Partnerships | Peconic Estuary Program

NEIWPCC staff coordinated work on a ramp on the Peconic River allowing fish to return to their spawning habitat.

The Peconic Estuary System is located between Long Island’s characteristic north and south forks, and has been designated by United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an "Estuary of National Significance." The Peconic Estuary Program (PEP) is responsible for managing projects designed to protect and restore this magnificent ecosystem. NEIWPCC’s Julie Nace coordinates the role of New York’s State’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) as a crucial PEP partner, spearheading vital water quality and habitat management efforts. Recent accomplishments and efforts include:

• PEP Management Conference’s adoption of an innovative eelgrass management plan for the estuary,
• Continued control of the invasive, non-native aquatic plant, water primrose (Ludwigia peploides), in the Peconic River with
  the help of partner agencies and volunteers, and
• Continued work on habitat restoration and stormwater
  abatement projects through partnerships.

Another important project administered by Nace and Theresa Portante-Lyle, NEIWPPC’s Wetlands Program Coordinator, is the implementation of an EPA grant to conduct a Long Island Tidal Wetlands Trends Analysis and to create a Wetland Loss Diagnosis Matrix. This study will assess quantitative and qualitative changes in wetlands since the last regulatory inventory in 1974.  This project will provide managers with a tool to identify wetland areas that are in need of protection to maintain a healthy Peconic Estuary.

For more information on the Peconic Estuary Program, visit its website at www.peconicestuary.org.