Nitrogen
STATE, CITY AGREE TO PROTECT LONG ISLAND SOUND
January 12, 2006 - -The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) (Commissioner Denise M. Sheehan) and Attorney General's Office (Eliot Spitzer) announced that New York State and New York City have reached an agreement that will sharply reduce nitrogen discharges from wastewater treatment plants on the East River. The agreement will help greatly improve water quality in Long Island Sound. The City of New York will upgrade its sewage treatment plants and improve water quality from Jamaica Bay to the East River to Long Island Sound.
Excessive discharges of nitrogen, a common component of wastewater, degrade water quality in the Sound by fueling an overgrowth of algae. The algae die, settle to the bottom and decay, using up oxygen in the process. The resulting low levels of oxygen diminish the abundance, diversity and health of fish and shellfish populations and increase fish mortality. Reducing the amount of nitrogen that flows out of the treatment plants is necessary for the City to meet limits established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the DEC under the Clean Water Act.
The parties will now submit the agreement to the New York State Supreme Court, New York County, for approval. The agreement will become effective upon approval by the Court. Under the new agreement, New York City will build on prior achievements and undertake a phased approach that, by 2017, will result in a 58.5 percent reduction in nitrogen discharges from its wastewater treatment plants. The agreement also provides for the City to construct upgraded wastewater facilities at the 26th Ward Water Pollution Control Plant on Jamaica Bay, conduct further studies on Jamaica Bay, and submit by October 2006 a comprehensive plan to achieve water quality standards for Jamaica Bay.
