Shelter Island Fresh Pond pilot program funded: County grant matches State for full cost
The Fresh Pond pilot program got a major boost this week on the road to a permanent solution to phosphorus buildup that has long affected water quality.
Two grants — a previous one awarded by New York State and this week’s grant from Suffolk County — combine to spare the Town needing to add any matching funds for the restoration work.
The pilot program cost is $65,000. With a State grant already in place, the two grants totaling $65,000 will cover the full cost of the pilot project, Town Engineer Joe Finora told the Town Board. Supervisor Amber Brach-Williams announced the funding at Tuesday’s work session. Because the Town has received both grants, they combine to avoid any matching funds from the Town.
It has been a long siege since it was first determined that phosphorus was creating algae blooms. And it was not just a problem affecting Fresh Pond, but phosphorous was also flowing into Menantic and Dickerson creeks.
The pilot program is the final stage before the full permanent project is undertaken.
Once the cause of the problem affecting Fresh Pond was determined, other grant money helped to explore solutions, and a final decision was made that the “hypolimnetic method,” developed by Lombardo Associates, would be the best way of cleaning up the water. This involves removing water with phosphorous from the pond, running it through a filtering system and returning the clean water to the pond, according to Pio Lombardo of Lombardo Associates.
Along the way, the Fresh Pond Neighbors civic group and many donors who appreciate that body of water even though they don’t live around the pond, have been steadily contributing money for interim steps.
Just a few weeks ago, Fresh Pond Neighbors contributed money to pay the $10,000 cost of removing harmful algae mats, decaying lily pad stems and leaves that exacerbated the water quality problems.
Word also came Tuesday that the recent clean up removed most of the algal blooms, but a second effort is needed and the Town Board passed a resolution Tuesday authorizing the work expected to be done within the next week, Mr. Finora said. He speculated that timing of the first cleanup this summer was a bit later than it had been the year before. The same contractor performing the earlier removal this year will undertake a repeat at a reduced cost.
Salt water intrusion
Mr. Finora also told the Town Board the United States Geological Survey (USGS) workers will be installing two test wells, one at Wades Beach and the other in Sachem’s Woods to be used to identify salt water intrusion into well water.
The Wades Beach test well will be at a lesser depth than the Sachem’s Woods well. Installation costs will be undertaken by the USGS and, should it be necessary eventually to decommission those wells, the USGS would carry out that effort on its own dime.
