Nearly $30 million in grants from Suffolk County’s Water Infrastructure Fund will help expand sewer projects in Mastic Beach.
$20 million will help fund sewers in the Mastic-Shirley Revitalization Area, which officials say is decades overdue. The other $8 million will fund the next construction phase of the Forge River sewer project, connecting over 1,800 homes to a new treatment plant in Mastic.
Superstorm Sandy only elevated the issue of excess nutrients in nearby wetlands from cesspools and septic systems.
Nitrogen pollution has led to fish kills, discolored water and sulfur odors. A Town of Brookhaven task force found the Forge River to be one of the most oxygen-starved water bodies in the Northeast.
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone called the projects key to improving water quality, and attracting more businesses.
