Fact Sheet 1: Project Background

Project Overview

The Bay Park Conveyance Project (Project) is a partnership between the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) and the Nassau County Department of Public Works (NCDPW). This innovative Project will improve water quality and storm resiliency in Nassau County’s Western Bays by conveying treated water from the South Shore Water Reclamation Facility (previously known as the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant) to the Cedar Creek Water Pollution Control Plant’s (WPCP) ocean outfall in Nassau County, New York.

 

Project Goals and Benefits

The Project will restore the quality of the Western Bays by reducing nitrogen loading into the waters. This will allow for marshlands to recover, bringing more storm protection to local communities. Other benefits include cleaner water resulting in the restoration of the Bays’ ecology and the return of recreational and economic opportunities, as well as improved quality of life. The Project will revitalize and repurpose existing infrastructure (Sunrise Highway Aqueduct), optimize use of existing infrastructure (Cedar Creek WPCP ocean outfall) and consolidate wastewater treatment services.

 

2020 Bay Park Agreement

The Project is a partnership between NYSDEC and the NCDPW as part of the 2020 Bay Park Agreement (Agreement). The goal of the Agreement is to meet the water quality standards contained within the South Shore Water Reclamation Facility’s State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (SPDES) permit.

 

Western Bays Resiliency Initiative

The Project is part of the larger Western Bays Resiliency Initiative. Nassau County is leading a series of region-wide resiliency and sustainability projects that will improve the water quality of the degraded Western Bays. Nassau County is pursuing the following Projects under the Western Bays Resiliency Initiative — the Bay Park Conveyance Project, the Long Beach Consolidation Project, and the Point Lookout Sewer Feasibility Study.

 

Project Elements

  • A new pump station at the existing South Shore Water Reclamation Facility

  • New Force Main:

    • Segment 1: Bay Park to Sunrise Highway Microtunnel – 2 miles

    • Segment 2: Sunrise Highway Aqueduct Sliplining – 7.3 miles

    • Segment 3: Sunrise Highway to Cedar Creek Microtunnel – 1.6 miles

  • New pumps and a standpipe receiving tank at the Cedar Creek WPCP

  • Connection to the existing Cedar Creek WPCP ocean outfall

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Project Route

The Western Bays are surrounded by the neighborhoods of East Rockaway, Oceanside, Island Park, Baldwin, Rockville Centre, Freeport, and the Long Beach Barrier Island. The Project alignment passes through portions of the Town of Hempstead, including the Villages of East Rockaway, Rockville Centre and Freeport and the communities of Merrick, Bellmore, and Wantagh.

 

Easement Acquisitions

There are three types of easements that will be necessary for this Project—temporary surface, permanent surface, and permanent subsurface. The subsurface easements will not affect the owners use of the property. The Project Team has already spoken individually to all owners of affected properties.

 

The Benefits of Discharging to the Cedar Creek WPCP Ocean Outfall

The Western Bays are a shallow and small waterbody with a poor tidal mixing zone. Water flow paths in Reynolds Channel, which connects the Western Bays to the Atlantic Ocean, are limited and the turnover of water in the Channel to the Atlantic Ocean is slow. This results in the buildup and accumulation of nitrogen in the waters of the Western Bays. This accumulation of nitrogen weakens marshlands. Nitrogen also fuels excessive sea lettuce and algae growth, which can block sunlight and result in insufficient dissolved oxygen levels for aquatic life (a condition known as hypoxia).

With the Project, the treated water from the South Shore Water Reclamation Facility will be discharged approximately three miles offshore via the Cedar Creek WPCP ocean outfall to a one-mile long diffuser array containing 120 diffuser ports. The diffusers mix treated water with the surrounding ocean water. Treated water discharge disperses quickly into the seawater, and any impact to the water column is local and very limited in extent.

 

Environmental Review

Nassau County applied to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Grant Program for partial funding of the Western Bays Resiliency Initiative in accordance with Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1974 (42 United States Code [USC] 5170c), as amended; the Sandy Recovery Improvement Act of 2013; and the accompanying Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and information contained in the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program application, FEMA published an Environmental Assessment (EA) for public comment in July 2020.

FEMA determined that the Proposed Action would have no significant adverse impact on the quality of the natural and human environment. FEMA approved a Finding of No Significant Adverse Impact (FONSI) in October 2020. As such, an environmental impact statement is not required, and the Project may proceed to obtain all appropriate permits to allow for construction. The FONSI and EA are available here: https://www.bayparkconveyance.org/nepa-ea

 

Project Cost

On November 6, 2020, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the Western Bays Constructors Joint Venture was selected as the Design-Builder responsible for the final design and construction of the $439 million Bay Park Conveyance Project. The Project will leverage a combination of Federal, State, and County sources of funding.

Project Contract Value: $439 Million

Total Project Cost (including real estate): $513 Million