Goals

Goal: Strong Partnerships
Goal: Resilient Communities
Goal: Clean Waters
Goal: Healthy Ecosystem

Goal 3: Clean waters
Objective E
3
Actions
23
Projects

Progress of Actions
Progress of Projects

Completed   Ongoing   In-Progress   Unexecuted
Updated since: 07/22/2026

Objective E: Increase understanding of nutrient pollution in groundwater and surface waters, and decrease negative impacts from legacy, current, and future nutrient inputs

  • Completion of the Peconic Estuary Water Quality Monitoring Strategy within 3 years

    • Facilitate stakeholder meetings to guide the process

    Provide scenarios with completed model

    Facilitate stakeholder meetings to guide the process

    Weekly monitoring at the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) rain and atmospheric deposition gauge at Cedar Beach, Southold, NY.

    Report finalized

    On-line tool complete

    Coordinate with LINAP/LIWP to compile projects

    Coordinate with Suffolk County to compile projects

    Coordinate with academic partners to compile list

  • Utilize Action 17 Short-term Performance Measures to further refine draft code and model local laws (PEPC)
  • Development of strategies with municipalities and water districts to manage water use, conserve water, and maintain existing and protect future buffers to prevent saltwater intrusion into the groundwater
  • A review of existing non-point source recommendations in the TMDL report and establishment of a reduction target

    • Annual review of parameters reporting

    Addition of TN in annual report

    Establishment of PEP Priority Embayments

    Establishment of Embayment monitoring prootocol

    Embayment Water Quality Reporting

    Peconic River Water Quality Reporting

    Use of EPA Water Quality Exchange (WQX)

    Hold Community meetings on homeowner upgrade of septic and cesspools to I/A systems

    Suffolk County law passed to require I/A systems on all new construction and home upgrades

    Increased funding and expanded outreach for PEP’s Homeowner Rewards Program,

    PEPS I/A OWTS Maintenance Grant (Program Office)

    Shelter Island fertigation project

    Hold Riverhead Water Re-use educational tours

    Member of the RCPP

    Creation of the PEP Agriculture workgroup

    PRB Monitoring - Tanbark Creek: Develop a PRB monitoring plan that is approved by the Peconic Estuary Partnership and the East Hampton Water Quality Technical Review Committee (WQTAC).

    PRB Monitoring - Tanbark Creek: five years of Monitoring as per the parameters and frequency established in the Monitoring Plan.

    Second year of monitoring

  • Additional lands protected using the Peconic Estuary Critical Lands Protection Strategy as a guide
  • Recomendation to Peconic Land Trust for use of CLPS tool in all Towns priority Land Acquiaition Lists
  • Contribute to Riverhead Comprehensive Plan update

  • Identification of funding sources to carry out recommendations in the Suffolk County Harmful Algal Bloom Action Plan
  • Implementation of the Suffolk County Harmful Algal Bloom Action Plan
  • HABs project in priority embayments (Sag Harbor Cove, James Creek, Deep Hole Creek, Terry Creek, Meetinghouse Creek, and Halls Creek), looking at Cochlodinium polykrikoides Alexandrium, and Dinophysis
  • Communication of accurate and sound science as part of PEP annual water quality reporting to local decision makers
  • Development of a HABs reporting system that streamlines the efforts of partner organizations