Prohibited by Law And Common Sense
Unfortunately, it has come to this: a lawsuit to stop the illconsidered United States Army Corps of Engineers plan to fortify the downtown Montauk oceanfront with thousands of sandbags and tons of imported sand.
A small group of opponents of the project filed notice late last month that they will challenge the project in court. Central to their position is that the undertaking is actually prohibited in town and, by extension, state law. They appear to have a good case. Though perhaps not quite a smoking gun, a top town environmental planner in separate communications to the Army Corps and state authorities had said that East Hampton Town regulations might have to be changed to make the effort meet the actual letter of the law. The town and corps lawyers will have a pretty difficult time explaining that one to a jury if things ever get that far.
Other towns and villages should be watching closely. The rules that are being bent in this matter are part of the Local Waterfront Revitalization Plan and its component Coastal Erosion Hazard Area program. In East Hampton Town, as in other jurisdictions, permits for work on the beaches are supposed to be handled locally, not at the state level. Why East Hampton officials abdicated this responsibility and why a least two state agencies went along with it is anybody’s guess. That does not, however, make it right — or legal. The project, if allowed to go forward by the courts, would be a huge precedent, essentially undermining local control, not just in East Hampton, but Southampton, Southold, and Brookhaven as well. And it should give the public pause about having faith in government — its commitment to law and to the protection of natural features. The suit calls out this inexplicable, regrettable collusion among the town, state, and Army Corps, and we honor the courage of those who brought it.
It is their hope that the court will uphold the view that when the town’s law says that sandbag seawalls are structures, that definition must hold sway. Certainly, it would be valuable if a judge told East Hampton officials, as well as the state and Army Corps, that they cannot cherry-pick some sections of the law, ignore other sections, and buck legal precedents regarding environmental review. We would be pleased if the court compelled the authorities, whose actions so far have been inexcusable, to look at alternatives, such as removing the 10 or so structures in harm’s way in Montauk and building a new, more natural dune to protect the rest of the area from storms.
East Hampton Town officials should take this opportunity to rethink their go-along support of the Army Corps plan. Supervisor Larry Cantwell, who vowed to defend against the lawsuit vigorously and who, as a lifelong resident and surf fisherman, might have been expected to know better than to seek to fight the ocean, should instead insist that all involved follow the town’s law as written. And Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc, who was against it before he was for it, needs to take another look. If this looming Montauk debacle goes forward, the consequences will be on their heads.
Because it appears the project may not begin until fall, there is still time to pull the plug and do what would be right for the long haul. Building a seawall, whether of sandbags or stone, is simply the wrong way to go — as the former town board members who approved our waterfront laws not all that long ago understood.