Location: Town of Mamaroneck, Pelham, Larchmont, New Rochelle, Port Chester, Village of Mamaroneck, White Plains, Rye Brook, Rye, Harrison, and Scarsdale, New York and Westchester County | Status: Litigation
“We saw there was a huge problem with the frequency of sewage overflows, which harmed Long Island Sound and endangered public health, and that the government agencies were not effectively addressing it,” said Save the Sound Senior Legal Director Roger Reynolds, who first became aware of the problem through local pollution watchdog reports and alerts from New York’s Sewage Protection Right to Know Act, launched in 2013.
The Problem: When Save the Sound became increasingly aware of the frequency and magnitude of raw sewage overflows throughout Westchester County, our legal team decided to take action in the interest of public health. Untreated sewage discharge degrades the water quality of Long Island Sound and the waterways that feed into it. Over decades, the aging wastewater infrastructure has deteriorated, making it vulnerable to stormwater overwhelming the leaky sewer pipes during rain events, which have grown more frequent and severe due to climate change. The increased volume of water in the pipes causes sanitary sewage overflows and discharges of untreated sewage into the Sound both from the pipes themselves and from the treatment plants that can’t handle that volume of water. This contributes to periodic beach closures, the closure of shellfish beds, depletion of certain fish stocks, fish consumption advisories, and restrictions placed on certain recreational activities.
The Action: In 2015, when the County and municipalities failed to meaningfully act, Save the Sound filed a lawsuit for Clean Water Act violations. The suit included Westchester County and the municipalities of Rye, Rye Brook, Harrison, Scarsdale, Larchmont, Town of Mamaroneck, Village of Mamaroneck, New Rochelle, Pelham Manor, Port Chester, and White Plains.
Specifically, the complaint claimed that Westchester County and the 11 municipalities were in violation of the Clean Water Act by:
- Discharging partially treated sewage in violation of the Clean Water Act;
- Causing a public nuisance by polluting public waters, harming fishery businesses, and interfering with recreation; and
- Failing to enforce the County Sewer Act to limit the transfer of illegal levels of sewage from municipalities to the treatment plants, resulting in sewage overflowing into bodies of water.
Shortly after the suit was filed, Save the Sound entered negotiations with the municipalities to fix their aging systems to stop sewage overflows. In a Motion to Dismiss filed by some of the municipalities, the federal judge sided with Save the Sound and ruled that the complaint stated a violation of the Clean Water Act. We have now reached final resolutions with all 11 municipalities which have agreed to make necessary repairs and maintain their systems in a good state going forward.
In total, the 11 municipalities have agreed to study and repair over 518 miles of sewer pipes and fix more than 39,000 defects. They will also dedicate $1.2 million to environmental benefit projects to clean up Long Island Sound and local waterbodies.
Save the Sound is now in final negotiations with the County for what would be a final resolution of the claims.
Repairs and Environmental Benefit Projects that have been agreed to by the towns are the following:
| Town | Miles of Pipe Repaired or To Be Repaired | Defects Repaired or To Be Repaired | Status and Next Steps | Environmental Mitigation Projects and Repair Schedules |
| Westchester County | N/A | N/A | We are in active settlement discussions with the county, but the resolution had to await various municipal discussions and resolutions. | Still in negotiation |
| Town/Village of Harrison | 64 | 9,600 | Settlement entered by the court November 2022. | $60,000 Environmental Benefit Payment to the Westchester Soil and Water Conservation District for projects to remediate water pollution and improve water quality in the Westchester County Long Island Sound watershed. Repairs are ongoing and are expected to cost around $35 million and are scheduled to be completed by 2032 with annual and semi-annual milestones along the way. |
| Village of Larchmont | 20 | 4,000 | Settlement entered by the court March 2024. | $180,000 Environmental Benefit Payment to the Westchester Soil and Water Conservation District for projects to remediate water pollution and improve water quality in the Westchester County Long Island Sound watershed. (The payment was made jointly with New Rochelle, Town of Mamaroneck, and Pelham Manor) |
| Town of Mamaroneck | 35 | 640 | Settlement entered by the court March 2024. | $180,000 Environmental Benefit Payment to the Westchester Soil and Water Conservation District for projects to remediate water pollution and improve water quality in the Westchester County Long Island Sound watershed. (The payment was made jointly with New Rochelle, Larchmont, and Pelham Manor) |
| City of New Rochelle | 110 | 18,000 | Settlement entered by the court March 2024. | $180,000 Environmental Benefit Payment to the Westchester Soil and Water Conservation District for projects to remediate water pollution and improve water quality in the Westchester County Long Island Sound watershed. (The payment was made jointly with Town of Mamaroneck, Larchmont, and Pelham Manor) |
| Village of Pelham Manor | 12 | 360 | Settlement entered by the court March 2024. | $180,000 Environmental Benefit Payment to the Westchester Soil and Water Conservation District for projects to remediate water pollution and improve water quality in the Westchester County Long Island Sound watershed. (The payment was made jointly with New Rochelle, Town of Mamaroneck, and Larchmont) |
| Village of Port Chester | 45 | N/A | Port Chester completed repairs required by their Amended Consent Order, but flow monitoring failed to demonstrate compliance with the County Sewer Act. The Court entered the revised consent order as to Port Chester on April 27, 2020 and another in January 2024. The City has committed to $35 million of additional repairs to stop SSOs. | Quartering 2022, the Village Board adopted a $35 million bond resolution and committed to use it to pay for additional sanitary sewer improvements over the next five years. They have also expended an Environmental Benefit Payment of $11,600 for education about sewer laterals and grease traps. |
| City of Rye | 53.5 | 5,249 | Amended Consent Order lodged with the court on June 20, 2023. Rye had fallen behind on repairs agreed to in the first Consent Order that was filed February 24, 2021. | A total of $440,000 Environmental Benefit Payments in the two consent orders for use on projects to benefit water quality including bioretention basins to treat stormwater pollution entering Blind Brook. All work on the sewer system is required to be completed by December 2024. |
| Village of Rye Brook | 25 | 200 | Consent Decree entered in January 2021. The village has completed repairs to its sewer system in a timely manner, though it has not yet demonstrated compliance with the County Sewer Act, and discussions are ongoing regarding next steps. | $47,000 in Environmental Benefit Payments for use on projects to benefit Long Island Sound and local waters. Rye Brook has plans for further repairs in place, which we believe are likely to improve compliance with the County Sewer Act. Rye Brook’s next status report is expected in September 2023. |
| Village of Scarsdale | 82 | 755 | On June 15, 2023, the parties lodged a Consent Decree with the court. Scarsdale is to complete all work by June 30 2023. | $150,000 Environmental Benefit Payment for use on projects to benefit water quality in the Long Island Sound Sound watershed including a bioretention basin to treat stormwater pollution. Scarsdale must provide a report certifying completion of all work by July 31, 2023. |
| City of White Plains | 26 | 200 | The Court entered the Amended Consent Order as to the City of White Plains on May 3, 2021, requiring repairs to be completed by March 31, 2022 and flow limits in County Sewer Act by September 21, 2022. On December 27, 2022, we raised certain compliance concerns and requested additional information. On February 15, 2023, White Plains delivered a supplemental report and agreed to perform an additional 11-week round of flow monitoring this Spring. The results are expected in mid-to-late July, and the parties have agreed to review, then meet and confer in August. | $9,000 Environmental Benefit Payment to Bronx River Alliance to stabilize and provide a canopy to address erosion on the east bank of Muskrat Cove. We are scheduled to confer about remaining compliance issues in August 2023. |
| Village of Mamaroneck | 46.3 | N/A | All repairs to be completed by December 2024. | $350,000 Environmental Benefit Payment to restore Long Island Sound and local waterways. |
| Total | 518 | 39,004 | $1.2 million |
Latest step: Settled with all municipalities other than New Rochelle, Town of Mamaroneck, Village of Larchmont and Pelham Manor.
Next step: We remain in talks with the County.
Further reading:
- PRESS RELEASE: Save the Sound Reaches Settlement with Four Municipalities of the New Rochelle Sewer District
- PRESS RELEASE: Save the Sound Win for Sewage-Free Waters in Westchester
- PRESS RELEASE: Save the Sound Reaches Settlement with Town/Village of Harrison in Clean Water Act Enforcement Suit
- PRESS RELEASE: Save the Sound Reaches Settlements with Village of Scarsdale, City of Rye in Clean Water Act Enforcement Actions
Action Opportunities:
Last Updated: October 7, 2024.