More cleanup of the Bronx River is planned. (Photo by Skyler Reid via The Hunts Point Express)
While the Bronx River has been cleaned of many of the toxins and waste that used to pollute it, sewage overflow, much of it from Westchester County, continues to despoil the waters. Advocacy groups, community members and environmental officials met recently to discuss how to mitigate the problem and develop a long-term control plan for the Bronx River, Michelle Baricevic reports in the Hunts Point Express.
The main goal is to reduce sewage overflows into the river by 10 percent. Combine sewage overflows, or CSOs, refer to a combination of excess storm water and untreated sewage that go directly into surrounding water bodies when wastewater treatment plants get overburdened. Most times this occurs during times of intense rain and snow fall. Though overflows are diluted, they still degrade the quality of the water – and put river users at risk.
“The Bronx River is at the heart of everything we do as an organization,” said Sam Marquand, a program director at the Hunts Point youth organization Rocking the Boat, where students build and sail wooden boats. He brought 10 students to the meeting to testify and ask questions.
Many participants at the meeting, including Marquand, thought the 10 percent reduction didn’t go far enough. In part, that’s because city officials can’t mandate a reduction in the sewage flows attributable to Westchester County. Some at the meeting were clearly upset.
“How can the richest zip code send its poop to the poorest and it is not dealt with publicly?” said Damian Griffin, a teacher at Bedford Park Elementary School and educational director of the Bronx River Alliance.
For more, go to Hunts Point Express.