to county parkland and roads and would not cause significant or long-term environmental or community impacts. Thank you to all who came out and testified in support of offshore wind for Suffolk. For more offshore wind updates and ways to get involved, check out Wind Works.
Happenings
Fighting to Protect Long Island Sound
Each year, we head down to D.C. for our Long Island Sound Education Day with our coalition partners to talk about the issues facing the Long Island Sound, an Estuary of National Significance. We had great meetings with our U.S. Senate and House members from New York and Connecticut and all agreed investing in LI Sound is a wise investment. Cleaner waters, robust fish populations, opening shellfish beds, schools of dolphins, and the return of the Bald Eagle all demonstrate our success so far, but more needs to be done to address climate change and combat nitrogen pollution. Thanks to all our LI Sound protection partners for a very productive D.C. trip!
Fighting to Preserve Plum Island
We have fought for years to preserve Plum Island, an 840 acre, largely undeveloped island in Long Island Sound that serves as a critical habitat for birds and has tremendous ecological value. We are urging the Biden administration to designate Plum Island as a National Monument, ensuring that wildlife is protected, cultural and historical values are maintained, and people are able to enjoy this unique ecosystem for generations to come. If you haven’t yet, send an email to the administration in support of permanently preserving Plum Island.
EPA Must Ban Unnecessary Uses of Neonic Pesticides
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently reviewing the safety of several neonic pesticides and is anticipated to complete the review by late 2022. EPA won't be required to review these toxic chemicals again for another fifteen years! They must take the opportunity with this current review to ban harmful and unnecessary uses of neonic pesticides in order to protect pollinators, water quality, human health, and our environment. Email EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan today and urge him to ban unnecessary and harmful uses of neonics!
Be on the Watch for Harmful Algal Blooms
As we hit the height of summer, it is important to be aware of dangerous harmful algal blooms (HABs). HABs pose an immense threat to our communities’ drinking water, public health, outdoor recreation and wildlife. HABs are erupting across NY more frequently and more aggressively in NY waterbodies. If you see a HAB in a lake or waterbody (looks like spilled green paint or pea soup), be sure to avoid it and report it using the DEC Suspicious Algal Bloom Report Form!