Public comments open on water management plans from DEC, DOS

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — New Yorkers can give feedback on government programs that manage water and mitigate floods. Officials announced they’re accepting public comments on drafts for plans to rehabilitate coastlines and protect wetlands.

NYSDEC wetlands protection

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) released a draft of regulations for freshwater conservation in June. You can read it at the bottom of this story.

It outlines a plan for safeguarding about a million acres of freshwater marshes, swamps, and bogs that store and filter runoff. These wetland habitats also support unique vegetation that slows and distributes floodwaters, blunting the danger of a storm while combating the slow process of erosion.

“Wetlands provide economic and ecological benefits to all of New York’s communities by improving natural resiliency, helping protect communities from flooding, particularly in response to climate change, while providing essential habitat for fish and wildlife,” said Interim DEC Commissioner Sean Mahar.

To weigh in on the wetlands rules, you can register for and come to one of the two virtual hearings on September 10. Or you can attend in person on September 12 at 1 p.m. You have to register for that public hearing, too, which takes place at the DEC office at 625 Broadway in Albany.

You can send in your comments, instead. By September 19, send an email with the subject line “Wetlands Part 664 Comments” or send it via conventional mail to:

NYSDOS flood risks

The New York State Department of State (DOS), meanwhile, proposed eligibility guidelines for two coastal resilience projects:

• Inland Flooding and Local Waterfront Revitalization Implementation Projects Program
• Coastal Rehabilitation and Resilience Project Program

The proposals—available at the bottom of this story—describe how the state would choose to invest funds from New York’s 2022 Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act , worth $4.2 billion. Bond Act money through those two projects is supposed to fund coastline resiliency, helping the state deal with rising tides and flooding.

“The Department of State is committed to making New York’s coastal communities resilient to the effects of climate change,” said Secretary of State Walter T. Mosley. “This investment will help to protect coastal communities, restore critical habitats, and address regional priorities.”

DOS outlines several preservation categories that would be eligible to receive the funding. The Bond Act could support designing and constructing projects focused on groundwater infiltration, species migration and stream restoration, and shoreline buffers that help resist the impacts of severe weather.

Public comment on these guidelines is open until 5 p.m. on August 9. You can submit them via email with “Bond Act” in the subject line, or through conventional mail to:

Check out the DEC proposal, which would take effect in January, below:

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