ALERT Sewage Inundates New York Harbor:
The nearly 12" of rain received over the last 8 days represents nearly a 1/3 of the City's average annual precipitation. In a given year, 43" of rain causes more than 27 billion gallons of untreated stormwater and sewage to discharge into New York Harbor through more than 460 combined sewer overflows.

ALERT Hudson Valley Sewage Overflows Reported:
Due to the heavy rainfall in the area since Friday, many sewage systems are unable to handle the increased capacity of water mixed with sewage. The Riverkeeper pollution hotline has received numerous reports of sewage overflows. This includes Ossining, Peekskill, Beacon, and New Paltz. We urge those who witness a sewage overflow to read further about the necessary steps to take


Take a look at "Our Secret Epidemic,"

Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) are the single largest impairment to the quality of New York City’s waters. The Clean Water Act requires City and State environmental officials to develop and implement a long term control plan to prevent CSOs from violating applicable water.

NYC’S COMBINED SEWER OVERFLOW PROBLEM
About half the time it rains in New York City, once a week on average, raw sewage and polluted runoff combine in sewer pipes and overflow – without treatment – into the City’s surface waters. The event is called a combined sewer overflow (CSO) and hundreds of them are triggered simultaneously around the five boroughs during steady rainfall. In an average rain year, about 27 billion gallons of this untreated wastewater pour out of the City’s sewer system to nearby waters. Learn more about why CSOs occur in NYC.

CSOs contain raw sewage from homes, businesses and industries, as well as stormwater runoff and all the debris and chemicals that wash off the street or are poured in storm drains. They contain untreated human waste, ammonia, pesticides, nutrients, petroleum products, oxygen-demanding substances (which harm fish) and other potential toxins and pathogenic microorganisms associated with human disease and fecal pollution. Learn more about what’s in NYC’s CSOs.

The frequency and intensity of CSOs fluctuates with the weather. The more rain that falls in given period of time, the more likely it is that bottlenecks will occur in the collection system and/or treatment plants will reach their capacity limits. Extended light rain will trigger CSOs, as will shorter, heavier storms. Learn more about how often CSOs occur in NYC.

WATER QUALITY IMPAIRMENTS CAUSED BY CSOs
CSOs cause violations of water quality standards in the waters surrounding the five boroughs. New York State classifies 18 of NYC’s waterbody segments as substantially “impaired” for human uses or aquatic life as a result of pathogens, oxygen demand, nitrogen or trash discharged in CSOs. This list (known as the “303(d) List,” for the Clean Water Act section that requires it) includes Newtown Creek, Gowanus Canal, Jamaica Bay, the Bronx River and many others. (See “related info.”) The State’s Priority Waterbodies List (PWL) designates many other City waterbodies as “stressed” or otherwise adversely affected by CSOs.

These water quality violations impair the ecology of New York’s water and interfere with uses of those waters, such as fishing, swimming, and boating. During the summer, CSOs have caused numerous beach closings. In August 2003, the NYC International triathalon turned into a duathalon because the waters were too polluted by CSOs to allow for safe swimming. In some smaller, more heavily impacted waterways, the water turns white in the summer due to the incredibly high bacterial levels from CSOs. At times, the stench of the overflows makes the waterfront air in these areas unbreathable.

And, the CSOs continue to mar the laudable efforts undertaken in recent years to improve public access to the City’s waterfront. Many CSO outfalls discharge directly into Hudson River Park’s estuarine sanctuary and other waters where the shoreline is being opened and improved for public access.

WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT THE CSO PROBLEM?
The Clean Water Act and State law require, among other things, that New York City develop and implement a long term plan for controlling CSOs to meet all existing water quality standards. However, the new permits under review for NYC’s 14 sewage plants fail to include this long term plan.

The City and State have also recently proposed a new consent order – updating a previous order from 1992 which set forth a number of since-ignored deadlines – for NYC’s continued water quality violations. But, the plans this order contains will not improve the City’s water quality. Instead, millions of dollars will be invested in improvements that will only hold steady the current rate of CSOs in the face of future development. After implementing the order’s improvements, the City hopes to change the water quality standards to match the remaining pollution level. This backwards approach will only leave the City, literally, treading dirty water.

Riverkeeper, along with a number of other organizations including NY/NJ Baykeeper, Long Island Soundkeeper, and NRDC, has submitted comments on both the proposed permits and consent order. Interested members of the public should also send in written comments to the New York State DEC. We are continuing to fight for a real solution to one of the City’s most severe pollution problems.Follow this link to get more information on the new CSO proposal contained in the order and to learn how to comment on it.

Riverkeeper extends our deepest gratitude to volunteer Michael Misner for the invaluable research and writing he has done on CSOs, and for his tireless efforts in helping us focus public attention on this important water quality and public health issue. Much of the text on these pages is based on Mike’s contributions.