Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg today announced that the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) would begin acquiring property for the development of the New Creek Bluebelt that will serve approximately 2,000 acres in Staten Island.  The New Creek System will relieve flooding and restore wetland areas in four neighborhoods of the Mid-Island section of Staten Island:  Midland Beach, Dongan Hills, Grant City and Todt Hill. The Mayor made the announcement at Midland Beach, Staten Island with DEP Commissioner Christopher O. Ward, Staten Island Borough President James P. Molinaro and City Councilman James S. Oddo.

“The Bluebelt systems are a cost-effective and environmentally friendly way for the City to handle storm runoff and stop flooding – a chronic problem which has been highlighted during this, one of our rainiest years on record,” said Mayor Bloomberg.  “They have had great success throughout Staten Island and demonstrate how wetland preservation can be beneficial for flood control purposes. I’m pleased to expand this innovative and efficient environmental program to these neighborhoods, and would like to thank Borough President Molinaro and Councilman Oddo for their enthusiasm and leadership.”

The Bluebelt systems provide ecologically sound and cost-effective storm water management by preserving streams, ponds and other wetland areas and allowing them to perform their natural functions of conveying, storing, and filtering storm water.  Natural landscapes are used in order to redirect water flows away from residential areas and into retention ponds and wetlands.  In addition to providing storm water management, Bluebelts also provide community space and diverse wildlife habitats, which will be open to the public for passive recreational use. The Bluebelt system also saves millions of dollars in infrastructure costs that would be needed for conventional storm sewers.

“By using Bluebelts for storm water management, the City also avoids the cost of building and maintaining conventional storm sewers,” said DEP Commissioner Ward.  “The New Creek system will cost $37.3 million to develop, which is about $39 million less than it would cost to build storm sewers for the same area.”

The New Creek Bluebelt will bring the total number of drainage corridors in or under development as part of the Staten Island Bluebelt system to 17. The existing Bluebelt corridors serve the storm water drainage needs of almost half of the borough and have already saved the City over $80 million in sewer construction costs.

DEP has already submitted a Uniform Land Use Review (ULURP) application to the Department of City Planning in order to begin the acquisition process.  Almost 70 acres of regulated and undeveloped wetlands (currently made up of approximately 500 privately-owned and 70 city-owned parcels) will be acquired in order to create the 110-acre New Creek Bluebelt.  Though the New Creek Bluebelt itself will cover 110 acres, it will provide improved drainage for approximately 2,000 acres of surrounding lands and 30,000 residents.  Overall, more than 12,000 acres of Staten Island are served by a Bluebelt-style storm water management system.

“I would like to thank the Mayor for taking our request for the creation of the New Creek Bluebelt seriously and moving it in an expeditious manner,” said Borough President Molinaro. “This will alleviate the continuous flooding of the Midland Beach area after each and every rainstorm and will offer the residents the security and safety, which they are entitled to, in a timely manner.”

“A few years ago, the creation of the Midland Beach/New Creek Bluebelt was simply a goal shared by my office and three public servants—Jack Vokral, Dana Gumb and Doug Greeley of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection,” said Councilman Oddo.  “However, in the past year it has become increasingly clear that this goal is fast achievable. Today, we take another step closer to that realization thanks to the efforts of Borough President James P. Molinaro and his staff, Commissioner Ward and of course, Mayor Bloomberg. These gentlemen have grabbed this mantle and advanced it from being simply a vision to an absolute necessity and soon to be reality. As a result, communities that have been riddled with floods for decades and people who have been forced to hold their collective breath every time it rains will soon have relief.”

While Bluebelts alleviate the need for storm sewers, they still require significant construction.  A typical Bluebelt system includes many manmade ponds, restored streambeds, and constructed wetlands.  However, this type of construction is done with minimal disturbance of the natural environment and includes extensive restoration and beautification, including the planting of native species of trees, flowers and shrubs.  In addition, the visible structures are designed in a rural and historical manner.

The New Creek Bluebelt will include over 90% of the undeveloped vacant wetland property between Seaview Avenue on the northeast, the Staten Island Rapid Transit tracks to the northwest, Father Capodanno Blvd. to the southeast and Greeley Avenue to the southwest. Borough President Molinaro and Councilman Oddo have both committed their discretionary capital dollars toward the New Creek Bluebelt.  The DEP will also be working closely with City of New York/Parks & Recreation, which already owns some wetlands in the proposed New Creek system.

The entire Bluebelt system is featured in an interactive exhibit that went online in May on the DEP’s Web site. The exhibit features a description of the Bluebelt program; links to Bluebelt newsletters that the DEP has been publishing since 1996; maps of the various Bluebelt watersheds; and photos of progress that has already been made in creating the Bluebelt system.

The new exhibit also features a full-color diagram detailing the various man-made and natural features that make up a bluebelt system, how those various features are related and interact with each other, and how they are integrated into the existing storm sewer system that is already in place in some parts of South Richmond.