Featured Work

Over the past year, CCFE has worked to implement innovative and effective programs to improve water quality and prevent pollution in New York and Connecticut. Some highlights:

Highlights

Launching an Innovative Pharmaceutical Takeback Program on Long Island

CCFE has partnered with King Kullen, United Water, and the Suffolk County Water Authority to launch a first-in-the-nation, cutting edge program that will allow members of the public to safely dispose of unwanted and expired pharmaceutical drugs. Encouraging residents to safely dispose of medications, rather than flushing them, protects our waterways, fisheries, and human health. Members of the public can now return unused and expired medications to any Long Island King Kullen pharmacy, free of charge.

Protecting New York from Fracking

Since 2008, CCFE has worked to educate the public and policy makers about the inherent dangers of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. CCFE wrote a white paper on fracking, entitled Protecting New York's Air, Land, Water and People: What's the Hydro-Fracking Rush?, as well as a report on the potential for industrial gas development in the NY Finger Lakes region, entitled Finger Lakes Region Gas Lease Mapping Report. On December 17, 2014, Governor Cuomo announced a prohibition on fracking in New York.

Educating Connecticut Residents on Safe Disposal of Unused Pharmaceuticals

CCFE is working with the Bridgeport Mayor's Conservation Corps to engage members of the Bridgeport community and raise awareness about the environmental impacts that stem from flushing unused pharmaceuticals. Using door-to-door education and a series of educational events, CCFE is encouraging residents to stop flushing their drugs and to use a designated safe disposal locations within their community instead.

Protecting and Restoring the Great Lakes

CCFE has worked for years to educate the public and policy makers about the threats facing the Great Lakes, and the solutions available to address these problems. More than $1.6 billion has been invested in the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative since 2010, which has been instrumental in helping to clean up toxic hot spots, fight invasive species, restore habitat, and much more. CCFE has also worked to educate the public on the benefits of a new lake level management plan for Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, known as Plan 2014. If implemented, Plan 2014 would help restore more than 64,000 acres of critical coastal wetlands along the lake and river.

Upgrading the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant

The Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant, which services 42% of Nassau County (more than 500,000 people), is outdated and failing. The plant currently discharges waste directly in the Western Bays, causing high nitrogen levels, destroying salt marshes, and killing fish. Frequent sewage overflows during rain events, including a 2.2 billion gallon overflow during Superstorm Sandy, also put human health at risk. CCFE is educating the public and policy makers on the importance of upgrading the plant to remove nitrogen and building an ocean outfall pipe.