Ancient Rome pioneered the construction of sewers that dumped wastewater into nearby waterways – Same as Nassau County is still doing it. As a result, Nassau’s water table is shrinking, says John Turner, a senior conservation policy advocate at the Sea-Tac Environmental Association.
At least 85% of Nassau has sewage treatment, and sewage treatment plants on the north and south coasts of the county transport this “highly treated wastewater” through drains into nearby waterways, the Atlantic Ocean, and Long Island Sound. You can Centuries of Roman institutions continue in Nassau.
According to Turner, “highly treated wastewater” should instead be used to fertilize the golf course and “recharge” the ground to maintain a steady flow of water. This is the only source of drinking water for Nassau residents.
Because the water table, an underground aquifer, is shrinking, Lake Hempstead “has been called the Hempstead Puddle,” says Turner, and the Valley Stream is called the “Valley No Stream.” Other streams, bodies of water and wetlands in Nassau have also been affected.
And this also invites saltwater intrusion. Due to overpumping and pollution, Brooklyn has lost its drinking water supply. A northern reservoir system was built and now supplies New York City, but these reservoirs do not have enough water to even supply Nassau.
According to Turner, the Islip-based SeaTac Environmental Association is currently preparing a “Long Island Water Reuse Feasibility Study, Long Island Water Reuse Blueprint.”
In Nassau and Suffolk Counties, water quantity is as important as quality. Groundwater supplies are limited and the only source of water for the aquifer is rainwater.
Water reuse is now expanding in the United States and other countries. In fact, there is a very active organization, the WaterReuse Association, which states: “
About 25% of Suffolk County is sewer. While there are smaller treatment plants that recharge treated wastewater into the ground, most large sewage treatment plants follow Nassau and ancient Roman methods, discharging wastewater into nearby waterways, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Sound. doing.
The Bergen Point Sewage Treatment Plant in West Babylon, the largest sewage treatment plant in Suffolk, It pumps 30 million gallons of wastewater a day down the drain into the Atlantic Ocean. Wastewater from the county’s southwest sewer district is discharged into the sea, and the county has promoted a new sewerage system that will direct wastewater through the plant to the Atlantic Ocean, including wastewater from Ronkonkoma in central Suffolk.
A breakthrough in Suffolk, Turner points to, was the 2016 upgrade of the Riverhead sewage treatment plant, whose wastewater is now directed to the Indian Islands golf course, rather than being dumped in Flanders as is customary. Used to fertilize the lawn. Bay.
