NEW YORK: SUFFOLK COUNTY, LONG ISLAND County and state legislature, and stakeholders combine Transfer of Development Rights, general obligation municipal bonds, sales tax revenue and real estate transfer tax revenue to preserve land in core preservation area. Background Located at the eastern two-thirds of Long Island, Suffolk County runs from population densities of 4,000 persons per square mile on the west end near NYC to 200 per square mile in the agricultural east end, still the number one farming county in the State for market revenue. In between lies New York State's third largest preservation area: the 100,000 acre Central Pine Barrens, under which lies the island's largest supply of fresh drinking water (120 trillion gallons). The Suffolk County Water Authority (www.scwa.com) is the nation's second largest ground water supplier; serving 1.2 million residents from this federally designated sole source aquifer. Heavy development in the aquifer recharge area led to concern about damage to this sensitive and unique ecosystem and the threat of nonpoint source pollution seeping into the ground water. In response to this concern, in 1987, voters overwhelmingly approved by referendum, the use of one quarter of one percent of the sales tax to purchase critical watershed areas through a new Drinking Water Protection Program. As part of this program, the county acquires lands in mapped and designated Special Ground water Protection Areas (SGPA's) most likely to have an impact on existing or future drinking water supplies. The continued availability of these sales tax funds have attracted matching funds from the federal, state (including Clean Water Revolving Funds), and local governments and allowed future revenue streams to be pledged for debt service to amass larger qualities of money as needed over the years. The Suffolk County Water Authority has received the 2006 Exemplary Source Water Protection Award from the American Water Works Association (AWWA). Primary Contamination Threat The primary contamination threat is from heavy development and nonpoint source pollution. Local Involvement and Developing the Protection Plan Wearied and battered by protracted lawsuits pitting preservationists against developers, litigants joined the Suffolk County Water Authority (SCWA), the Regional Plan Association and regional and state government in 1993 to plan a future for the 100,000-acre Central Pine Barrens. Located 75 miles east of Manhattan, the "poor, scrubby land of indifferent quality", as George Washington once described it, had, by the 1980's, become the last frontier for suburban sprawl, stretching from 1950's Levittown east to Suffolk County, an area which today has a population of 2.5 million people. The real estate community viewed the Pine Barrens as the sorry-looking Office of Water (4606M) 816F10035 January 2010 ------- void between a vital city/suburb and the world-class destinations of the Hamptons, Montauk and Fire Island. Preservationists viewed it as the last untouched open space and forest preserve, home to numerous endangered species of plants and animals, including a globally rare ecosystem, known as the Dwarf Pine Plains. "Pushing and shoving" ensued through the 1980's with plenty of posturing and fear mongering intended to win the hearts and minds of the citizenry and the local governments who oversaw zoning, planning and development. Finally, all the feuding parties agreed to plan and build on the 1987 Drinking Water Protection Program. The 1993 planning principles adopted by the State Legislature in the Long Island Pine Barrens Protection Act allowed for compact, orderly development in compatible growth areas, and simultaneously designated a no-development zone mapped as a core preservation area. The Central Pine Barrens Plan (Plan) was framed as the best way to preserve what, in fact, is a watershed and drinking water preserve for present and future generations. The State mandated goals, interim development standards, a Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) procedure, and a mapped no-development zone of 50,000 acres and told everyone they had two years to adopt the Plan or else it was back to the battle of the lawyers. Feverish work commenced which was guided by a professional watershed planning group on loan from the SCWA. The labor was divided and numerous working committees were created to flesh out the Plan, develop requirements for hardships, create a mechanism for transferring development rights from the protection area to designated growth areas, and sort out jurisdictional matters. The legal cement binding the towns to the Plan was the assumption of all Plan-related liability by the State of New York, especially with respect to the strict prohibitions on development in what has now become the third largest preserve in New York State behind the Adirondacks and the Catskills. Management Measures The Plan was adopted by all the governmental entities in 1995 and contains a variety of management measures to control growth and development. Land uses in the Core Preservation Area (Core) are severely limited and must be approved by the Central Pine Barrens Joint Planning and Policy Commission (CPBJPPC) (www.pb.state.ny.us), made up of the affected governmental entities (the State, Suffolk County, and three townships). Land uses in the Compatible Growth Area (CGA) must be in accordance with the adopted Plan and are implemented locally through conforming zoning codes and planning ordinances. These local laws must correspond to common development standards and best management practices (BMP's). More recently, the CPBJPPC has developed management guidelines for stewardship for the purposes of managing the land and its ecosystems for the preservation of habitat on the surface and the ground water beneath. Sources of management funding include first instance funding by the SCWA of staff costs for the CPBJPPC with eventual reimbursement of most costs by the State, and designation of portions of the Drinking Water Program sales tax revenue for County Parks Department management and stewardship. Numerous volunteer and oversight efforts by the Long Island Pine Barrens Society (www.pinebarrens.org) and The Nature Conservancy (www.tnc.org) help to complement the government-sponsored management regulations. The Plan creates both a Protected Lands Council, made up of the public landholders in the Core Preservation Area, and a Law Enforcement_Council (LEG). The former coordinates the actions of the natural resources and parks staff that have daily management responsibilities, while the latter_oversees the continued security and protection of the habitat. Some of the LEG members Office of Water (4606M) 816F10035 January 2010 ------- have enforcement powers, specifically granted by the State Legislature, to guard against illegal dumping and waste disposal or other activities, which might be injurious to the drinking water supply or sensitive habitats. Due to the large extent of the Central Pine Barrens, the area has historically been prone to wildfire. Contingency plans include a Wildfire Task Force and Management Plan, which involves all the local fire departments, and regional fire and emergency services personnel. Annual training is provided at a Fire Academy. The Nature Conservancy also sponsors "prescribed burning" to intentionally cut down on fuel loads on the forest floor. The SCWA participates in many of these activities in order to protect and enhance the drinking water supply for existing and future customers. Contingency Planning Measuring Program Effectiveness In 2005, at the ten-year mark of the Plan's adoption, numerous aspects of the Plan were revisited to gauge effectiveness. Was the requisite amount of land preserved in the Core over the decade? Did development pan out as proposed in the Compatible Growth Area? The key to measuring effectiveness in the Central Pine Barrens does NOT lie with the government. These entities are political by their very nature and are prone to overlook any problems with enforcement, stewardship, or plan implementation. Rather, it has been private entities from the civic, recreation, environmental, and scientific communities that have successfully monitored Plan implementation, land protection, acquisition, stewardship, and development. The SCWA can readily compare raw water quality in the Pine Barrens with water quality elsewhere to show the benefits of source water protection. The SCWA also funds continuing public education about the effectiveness of the Pine Barrens Plan and the importance of the watershed and also funds scientific research on a variety of ground water issues. Local civic groups, recreation and open space user groups have complemented the efforts to measure program effectiveness through tireless monitoring, advocacy, media alerts, and sheer pestering. The structural source for measuring program effectiveness is the collaborative technique used in the two- year preparation of the Central Pine Barrens Plan. Because of the "sunset provision" mandate of the State Legislature, the Plan had to be created and adopted by all parties in two years time or else the legislation would "self-destruct". Over 350 people and the groups they represented actively participated in the Plan preparation to get the job done on time and have remained to this day to make sure their work amounts to something real and satisfying. For further information, contact: Stephen M. Jones, CEO Suffolk County Water Authority (631)563-0219 siones@scwa.com Raymond Corwin, Executive Director Central Pine Barrens Joint Planning and Policy Commission (631)224-2604 rcorwin@pb. state, ny. us Office of Water (4606M) 816F10035 January 2010 ------- |