Press Releases
WEINER OUTLINES 4 POINT PLAN TO SAVE VANISHING MARSH LANDS IN JAMAICA BAY
New York City - Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Brooklyn & Queens), a member of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, outlined a four point plan today to stem the tide against the vanishing marsh land in Jamaica Bay. Recently, an alarming new study showed that all the marsh could disappear by 2012 – 12 years sooner than projected by an earlier study in 2001. The study also showed that from 1951 to 2003, the amount of bay marsh decreased by two-thirds.
Jamaica Bay has more than 25,000 acres of open water, marsh, beaches and forest. The bay is home to more than 80 fish species and over 330 species of birds, and serves as an important migratory stop for nearly 20% of the continents birds during their yearly migration. Endangered and threatened species like peregrine falcons, piping plovers, and the Atlantic Ridley sea turtle have also been found in the bay. The marsh serves as a nursery to this wildlife and its disappearance threatens an ecosystem collapse.
The Weiner 4 Point Plan:
Double NYC Sewage Storage capacity by 2011 - Rainfall as low as .15cm an hour for 6.7 hours exceeds current sewer and plant storage capacity, which causes untreated sewage and storm water to routinely flow directly into the bay and threaten the marsh ecosystem. The Weiner plan would double sewage capacity to 4 holding tanks.
Reduce Nitrogen in Jamaica Bay by 60% in 10 years, with a 20% Reduction in the Next 3 Years – Industrial plants release more than 250 million gallons of treated wastewater, which contains high levels of nitrogen, into Jamaica Bay everyday. On a daily basis 30,000 to 40,000 pounds of nitrogen are being dumped into the bay, killing delicate marsh roots and retarding re-growth. The Weiner plan calls for upgrading treatment technology in the 4 sewage plants surrounding Jamaica Bay to include technology that oxidizes the nitrogen in the water, which turns nitrogen into a gas and evaporates out of the water.
Double the Funding for Marsh Restoration Projects in the Bay to Expedite Their Progress - Currently, there are 7 Army Corps of Engineers projects that require $7.5 million in funding to restore the marshes in Jamaica Bay by fortifying 755 acres of marsh, pumping in 1.2 million cubic yards of sand, and bringing in 1.43 million plants. The Weiner plan calls for expediting these projects and doubling the funding to $15 million to finish all of these projects in eight years.
Create An Emergency Taskforce to Put Problem Solving Strategies Into Motion Within 1 Year – There are 25 governmental agencies that have jurisdictional responsibilities in Jamaica Bay, efforts to save the marsh must be coordinated. The Weiner plan creates a task force that would coordinate New York State, New York City, and federal resources, oversee execution of the Weiner plan outlined above, monitor the success of implemented strategies and convene a yearly scientific summit to determine the causes of marsh erosion.
"The Jamaica Bay wetlands and salt marshes rank among New York City’s most beautiful and important environmental resources, and they must be saved," said Rep. Weiner. “It’s urgent that we take concrete steps to save this beautiful but disappearing treasure before it is too late.”
In July of 2006, Weiner unveiled an innovative $13 million Elders Point Island wetlands restoration project to save the marsh islands ecosystem in Jamaica Bay. The project pumped 270,000 cubic yards of sand and planted 900,000 plants to restore 24 acres at Elders Point East.
In 2002, Weiner organized a Blue Ribbon panel of world class scientists who developed a series of goals designed to save the wetlands, including new restoration, long term analysis of the Bay’s sediment layer, field mapping, and public education and technical workshops. Weiner also secured a $598,000 grant from the Natural Resources Protection Program to fund the panel’s initiatives. These funds were directed towards the panel’s first recommendation, the critical first step of pumping 4,000 cubic yards of sand, or enough to cover 2 full acres, from the bottom of Jamaica Bay into the Big Egg Marsh. The measure was designed to raise the marshes and thereby stop them from being drowned by sea water.
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Congressman Anthony D. Weiner
