Pine Barren Preservation Will Help Protect LI Water Supply

The Peconic Land Trust and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation have announced the preservation of a parcel of land in the Central Pine Barrens core that will help protect Long Island’s drinking water aquifer.           

With funding from the DEC, the Peconic Land Trust is able to proactively identify and protect areas with groundwater that could otherwise be contaminated from development.

“We have been working with the town of Brookhaven and Peconic Estuary Program to prioritize conservation parcels, ensuring that we can protect our drinking water supply. And moving forward, we’re also going to be working with the towns of Riverhead and Southold and Shelter Island,” said Josh Halsey, a project assistant with the Peconic Land Trust.

The Central Pine Barrens core parcel is the first to be purchased with funds from the state Water Quality Improvement Project.

The Peconic Land Trust was awarded an additional $3 million from the DEC that they will use when they work with the other towns and villages later this year.

By Jill Ryan, WSHU

Check out the original publication of this article here