Water Quality Protection

      In representing six towns in the New York City watershed and 55,000 residents who get their drinking water from groundwater sources, Pete understands that good environmental policy is good fiscal policy. He has fought hard to secure tens of millions of dollars in federal, state and city funding to offset the costs to homeowners and municipalities of unfunded environmental mandates.

• Former Chair, Committee on Environment & Energy and Founding Chair, Septic Subcommittee;

• Steered nearly $11 million in EOH water quality protection funds to northeast Westchester, including $10 million for creation of Peach Lake sewer district;

• Successfully sponsored and passed a resolution calling for a ban on hydrofracking in the New York City watershed;

• Successfully negotiated comprehensive septic management plan with State DEC and northern Westchester municipalities to protect water quality while saving towns hundreds of thousands of dollars in administration costs;

• Created first countywide septic database;

• Successfully passed EOH legislation aiding water quality improvement projects in Somers and Bedford;

• Successfully passed groundbreaking legislation restricting phosphorus in lawn fertilizer to protect fragile watersheds;

• Successfully approved $100,000 to Somers to study Shenorock Watershed wastewater problems;

• Successfully passed $235 million bond to protect Long Island Sound from nitrogen discharged by County sewer treatment plants;