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By Gary Haber - December 25, 2024
Patchogue Village officials were recognized Wednesday for their efforts to protect the environment.
The South Shore Estuary Reserve program and Citizens Campaign for the Environment presented mayor Paul Pontieri and village trustees with the South Shore Estuary Reserve 2024 Stewardship Award.
The village received the award for replacing the deteriorating 1,300-foot bulkhead along the Great South Bay at Shorefront Park with a living shoreline that improves water quality and makes the area more resistant to flooding and coastal erosion. The $3 million project was completed in 2023.
Citizens Campaign for the Environment executive director Adrienne Esposito presented the award and praised village officials for prioritizing protecting the environment.
“As someone who works with municipalities all across Long Island and New York State and also coastal Connecticut, I can tell you that the Village of Patchogue has illustrated that leadership, has illustrated that stewardship and really takes it seriously, and as part of their mandate as government. We think that is absolutely a shining example for other government leaders.”
“Protecting the environment is ingrained in what they do, who they are and the legacy they leave,” added Esposito, a village resident.
“We don’t do it for awards,” Pontieri said following the brief ceremony. “We do it because it’s the right thing.”
Two other awards were given out Wednesday.
Tom Wilson, a Brightwaters resident and retired engineer with Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, received the 2024 Career Milestone Award for his “significant contributions throughout his professional life to protect and restore the South Shore Estuary’s unique natural environment and maritime traditions.”
The Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, a nonprofit based in Hampton Bays, was recognized for its work in treating large injured marine mammals, including seals and sea turtles, and educating the public.
The South Shore Estuary covers a 173-square-mile network of bays along the South Shore in Suffolk and Nassau counties and home to 1.1 million people. The South Shore Estuary Reserve is a program of the New York State Department of State that works for the “preservation. protection and enhancement” of the estuary’s natural resources.
At Wednesday’s awards ceremony, deputy secretary of State Kisha Santiago Martinez announced the development of a $3.5 million spending plan for the South Shore Estuary Reserve for 2025-2026.
Esposito said Wednesday that her organization will push for $7 million in funding for the South Shore Estuary Reserve when the state legislature returns in January.