Update on Thursday August 14: The beaches have been reopened!
Heavy rains have forced the closure of 10 Long Island Sound beaches in Westchester because of pollutants carried by stormwater. The 10 beaches are:
- Harbor Island Park, Beach Point Club, Mamaroneck Beach and Yacht Club, Shore Acres and Orienta Club, all in Mamaroneck;
- Hudson Park, Echo Bay Club, Davenport Club, and Greentree Club, in New Rochelle;
- Coveleigh Club in Rye
Since 1985, the Westchester County Health Department has preemptively closed certain beaches each time it rains a half-inch or more within 24 hours.
You may be wondering, “Why are the beaches closed?” The answer is that sewers throughout Westchester County are in disrepair, so stormwater infiltrates the pipes and forces out sewage before it can reach treatment plants. The sewage-laden stormwater then flows into local waterways toward the Sound and its harbors and beaches. In addition, all around the Long Island Sound, rain overwhelms wastewater treatment systems or washes pollutants off local streets and into the waterways that flow toward the Sound.
Each weekend morning and on holidays we will post a notice here on Green Cities Blue Waters telling you if the beaches are open. We’ll also post it on our Facebook page and on Twitter (@savethesound).
If like today the beaches are closed, we’ll post a notice on weekdays too and take the additional step of alerting you via email. You can sign up for our email alerts here.