Staten Island Borough President Fossella Joins Department of Environmental Protection to Spread Anti-littering Message in Order to Prevent Flooding and Protect the Environment

May 20, 2022

Saint Clare's School adopts the Jack's Pond Bluebelt where students will clear litter and weeds and learn about the importance of stormwater management;

New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Rohit T. Aggarwala today joined with Staten Island Borough President Vito J. Fossella to encourage residents and businesses to properly dispose of litter in a trash can, as litter on the street can block catch basins and result in flooding and property damage. The Atlantic Ocean Hurricane season begins on June 1 and residents should be prepared for heavy rainfall that could lead to flooding. The event took place at the Jack's Pond Bluebelt in Great Kills that was officially adopted today by the Saint Clare's school.

Photos of the event are available on DEP's Flickr page.

"Properly disposing of litter and keeping it off of our streets is the easiest and most effective thing New Yorkers can do to help to reduce the likelihood of flooding during heavy rainstorms," said DEP Commissioner Aggarwala. "I'd like to thank Borough President Fossella for his strong partnership in spreading the anti-littering message and also acknowledge the volunteers from the Saint Clare School who have graciously adopted the Jack's Pond Bluebelt."

"Knowing that heavy storms can inflict damage in our neighborhoods, harm lives, and damage property, we are working together with DEP Commissioner Aggarwala to collaboratively raise public awareness about the importance of keeping our catch basins and sewer grates clean, especially ahead of a storm. Local flooding is exacerbated by litter and debris that crowd catch basins and is a direct threat to Staten Island's public safety. This risk of flooding can lead to saturated properties, immersed basements, and damaged homes," said Borough President Fossella. "Not only will clearing catch basins help curb flooding, it will remove litter and trash from our streets. We will continue to do everything we can to raise awareness of the impacts of littering and what it does to our neighborhoods. We urge all Staten Islanders to join us in this effort. I want to thank Commissioner Aggarwala for his leadership and diligence in helping us to create a cleaner Staten Island."

The backbone of New York City's drainage systems are the approximately 7,500 miles of sewers and 150,000 catch basins that collect stormwater and direct it to either a wastewater resource recovery facility or to a nearby Bluebelt or another waterbody. However, if litter or debris, such as sticks, leaves and other yard waste, block the top of the catch basin the stormwater will not drain from the roadway which could lead to flooding and property damage. If litter does manage to make it past a catch basin, it could end up in a Bluebelt or on a local beach.

To help keep streets clean, the Department of Sanitation operates approximately 450 mechanical brooms-often called "the best tool in the City's street cleaning arsenal." These machines collect an average of 1,500 pounds of waste per shift and run nearly 50,000 shifts per year on the City's 19,000 lane-miles of roadway. DEP regularly inspects and cleans the approximately 150,000 catch basins city-wide, which trap litter before it can make its way into the sewer line. In addition, DEP also operates 23 booms and nets that drain over 60,000 acres and 58 sewer outfalls. These nets are serviced by four specialized skimmer vessels that collect trash and other debris that makes it through the catch basins, including wood, plastic, metal, rubber, and glass, before it enters local waterways. DEP has also built litter control devices within sewer outfalls along the Bronx River, Gowanus Canal, and Newtown Creek that use hydraulic bar screens and nylon netting systems to capture litter before it can pollute the waterways.

Borough President Fossella recently launched the "Don't Trash on Me" initiative which brings collaborative attention and effort to the fight to keep Staten Island clean by encouraging residents to join a cleanup, organize their own, or report locations to his office. This long-term campaign also invites city agencies to work together to improve the standards of excellence in the Staten Island community when it comes to litter.

Saint Clare's School Adopts Jack's Pond Bluebelt

Today a group of volunteers from the nearby Saint Clare school's environmental team have officially adopted DEP's Jack's Pond Bluebelt. The volunteer group will make regular visits to the Bluebelt to pickup any trash and do light weeding and planting. They will also measure water quality in the Pond and do landscape sketches. Volunteer groups are a tremendous help to DEP's maintenance crews both for the regular litter pick-up but also for alerting DEP staff to issues that may require a professional response. The Saint Clare School has been a long-time supporter of the Bluebelt Program and a partner with DEP.

The award-winning Bluebelt program preserves natural drainage corridors such as streams, creeks, and ponds, and optimizes them to help control and filter stormwater from surrounding neighborhoods. In Great Kills, DEP invested $46 million to improve drainage and rehabilitate Jack's Pond, which included the substantial removal of accumulated pond sediment to re-establish historic elevations and pond depth in order to increase the storage capacity of the Pond. Thousands of native wetland plants were added and a solar powered aerator was installed in the pond in order naturally treat the water and reduce algae blooms.

In addition, the existing pathway around the pond's southern perimeter was re-established and stabilized at 4-feet wide, with approximately 480 feet of trail connecting the weir chamber at Ramble Road to Hillside Terrace through a wooded area. Six stone-faced headwalls were constructed throughout the 50-acre watershed at Clovis Road, Hillside Terrace, Cleveland Avenue and La Fontaine Place to connect the pond to the nearby streams and newly installed storm sewers.

DEP manages New York City's water supply, providing approximately 1 billion gallons of high-quality drinking water each day to nearly 10 million residents, including 8.8 million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP also protects the health and safety of New Yorkers by enforcing the Air and Noise Codes and asbestos rules. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.

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