Duffy: Who will stop the next storm surge from flooding your neighborhood?

The catastrophic rainfall that caused tens of millions of dollars in damage in Suffolk County is the wake-up call every homeowner needed to hear.

You, and only you, are the most effective advocate for the necessary investment of money in our region’s infrastructure. Storm drains, sewer systems, catch basins and all the rest of that underappreciated and often overlooked infrastructure are what stand between ruin and runoff.

We all advocate for parks. We all want a smooth road for our SUVs. And we certainly appreciate bridges that don’t collapse. But no one tells their elected officials that what they really want is a conduit that can channel “100-year rain” out of their basement.

As Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine observed in the days after the latest disastrous rains, those once-in-a-century storms seem to arrive with alarming regularity. It doesn’t matter whether your home is by the bay or far inland, either. Ten or twelve inches of rain will destroy homes, turn neighborhoods red and ruin your home insurance renewal when you file a claim.

The good news is that, in a time of historic political wrangling, the latest storm has brought Republicans and Democrats together to turn on the spigot of financial aid intended to help devastated homeowners recover. It may be months before homeowners actually see those dollars, but the fact that emergency declarations have been made suggests that our elected officials from both parties understand the enormity of the damage. However, we must understand that a one-size-fits-all response to what could easily be repeated next week is not the behavioral change our region needs.

In November, there will be a dose of reality. Literally every voter will be looking to make a decision about who will be the next president. Also up for vote in Suffolk County is the question of whether voters agree to spend money on expanding the county’s wastewater treatment and septic infrastructure. It’s the kind of question that rarely gets asked by an advocate because, after all, who wants to go door to door asking voters for support for a sewer connection?

This particular referendum will ask Suffolk voters to consider a modest tax increase, calculated at $0.125 per $100. The money will be used to build a countywide wastewater treatment district and unlock grants to upgrade existing sewer and septic systems.

Approval would allow the county to stop nitrogen pollution that harms our water supplies. Media outlets report that about 75% of Suffolk properties have outdated septic systems that do not remove nitrogen from wastewater.

Plans call for expanding sewers where possible and replacing cesspools and septic systems where not possible, using technology that removes nitrogen and other pollutants instead. It is the kind of infrastructure that, in this case, will have a direct, positive impact on our environment and the crucial aquifers beneath our feet.

If these culverts had been in place on the eve of Sunday’s sudden, drenching storm, they would not have diverted the floodwaters. However, if voters were to approve this culvert referendum in November, it would send a strong message to all elected officials that Suffolk voters now recognize the power of strong, robust public infrastructure. Each voter becomes, in essence, a lobbyist for flood control, culverts, and any public works project that protects our future.

Savvy elected officials will quickly realize that while it’s still smart to cut ribbons at the entrances to new parks, voters want to know who will prevent the next storm surge from flooding their neighborhood.

John Duffy is business manager and treasurer of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 138 in Farmingdale.