HEMPSTEAD HARBOR PROTECTION COMMITTEE
FINAL MEETING MINUTES
Meeting of November 28, 2007
Sea Cliff Village Hall – 7:00 pm
NOTE: Items Requiring Action are Italicized and underlined in Bold.
Present: Eric Swenson (Director), Dan Maddock (Sea Cliff), Kevin Braun (N. Hempstead), Tim Duffy, (N. Hempstead); Pasqua Dziadul (Sands Point); Aldona Lawson (Oyster Bay); Patrice Benneward (Glenwood / Glen Head Civic Association and Manhasset Bay Protection Committee); Carol DiPaolo (Coalition to Save Hempstead Harbor); Len Shaw (Roslyn) and Robert Smith (Roslyn Harbor)
Call to Order - Eric called the meeting to order shortly after 7:00 pm.
Approval of Minutes of September 19th meeting – a motion was made to approve the minutes with no changes by Dan Maddock and was seconded by Aldona Lawson. It was approved unanimously.
Announcements, Reminders, & Upcoming Events
· L.I. Sound Futures Grant awarded for water monitoring program – Eric announced that the Committee has received a grant in the amount of $30,500 for its 2007 water quality monitoring program (100% of what was requested). The agreement has yet to be received however.
· Nassau County Environmental Bond Act Recommendations – Eric mentioned that on November 20th, County Executive Tom Suozzi announced his recommendations for funding under the county’s second environmental bond act and that 15 projects within the Hempstead Harbor watershed area were recommended for funding including $788,000 for the third phase of improvements for Scudder’s Pond (which was nominated by the Committee). These included the following:
§ Open Space Acqusitions:
· Red Spring Woods Extension (Glen Cove)
· Rottkamp’s Farm (Brookville)
· Sea Isle Property (Glen Cove)
· Parcel south of Bar Beach (Pt. Washington)
· KeySpan Property (Glenwood Landing
§ Park Improvements:
· Expansion of Sea Cliff Beach (Sea Cliff)
· Welwyn Preserve property survey to address encroachment (Glen Cove)
· Construction of a new trail at Garvies Point Museum (Glen Cove)
· Restoration of the Roslyn Gristmill (Roslyn)
· Restoration of Cedarmere Mill (Roslyn Harbor)
§ Stormwater Improvements:
· Roslyn Pond Park (Roslyn) – catch basin inserts, swirl separator, wetland plantings and dredging
· Mill Pond (Glen Cove) – construction of a sediment basin and installation of floatable controls
· Scudder’s Pond (Sea Cliff) – conversion of two small ponds to vegetative swale, capping or best management practice for outfalls along the southern bank; removal of invasive plants and sediment to create a shallow pond area; constructing a low stone wall to discourage geese and stem erosion and completing the dredging of the pond.
· Installation of catch basin inserts (Countywide) – 50 in Glen Cove, 100 in North Hempstead and 150 in Oyster Bay
§ Brownfield Remediation Projects:
· Demolition of the Glen Cove incinerator and removal of asbestos and lead paint (Glen Cove).
· Shared Municipal Services Incentive grants – Eric reminded members that the application deadline is December 14th. Information is available at the following website: http://www.dos.state.ny.us/lgss/smsi/stateassistance.html. Eric mentioned that the City of Glen Cove, the Village of Sea Cliff and the Towns of Oyster Bay and North Hempstead have all agreed to apply again for a joint sewer feasibility study for the Sea Cliff, Glenwood Landing and Glen Head areas. This is a 90% grant requiring a 10% cash match. Eric relayed that Glen Cove had suggested that the amount of the grant be increased by 10% over what was requested last year in order to account for inflation. This would mean that we would apply for a $242,000 grant which would include a match of $24,200. After discussion, it was agreed by the four municipalities to seek the 10% increase. Eric recommended that half of the cash match be met from HHPC annual dues ($ 12,100) and that the other half be divided equally among the four municipalities (or $ 3,025 each). Dan Maddock, Kevin Braun and Aldona Lawson will obtain resolutions and get them to Eric. Eric will contact Glen Cove in order to obtain a resolution. Eric reported that the application materials specified that municipal resolutions must accompany the application but that he had spoken to the Department of State to discuss alternatives in the event that one or more municipalities cannot adopt resolutions by the application deadline. Eric was advised that a current resolution is definitely needed from the lead municipality and that for the others, it would be sufficient if letters of intent are submitted with the application along with copies of last year’s resolutions provided that the resolutions do not specifically limit themselves to the 2006 – 2007 application grant cycle. While it would be ideal for Glen Cove to serve as the lead on this application, Glen Cove reported that it was not able provide a resolution by the deadline. As such, the Village of Sea Cliff agreed to serve as the lead on this application again. Aldona Lawson and Kevin Braun will obtain letters of intent and get them to Eric and Eric will contact Glen Cove in order to obtain a letter of intent from them. Eric also reported that Glen Cove raised some questions regarding responsibilities and input into decision making among the parties; whether the lead municipality would have to lay out the funds and then be reimbursed; what would happen in the event of cost overruns and whether there should be an agreement drawn up between the municipalities to address these issues. Eric pointed out that since the grant only provides for reimbursement, the lead municipality would have to lay out the funds; that an advisory committee would be formed with representatives of each municipality to develop and review the RFP; that costs would not be known until the RFP responses are received and that if proposals came in too high and the municipalities and Committee were not willing to increase their funding levels that the scope of the project would have to be scaled back and a new RFP issued. As for an agreement between the parties, Eric noted that the Committee has not done this previously on any other grant and that the cost to each municipality is so low that there is relatively little risk involved. In any event, if the municipalities see the need for such an agreement, he would be willing to try to put one together provided that it does not involve a major outlay of time. The group agreed to funding half of the cash match from annual member dues.
· DOS EPF Grant Deadline – Eric reminded the members that the deadline for the New York State Department of State’s Local Waterfront Revitalization Program Environmental Protection Fund grant applications is December 7th. He mentioned that the Committee will be applying for two grants under this program as follows:
§ Scudder’s Pond Phase III Improvements – this $788,000 grant will match the county bond act recommendations so that these improvements can be made without any out of pocket costs to the Village of Sea Cliff. The Village has agreed to sponsor this application.
§ Coastal Interpretive Signage – Phase III – this $28,000 grant would provide for four additional coastal signs and be sponsored by the Town of North Hempstead. Possible locations for the signs include Hempstead Harbor Park, Skillman Street (Roslyn) and Powerhouse Park (Glenwood Landing). The $14,000 match would be made by $4,730 in in-kind services, and $ 9,270 from annual member dues.
· Nassau County and Town of North Hempstead Shellfish Seeding – Eric reported that on October 9th, County Executive Suozzi boarded the historic oyster sloop The Christeen and distributed approximately 2 million baby clams and oysters into the mouth of Hempstead Harbor. This program was initiated by the County Executive and the Town of North Hempstead and organized by the Committee as a prelude to the possible re-opening of the harbor to shellfishing in 2008 . It received a lot of local press coverage as well as an article in the New York Daily News and Newsday. As a follow-up to the event, Eric was contacted by Jennifer Smith, Newsday’s environmental editor who was interested in the water quality monitoring that was being conducted by the Town of Oyster Bay in order to assist in the re-opening of the harbor. Ms. Smith subsequently accompanied Eric and Tony Alfieri from the Town on a sampling run and a nice article appeared in the Sunday Newsday on November 4th. Kevin Braun asked that Eric send him a copy of the article. For others that may be interested, here is a reprint of that article:
Working to reclaim Hempstead Harbor
BY JENNIFER SMITH |
November 4, 2007
It takes more than one set of hands to heal a bay damaged by decades of pollution.
Citizens' groups and local officials have been working to improve water quality in Hempstead Harbor since the 1980s. The state Department of Environmental Conservation and the federal Environmental Protection Agency have also stepped in. But with resources and staffing short, local agencies are pitching in, eager to help authorities with the testing that will ultimately determine if the harbor should be reopened to shellfish harvesting.
The town pitches in
Last week Town of Oyster Bay environmental worker Anthony Alfieri steered a boat through the rough swells of outer Hempstead Harbor. A cooler loaded with ice and empty plastic bottles bounced in the back as he used a handheld global positioning system device to check the boat's location against a chart of the bay.
Alfieri's mission: to collect water samples after a day of rain. Pollution levels spike when precipitation washes contaminants such as fertilizer, road runoff and animal waste into the harbor. The results will help the state determine if the harbor is clean enough to allow its clams and oysters to be eaten by humans.
"We've gotten about 25 sets of samples, and the water quality looks pretty good," said William Hastback of the DEC's bureau of marine resources. But the agency needed more information on post-rainfall water quality, so the Town of Oyster Bay agreed to help out and hit 10 outer harbor sample sites when conditions are right, which is after more than half an inch of rain.
"We're testing as water from high tide leaves the harbor, so it [contaminants] won't be diluted," said the town's superintendent of environmental control, Eric Swenson, gripping a handrail as the boat swayed. "It's basically a worst-case scenario. If it's clean now, then it's clean."
No formal population survey has been done, so it's hard to know how many clams and oysters remain in the closed areas. But baymen still harvest in the deep water east of the harbor off Bayville and the Glen Cove City Beach, Hastback said.
Centuries ago, the harbor's abundant shellfish provided a bounty for American Indians and colonists who settled on its shores. But sand mining and heavy industry in the 19th and 20th centuries took their toll, as did the sewage that accompanied Nassau's settlement and eventual suburbanization. Many oyster areas closed down by the 1920s and 1930s, Hastback said.
Traces of the harbor's industrial past persist in barges laden with gravel and the smokestacks of the KeySpan power plant on Shore Road. But less visible changes - improvements to storm-water drains and the diversion of sewage from a Roslyn treatment plant to Nassau County's Cedar Creek facility on the South Shore - have helped swing the pendulum back.
Some birds have returned
Ospreys and terns nest here now. Diamondback terrapins, the water turtle once hunted to near extirpation during a Gilded Age mania for turtle soup, lay their eggs in the lower harbor mud. Seagulls have been seen smashing clams on the rocks down near Roslyn Viaduct, Swenson said.
The sampling run starts near Matinecock Point and winds west, past spacious new homes and the crumbling Gold Coast mansions said to have been F. Scott Fitzgerald's inspiration for West Egg in "The Great Gatsby."
At each stop the routine is the same: Alfieri attaches a 100-milliliter plastic container to the end of a metal pole and dips it in the water. After stowing the sample in the cooler, he jots down the time, bottle number and station on a sheet, then hurries off to the next location.
On this day's run, four of the 10 samples had elevated levels of fecal coliform, which scientists use as an indicator of water quality. Its presence is associated with viruses that can make people sick and make shellfish unhealthy to eat.
With a bit of help from Mother Nature, officials hope to reopen the harbor for shellfish harvesting by next fall.
Copyright © 2007, Newsday Inc.
· Report on November 5th DEC Public Meeting on Draft new Phase II permits – Eric reported that he attended the DEC’s public meeting on the new Phase II stormwater permits that will affect all member municipalities during the 2008 to 2013 period. He mentioned that he was preparing a set of comments on the proposed new requirements and outlined those comments. A copy of these comments are appended to these minutes. Eric recommended that each municipality send comments to the DEC. The deadline for comments is December 10th. The address for comments can be found on our comments at the end of these minutes.
· Update on Sea Cliff Mini Mart – Aldona reported that she and Tom Ryan (Oyster Bay) staffed a Committee information booth at this year’s Sea Cliff Mini Mart (September 30th) with the help of Patrice Benneward. This year the Committee had a double booth and with HHPC’s and MBPC’s portable displays, it was hard to miss our message. She mentioned that they raffled off a “fuel whistle” and that the winner (from Glenwood Landing) will be awarded the device by Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto on behalf of the Committee at an upcoming Town Board meeting. Eric thanked Patrice for her time and effort in creating display materials for the event and asked that the Committee consider authorizing him to purchase a set of replacement inkjet cartridges for Patrice’s printer. The cost would be in the range of $250.00. Len Shaw moved that the Committee authorize Eric to purchase these for Patrice. Aldona Lawson seconded the motion and it was passed unanimously.