East End - Long Island, New York

Forecast snowfall accumulation from the Euro model through Wednesday morning. This is just one model forecast. Final snow accumulation depends heavily on the track the storm takes, and how quickly the storm develops. (weatherbell.com)

abc.com - AP - by Verena Dobnik - January 25, 2015

A "potentially historic" storm could dump 2 to 3 feet of snow from northern New Jersey to Connecticut starting Monday, crippling a region that has largely been spared so far this winter, the National Weather Service said.

A blizzard warning was issued for New York and Boston, and the National Weather Service said the massive storm would bring heavy snow and powerful winds starting Monday and into Tuesday.

"This could be a storm the likes of which we have never seen before," New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio at a news conference Sunday.

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Image: An array of solar panels.

longisland.com - December 7th, 2014

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the launch of Community Solar NY, a new effort under the NY-Sun initiative to make implementing solar easier and more affordable for communities across the state. The program launched today supports community projects known as “Solarize” campaigns – locally-organized community outreach efforts aimed at getting a critical mass of area homes and businesses to install solar.

“Transitioning to affordable and clean energy is a large part of our goal of building a better New York State – and today we’re taking another step forward to make that goal a reality,” Governor Cuomo said.

(VIEW COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Editorial |August 28, 2014 - 10:40am

An absence of long-term vision including a meaningful commitment to renewable sources and reducing greenhouse emissions.

LILCO, LIPA, PSEG — the names may have changed over the years, but for more than 30 years electrical service on Long Island has been one frustration after another. At a meeting in East Hampton on Tuesday, residents and elected officials were expected to speak out about a host of issues; whether their pleas will receive a meaningful response is subject to doubt.

http://easthamptonstar.com/Editorials/2014827/PSEGs-Policies-Backward-Track

13 August 2014 - By Mara Certic

Just weeks after blue-green algal blooms were detected in Georgica Pond, extremely high levels of the toxic rust alga Cochlodinium have emerged in Sag Harbor and East Hampton waters.

Cochlodinium first appeared on Long Island in 2004 and has been detected in local waters every summer since. According to Professor Christopher Gobler, who conducts water quality testing and is a professor at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, densities above 500 cells per milliliter can be lethal to both finfish and shellfish. The Gobler Laboratory recorded Cochlodinium at densities exceeding 30,000 cells per milliliter in Sag Harbor Cove, and over 1,000 in Accabonac and Three Mile Harbors.

http://sagharborexpress.com/toxic-tide-shows-up-early-in-sag-harbor/

http://sagharboronline.com/sagharborexpress/page-1/toxic-tide-shows-up-early-in-sag-harbor-32598

Andrew Blankstein and Kevin Monahan - Friday, 29 Aug 2014 | 8:45 AM ET - NBC News

The beach is so central to California's identity that the right of surfers and sun lovers to access the sand is guaranteed in the state Constitution.

But now so many local landowners want to block public access to their chunks of the coveted coastline that there are several hundred alleged violations pending before state officials, including a highly charged case in which Vinod Khosla, a green energy billionaire with ties to President Obama, is fighting surfers over access to a beach south of San Francisco.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101957304#.

submitted by Joe Browder

Offsetting carbon emissions by conserving ocean vegetation

thebluecarbonproject.com

What is Blue Carbon?

The problem: The growing emission of carbon dioxide from a wide range of human activities is causing unprecedented changes to the land and sea. Identifying effective, efficient and politically acceptable approaches to reduce the atmospheric concentration of CO₂ is one of society’s most pressing goals.

Andrea Nydegger, right, spoke about the difficulties of getting children mental health services on the East End. Alexa Gorman

indyeastend.com - by Emily Toy - June 4, 2014

Last Thursday night nearly 30 people gathered at the David Crohan Community Center in Flanders to discuss the needs of the children, adolescents and young adults here on the East End.

Scattered with local politicians, elected officials, community activists, social workers, and members of the public, the crowd discussed different options East End communities have to make the area safer, stronger, and more desirable for the area's youth to remain living in.

Led by Town of Southampton Youth Bureau Director Nancy Lynott, a report prepared by the Suffolk County Youth Board Coordinating Council to address the needs of local kids was discussed.

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(ALSO SEE RELATED ARTICLE HERE)

Quail Hill Farm - a Stewardship project of the Peconic Land Trust 

2014 is the 25th Anniversary of Quail Hill Farm!

Quail Hill Farm, one of the original CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farms in the U.S., is located in Amagansett, New York, on land donated to the Peconic Land Trust by Deborah Ann Light.  Since it was established in 1990, Quail Hill Farm has grown to 30 acres serving over 250 families. The community farm also delivers fresh food to local restaurants and food pantries and participates in two farmers' markets (Sag Harbor and Montauk) throughout the season. Each year, Quail Hill Farm signs on to the “Farmer’s Pledge” of the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York: “to sustain the land in healthy condition for future generations.”

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

peconiclandtrust.org

The Peconic Land Trust, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was established in 1983 by John v.H. Halsey and a small group of local residents to ensure the protection of Long Island’s working farms, natural lands, and heritage. Since 1983, the Trust has worked diligently with landowners, communities, municipalities, and partner organizations to protect nearly 11,000 acres of land, conserving more working farms on Long Island than any other private conservation organization, and securing millions of dollars from the public and private sector for land protection.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

peconicbaykeeper.org

Peconic Baykeeper is the only independent, not-for-profit advocate solely dedicated to the protection and improvement of the aquatic ecosystems of the Peconic and South Shore estuaries of Long Island. Its clean water mission is advanced through conservation and management initiatives, public education, research, monitoring and participation in the public environmental review of projects and activities that may adversely impact the ecological health of the region's estuarine waters.  Where violations of the law threaten water quality or undermine protection of  natural resources, our advocacy may include plaintiff litigation. In 1997, Peconic Baykeeper became the 19th keeper organization to be sanctioned by Waterkeeper Alliance.

Newsday

submitted by Cheryl Stroud

nap.edu - Institute of Medicine. Understanding the Connections Between Coastal Waters and Ocean Ecosystem Services and Human Health: Workshop Summary. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2014.

neiwpcc.org

Established by an Act of Congress in 1947, the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission is a not-for-profit interstate agency that utilizes a variety of strategies to meet the water-related needs of our member states—Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. NEIWPCC serves and assists our states by coordinating activities and forums that encourage cooperation among the states, developing resources that foster progress on water and wastewater issues, representing the region in matters of federal policy, training environmental professionals, initiating and overseeing scientific research projects, educating the public, and providing overall leadership in water management and protection.

NEIWPCC is a leader in forming strong bonds between the New England and New York State environmental agencies, and is unique in its ability to bring diverse interest groups together, create forums for collaboration, and educate with innovative products. For well over six decades, the Commission has managed interstate water conflicts by means of sound science, coordination, and adaptation.

                                            (CLICK ON THE MAP IMAGE BELOW TO ENLARGE)

nan.usace.army.mil

Click the names of projects and studies in the link below to learn more about them

http://www.nan.usace.army.mil/About/Hurricane_Sandy/CoastalStormRiskReductionProjectsandStudies.aspx

submitted by Margery Schab

Spring 2014 Lecture Series
Friday, April 4, 2014 7:30 p.m.
Duke Lecture Hall –Chancellor’s Hall Southampton Campus

Dr. Christopher Gobler
Stony Brook University

“State of the Bays, 2014: Nitrogen loading, estuarine flushing, and the fate of Long Island’s coastal waters”

This talk will first introduce a new organization, The Long Island Coastal Conservation and Research Alliance (LICCRA), whose mission will be to engage in coastal research and monitoring that can be used to protect and restore Long Island coastal ecosystems. Next, this seminar will highlight recent observations and research important for the conservation of these ecosystems.

(FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CLICK HERE, AND SEE ATTACHMENT BELOW)