Public Input Discussion Scheduled July 9
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), along with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Monroe County Department of Public Health (MCDPH), are recommending the Rochester Embayment be removed from the list of Areas of Concerns (AOCs) designated under the U.S. – Canada Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. After years of cleanup and restoration efforts, environmental monitoring shows the removal criteria established to remove beneficial use impairment designations and delist the AOC have been met.
DEC and its partners are holding a public input session on July 9, 2024, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County’s Kate Gleason Auditorium, 115 South Avenue, Rochester, NY 14604. Parking is available on the street or the adjacent parking garage. The library is also on the city’s bus route.
Following a brief presentation, the public may ask questions and submit comments about the delisting report and process. The AOC consists of the nearly 35-square-mile embayment along the south shore of Lake Ontario and an approximately six-mile reach of the lower Genesee River, in the City of Rochester and across several townships in Monroe County.
In addition to the public input session, there is a 30-day public comment period opening July 1 and ending July 30, 2024. Mail comments to: Jim Lehnen, Environmental Program Specialist, DEC / Great Lakes Program 700 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14209. Or email your comments to: [email protected] with “Rochester AOC Delisting” in the subject line. All comments must include the person’s full name, affiliation or organization, email address, physical address, and town of residence.
For more information, or to view the report, use this link: Rochester Embayment Area of Concern. The report will be added by the July 1 comment period start.