Where do floatables come from?
Studies have shown that the majority of floatable material that impacts Suffolk’s beaches has its origin in the New York Metropolitan area through combined sewer overflows (CSOs), storm drains, and solid waste handling/transfer facilities. At Long Island Sound and other north shore beaches, CSOs from cities across the sound may also be sources of marine debris. Other sources include trash from ships, recreational boaters, fishermen, street litter, and beach users themselves. In urban areas, combined sewers collect storm water runoff from area streets, in addition to sanitary sewage, and transport it to wastewater treatment plants. During rainfall events however, the increased volume of water in the combined sewer system can overwhelm the capacity of treatment plants. To prevent this from occurring, the combined sewers are designed to overflow into adjacent rivers and harbors after a relatively small amount of rainfall. This discharge introduces both untreated human waste and street deb
