Washington, DC — Senators Charles E. Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton announced today that the Senate authorized $198 million for New York City under the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), including a $180 million for an ecosystem restoration project for Jamaica Bay and $18.2 million for Orchard Beach in the Bronx. The bill also includes a provision to help the Port of New York and New Jersey to develop a dredged material management facility. The bill, which was approved late yesterday, will now be sent to a House and Senate Conference Committee to resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.

The Water Resources Development Act authorizes Corps of Engineers civil works projects, including navigation, ecosystem restoration and shoreline protection projects. Under the authorizations, the Corps partners with local sponsors to conduct the projects.

“These waterways and ecosystems are essential to New York City,” Senator Schumer said. “It’s clear we need to keep the Port of New York and New Jersey operating smoothly, and Jamaica Bay and Orchard Beach restored for future generations.”

“New York’s waterways are vital to the life of the city, and after hundreds of years of use, they need our help. This bill will help the Corps of Engineers keep the New York harbor running smoothly,” said Senator Clinton. “This bill also provides vital funds to help to restore Jamaica Bay and Orchard Beach, two of the City’s most treasured areas, so that we can enjoy them for generations to come.”

The Senators announced that the bill passed by the Senate today included the following authorizations:

Jamaica Bay, Marine Park and Plum Beach Ecosystem Restoration

The bill includes a $180 million authorization for an ecosystem restoration project for Jamaica Bay, NY. The federal government share of the costs would be $117 million. The project would restore valuable inter-tidal wetland areas in Jamaica Bay to support fish and wildlife habitat in this highly diverse and nationally significant ecosystem. It is expected that eight specific sites will be recommended for work by the Corps of Engineers. The authorization is dependent on completion of a Chief of Engineer’s report, which is expected by the end of 2005.

Orchard Beach

The bill modifies an existing authorization for Orchard Beach in the Bronx, New York, to increase the authorization to $18.2 million. Orchard Beach is visited by more than two million people each year, but the beach is suffering from severe erosion and the sand needs to be replenished. The purpose of this project is to restore and stabilize this heavily utilized public recreational beach The Water Resources Development Acts of 1992 and 1996 authorized a total of $5.6 million for the study and execution of an Orchard Beach shoreline protection project. The current WRDA would increase that authorization to $18.2 million.

New York Harbor Dredged Material Management Facility The bill includes a provision to help the Port of New York and New Jersey to develop a dredged material management facility. The disposal of sediments dredged from New York Harbor has become increasingly more costly over the past decade due to the Environmental Protection Agency’s promulgation of more stringent rules governing the disposal of these materials at sea. This has led to efforts in both New York and New Jersey to find beneficial uses for dredged materials. Most of these efforts to date have focused on using dredged materials that have been processed with additives such as Portland Cement or incinerator ash to create a stable, construction material that have been successfully used as a grading material at landfills and brownfields. Development of the facility will enable more flexibility in matching the timing of the availability of dredge material with the needs of end users, which will encourage competition and reduce the costs of upland dredge material disposal. The facility would accept dredged material from both federal channels and private berthing facilities.

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