SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY – (March 21, 2016) – Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone recently announced that soil scientist and wastewater management expert Justin Jobin has joined Suffolk County’s water quality team of engineers, scientists and public health professionals working to address the region’s nitrogen pollution crisis.
“I am both proud and grateful to add Justin’s unique expertise in identifying and managing innovative wastewater solutions to the incredible water quality team we have assembled here in Suffolk County,” said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. “We are confident that Justin’s experience and knowledge of advanced on-site wastewater systems functioning in an environment similar to ours will be a tremendous asset in stemming the tide of nitrogen pollution in Suffolk County.”
“I am lucky to have worked with great team members throughout my 13 years in Jamestown RI, creating what has become a model community for integrated wastewater and stormwater management,” Jobin said. “I am thrilled to join Suffolk County’s Reclaim Our Water initiative and look forward to sharing my experience and vision with an incredibly assembled team. Together, I have no doubt we can make great strides in improving the quality of Long Island’s cherished waters. Thank you to County Executive Bellone and the entire Suffolk County water quality team for this opportunity.”
Jobin previously served 13 years as the Wastewater Management District Coordinator for the Town of Jamestown, R.I., which is island community and encompasses 1,835 homes with onsite wastewater systems. Nitrogen leaching from septic systems and cesspools has been directly linked with nutrient pollution in the Naragansett Bay, which surrounds Jamestown, similarly to how it has affected Suffolk County’s ground and surface waters. Both Jamestown and Suffolk County are EPA Designated Sole Source Aquifers
Starting in May 2015, Jobin worked as an onsite wastewater management consultant with Suffolk County to assist and advise with the design and implementation of its Innovative and Alternative On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems (IA OWTS) demonstration project, where technologically advanced on-site systems are being tested at 19 homes in the county with the goal of approving them for widespread use.
In his role as a consultant for Suffolk County, Jobin was also instrumental in revising the County’s sanitary code in 2016 to enhance environmental protection and overhauling the Liquid Waste Licensing Program through the Department of Labor, Licensing and Consumer Affairs, requiring training and continuing education for members of the septic industry.
Jobin has also authored several publications on wastewater management and developed curriculum for the New England Onsite Wastewater Training Program at the University of Rhode Island.
Jobin will be working as an Environmental Projects Coordinator for the Department of Health Services’ Division of Environmental Quality in the Office of Ecology. He will be a part of Suffolk County’s Septic Cesspool Upgrade Program Enterprise (SCUPE), a partnership between the Departments of Health, Economic Development and Planning, and Public Works to improve and protect water quality in Suffolk County through wastewater infrastructure upgrades.
Suffolk County’s Reclaim Our Water initiative, launched by County Executive Bellone in 2014, includes the securing of nearly $400 million in funding for the largest expansion of sewers in Suffolk County since the 1970s and the release of the 2015 Suffolk County Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan that provides critical recommendations on how to manage and protect the region’s water supply.
For more information on the County’s Reclaim Our Water initiative, visit www.suffolkcountyny.gov or www.facebook.com/stevebellone.