Better Water in the Ponds the Goal

Meeting on Friday at the close of its fiscal year, the East Hampton Village Board authorized money to improve the quality of two highly visible and important bodies of water, Hook Pond and Town Pond.

Pio Lombardo, principal of the firm that has conducted water-quality studies for the village and town, had reported to the board in May that Hook Pond, which is surrounded on three sides by some of the most expensive property in the village and the Maidstone Club’s golf course, will not be returned to health unless more than 70 percent of its nitrogen and phosphorus is removed.

Accumulated sediment, stormwater, residential wastewater discharge, fertilizer, waterfowl feces, and agricultural practices have all contributed to the situation, Mr. Lombardo told the board. Excessive levels of nitrogen and phosphorus promote harmful algal growth, which in turn deplete dissolved oxygen.

On Friday, the board authorized $30,000 to study a high-groundwater area along Egypt Lane up to North Main Street. The goal is to prepare an engineering plan for a neighborhood wastewater system, which would be the basis for a water quality improvement project under a State Department of Environmental Conservation program, and a grant from the State Environmental Facilities Corporation’s “green innovation” program. The board approved submission of that grant application.

It also authorized $14,500 to study the feasibility of dredging Town Pond, which discharges into Hook Pond. Lombardo Associates will analyze sediment samples to determine the nutrient content and the existence of any toxic substances.

The firm is also preparing an engineering plan for a “rain garden” at Town Pond, designed to maximize nitrogen and phosphorus removal before the water seeps into the ground. That plan will support the village’s application for the green innovation grant.

The board voted to accept a $14,200 proposal from Aquatic Habitats, a Speonk company, to remove the algae from the surface of Town Pond, which Mayor Paul F. Rickenbach Jr. called “more cosmetic than anything else.”

The village is seeking additional funding for the projects. “It’s a public-private partnership,” the mayor said. After the meeting, he spoke of a “concerted willingness” by pondfront property owners to make financial contributions to the water-quality remediation efforts. “We’re cautiously optimistic that, with government working with the private sector and other municipal agencies, they will come to the end of the exercise, look at what we achieved, and say, ‘Wow, we did it.’ ”

“It’s going to take time and money, but it’s something I think we’re morally obligated to see to the finish line.”