The Nassau County legislature is scheduled to vote on the Birches cost sharing agreement.  The following was sent out by Friends of the Bay:

Update- the hearing will be held at the Theodore Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building at 1550 Franklin Avenue, Mineola at 2:45 pm on Monday, August 4th.  The hearing will be in the first floor legislative chamber.

Your help is needed to resolve the situation at the Birches.
 
Please come to a hearing by the Planning Committee of the Nassau County legislature at 2:45 pm on Monday, August 4th, to show your support for the Intermunicipal Agreement by Nassau County and the Town of Oyster Bay to connect the Birches to the Glen Cove sewage treatment plant.  If you cannot attend the hearing, it is important that you call, email or write your legislator to voice your support for the Intermunicipal Agreement! 
 
Friends of the Bay strongly supports the approval of the proposed Intermunicipal Agreement between  Nassau County and the Town of Oyster Bay to connect these homes to the Glen Cove sewage treatment plant.  This collaborative and creative solution will effectively address the concerns of the community, ultimately resulting in improved water quality for Mill Neck Creek.
 
The Planning Committee of the Nassau County legislature is scheduled to discuss this important issue and determine whether to move forward with the joint agreement at 2:45 on Monday, August 4th.  To insure the swift passage of this important measure, please contact your local legislator and let them know that you support the approval of the Intermunicipal Agreement.  This is an opportunity to address a long-standing problem with unacceptable environmental impacts that has gone on for too many years.

Nassau County and the Town of Oyster  Bay have developed plans to address the inadequate sewage treatment system currently in place in the Birches community.  The previous plan was to build a small package plant on the County lot, to treat and discharge sewage.  However, the community was not satisfied with this solution due to concerns about the associated noise, odor and aesthetics, and they were looking for other options.

A pump station, to connect homes in the Birches to the Glen Cove sewage treatment plant recently taken over by the county, was seen as a better solution. This new plan, which is to be funded jointly by Nassau County and the Town of Oyster Bay, will be implemented in two phases over the next two years. For the interim period during construction, arrangements are being made to reimburse homeowners for the expenses incurred for the frequent pump outs of their overflowing septic tanks.

Friends of the Bay's water quality monitoring results for Mill Neck Creek consistently reflect high coliform levels resulting from effluent  released from the inadequate chlorination tank that has been in place since 1983.  This has resulted in the discharge of untreated sewage into the tidal wetlands and a tributary to Mill Neck Creek, which then flows out into the wider Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge.  As a result, Mill Neck Creek has been closed to shellfishing for decades.  A solution to this environmentally damaging plant has been negotiated by the Town of Oyster Bay and Nassau County.  Please urge your legislators not to let the opportunity to resolve this problem pass.

 
Barry E. Lamb
Bayville