Improving Water Quality: An Overview

A committee established to review East Hampton Town wastewater management has recommended accepting a plan developed by Pio Lombardo of Lombardo Associates and using it as “a basis for moving forward” on water quality protection initiatives.  Dan Gulizio, secretary of the advisory committee, presented the committee’s report at a work session of the town board on Tuesday. It suggests that the town pursue public-private partnerships to help reach its goal of improved water quality and consider appointing a town water resource manager to spearhead efforts.

“The mounting evidence of nutrients, bacteria, and toxins impacting local water resources is alarming,” the report says. “Closed bathing beaches, state-designated impaired water-bodies, and the decline in once-abundant finfish and shellfish populations demand action.”

The report notes that “additions and refinements” will be needed before projects “are designed and undertaken.” Among the elements that should be assessed, the report states, are threats to public health and environmental quality, vulnerability to climate change and sea level rise, economic impacts of the degradation of water quality, such as decreased shellfish harvests and the effect of beach closures on tourism and real estate values, and aesthetic impacts.

Mr. Gulizio said the group had developed criteria by which to evaluate and prioritize potential projects. To help do so, the report suggests developing a scoring matrix.

Using the criteria, the committee recommends 11 town undertakings. They include long-term, townwide surface water and drinking water testing and monitoring. The report says the town should encourage residents to have individual wells tested by the Suffolk County Health Department and to share the results with the town. The town also should focus on supplying public water to areas where contamination has been detected. Sources of ongoing groundwater contamination, such as inferior septic systems, should be addressed.

Recommendations are also made regarding large-capacity wastewater systems — those that serve 20 or more people and process more than 1,000 gallons of wastewater per day. The town should consider the use of community wastewater systems as an alternative to individual on-site systems. The committee also notes “the potential need to establish stricter treatment standards” than are currently imposed by the Suffolk County Health Department.

Individual residential septic systems should be upgraded and replaced when a property is sold, when substantial renovations occur, or after a specified period of time to be determined by the town board, the committee recommends. The group also recommends that the town board review and refine a town code provision that sets standards for sanitary systems and requires periodic inspections. Establishing water quality improvement districts may also be a useful tool, the report says.

 In addition to a focus on septic systems, the town’s action plan should include developing detailed plans for various watersheds like the areas around Accabonac Harbor, Hook Pond, Northwest Harbor, Lake Montauk, and Three Mile Harbor, among others. 

Another critical element of implementing a town wastewater plan, according to the committee report, is outreach and education to engage the public in identifying problems and implementing solutions. A variety of issues, from new wastewater treatment technologies to water contaminants such as pharmaceuticals, fertilizers, and pesticides, should be addressed, as well.

The report recommends that a committee be established of water quality and environment experts, professional consultants, legal and financial experts, academics, and residents to continue to develop a “more comprehensive community-based and scientifically supported water resource management plan.”

According to the report, “the town’s quality of life will be determined by its ability to protect and restore . . . resources which have declined in recent years.”