Treyger To Host Public Forum With DEP In Response To Coney Island Flooding, Concerns Over Sewer Spillage

The sediment-filled waste coming out of a covered sewer overflow pipe. (Source: Pete Castro)
Event flier. Click to enlarge.

We broke the story last week about neighbors’ concerns over potentially toxic runoff from a Department of Environmental Protection operation to clean out the sewers in Coney Island. Now Councilman Mark Treyger is keeping good to his word, organizing a public meeting with the agency to bring its representatives into the community to hear residents out and answer questions.

Treyger announced yesterday that the meeting will take place Tuesday, July 8, at 4:00 p.m. at the Coney Island YMCA (2980 West 29th Street). The topic isn’t just the spillage occurring on West 33rd Street, where black gunk is flowing from a sewer outfall pipe into Coney Island Creek. It’s also about the project behind it – a long-awaited effort by the agency to clear out blocked sewer lines peninsula-wide, which they say will reduce the amount of street flooding during storms.

The local pol will be at the meeting, joined by Deputy Commisioner for Water and Sewer Operations Jim Roberts, and they’ll be giving an overview of the project and answering questions from the public.

The meeting is open to everybody. For more information, contact Treyger’s office at (718) 307-7151.