Forge River Watershed Sewer Project

BACKGROUND:

Suffolk County has applied to the Department of Homeland Security-Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) for funding of the Suffolk County Coastal Resiliency Initiative.  The New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services (DSHES) is FEMA’s (Grantee) partner. The Suffolk County Coastal Resiliency Initiative seeks to mitigate impacts to human life and property, surface waters and coastal wetlands, associated with onsite wastewater treatment and disposal system failures caused by natural hazards. The Initiative will be accomplished through five projects that would sewer parcels currently using onsite systems in the Southwest Sewer District No. 3, Carlls, Connetquot, Forge and Patchogue River watersheds.

The Forge River Watershed Sewer Project is one of the five projects included in the Suffolk County Coastal Resiliency Initiative. The project proposes to connect parcels in the Mastic Shirley area to a new sewer collection system that will flow to a new wastewater treatment plant and also to establish the Mastic-Shirley Sewer District.

PROJECT SCOPE:

The map of the proposed project area is provided on this webpage.

A copy of the Preliminary Engineering Report is provided below:

Click here to download “Forge River Nitrogen Reduction Report” (A Preliminary Engineering Report)

Note: Phase 1 and 2 areas described in the Preliminary Engineering Report have been consolidated into a single project area shown on the project map posted on this website and, going forward, will be referred to as “Project Area”, without distinction between Phases 1 or 2.

PUBLIC NOTICE REGARDING THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW (IN BRIEF):

Notice of SEQRA Positive Declaration, Public Scoping Meeting, and Public Comment Period; NEPA Environmental Assessment; Notice of Early Public Review of a Proposal in 100-Year Floodplain and Wetlands (EO 11988 and EO 11990); Notice of Section 106, National Historic Preservation Act Review (54 U.S.C. 306108)

Notification is hereby given to the public that the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) an office of New York State Homes and Community Renewal’s Housing Trust Fund Corporation (HTFC) as lead agency pursuant to the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), has issued a positive declaration and intends on holding a public scoping session to prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed Forge River Watershed Sewer Project in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York. FEMA proposes to serve as lead agency for environmental review of the proposed action under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and related laws.

Additional reviews of the proposed action will be undertaken in coordination with the environmental review described above, including, but not limited to, those reviews required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (54 U.S.C. 306108); Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et.seq.); Section 1424(e) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300h-3(e)); and in accordance with the requirements for public review of a proposal in a 100-year floodplain and wetlands (Executive Order (EO) 11988 and EO 11990).  The Town of Brookhaven’s Calabro Airport is one site under consideration for the location of the advanced wastewater treatment facility and associated leaching field. Therefore, a potential release of airport property will be considered as part of the proposed action to be evaluated in the Draft NEPA Environmental Assessment (EA) and SEQRA DEIS.

A Draft Scope of Work (“scope” or “scoping document”) for the coordinated Draft NEPA EA and SEQRA DEIS is available for public review and comment at the public locations specified in the Public Notice and can be viewed and downloaded from the following website: http://stormrecovery.ny.gov/environmental-docs 

Please click here to download FULL text of the Public Notice

CONTACT PERSON FOR PUBLIC NOTICE:

For any comments related to the Draft Scope of Work for the NEPA Draft EA; proposal in a 100-Year Floodplain and Wetlands (EO 11988 and EO 11990); or Section 106, National Historic Preservation Act Review (54 U.S.C. 306108), please contact:

FEMA NY SRO
118-35 Queens Blvd
Forest Hills NY 11375
FEMA-4085-Comment@fema.dhs.gov

For any comments related to the Draft Scope of Work for the SEQRA DEIS, please contact:

Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery
99 Washington Avenue - Suite 1224
Albany, New York 12260
Attn: Thomas J. King, Esq.
Director – Bureau of Environmental Review and Assessment
Assistant General Counsel
518-473-0015
nyscdbg_dr_er@nyshcr.org

All comments must be submitted or postmarked on or before February 16, 2016 or they will not be considered for the Draft Scope of Work.

PUBLIC SCOPING MEETING:

Date: January 26, 2016 from 6 pm to 8 pm Location: William Paca Middle School, 338 Blanco Drive, Mastic Beach, NY 11951

Public Scoping Meeting Presentation, January 26, 2016 (please click here to download)