· FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ·

FEMA Grants Nassau County $39M in Debris Removal Funding

(NASSAU COUNTY, NY) – Nassau County Legislator Kevan Abrahams (D-Freeport) is pleased to inform residents of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) award of $39 million in debris removal funding to reimburse the city of Long Beach and Nassau County for 75 percent of their costs due to Superstorm Sandy.

FEMA has approved two Public Assistance (PA) grants for debris removal work; $24 million will go to the city of Long Beach and $15 million will be awarded to Nassau County, according to a recent news release. FEMA does not perform the actual debris removal work; it reimburses the local governments that contract for the eligible work.

“Collecting and clearing out piles of debris has been one of the most difficult and time-consuming challenges of the recovery,” said a FEMA news release, stating that within Long Beach alone, heavy rains and a six foot storm surge deposited more than 330,000 cubic yards of debris, 400,000 cubic yards of sand and 2,550 cubic yards of vegetative debris throughout the city. Through hard work and persistence over the past month, debris piles are dwindling or disappearing altogether, in many cases.

In order to qualify for FEMA’s PA program, damage must be a direct result of Sandy. Also under the program, FEMA obligates funds to the state for, at a minimum, 75 percent of eligible costs. The remaining 25 percent is covered provided by non-federal funds. The state forwards the federal funds to the eligible local governments or organizations that incurred costs.

For debris removal to be eligible, the work must be necessary to:

• Eliminate an immediate threat to lives, public health and safety,
• Eliminate immediate threats of significant damage to improved public and private property when the measures are cost effective, or
• Ensure the economic recovery of the affected community to the benefit of the community-at-large.

For more information on New York’s disaster recovery, visit www.fema.gov/disaster/40805. You can follow FEMA on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FEMA or visit their blog at www.fema.gov/blog.

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