Patricia Pelkowski, pine barrens site director for The Nature Conservancy in New York, said last week she observed both species during visits to the EPCAL site in late January.

According to internal correspondence among DEC staff members obtained by The News-Review, a DEC environmental technician last week confirmed the presence of both species at the 2,900-acre former Navy property that was leased to the Northrup Grumman Corporation until it pulled up stakes a decade ago.

A letter dated Feb. 8 was sent to Riverhead town attorney Dawn Thomas by DEC attorney Timothy Eidle, requesting that the town identify "each development project that is ongoing or planned at the EPCAL site" and seeking contact information for developers and property owners associated with all such development projects.

The letter also asks for access by DEC wildlife biologists to portions of the site "which may be utilized by Short-eared Owls or Northern Harriers."

Not so fast, says the Riverhead supervisor. He's not yet convinced the species are actually on the site, nor is he certain about DEC jurisdiction over the matter.

Mr. Cardinale recalled an appearance at a Town Board work session in October by Nature Conservancy representatives who asked the town to preserve the as-yet-undeveloped portions of the EPCAL site. At that time, he said, The Nature Conservancy provided the town with a list of species found on the site. Neither the short-eared owl nor the northern harrier were on that list, according to Mr. Cardinale.

"There was nothing there in October. There was nothing there in '97," Mr. Cardinale said, referring to the date of an environmental impact statement prepared by the Navy in advance of its transfer of the property to the town. "Now they are there," he said, calling the recent discovery of the two listed species "fortuitous."

Mr. Cardinale said he wants the DEC to be "very specific" in its documentation of protected species at the site. "The long-eared owl, I'm told, which is not endangered, is often confused with the short-eared owl," he said.

In a letter to The North Shore Sun published in today's edition (see page 8), Carolyn Spilman, the Long Island bird conservation coordinator for Audubon New York, wrote the "news of short-eared owls on the property came as no surprise to local birders, conservationists and wildlife photographers." Members of local Audubon Society chapters have reported seeing short-eared owls at the EPCAL property "numerous times in previous years," she said The grasslands of the EPCAL site are a critical breeding, foraging and roosting habitat to many species listed by the state as in need of protection, she said, joining The Nature Conservancy in its call for preservation of the EPCAL site.

That's out of the question, as far as Mr. Cardinale and members of the Town Board are concerned. They argue that the U.S. government gave the 2,900-acre former Grumman site to the town specifically for economic development, to make up lost tax revenue and jobs after Grumman, for decades the town's biggest property tax payer and employer, closed its Calverton plant.

The state has conflicting policies regarding EPCAL, Mr. Cardinale said. On the one hand, its economic development agency wants the site redeveloped, designating it as an Empire Zone and offering tax and financial incentives for businesses to locate there. On the other hand, the state DEC seeks to put environmental conservation above economic development.

Mr. Cardinale called on Gov. Eliot Spitzer to strike a balance between economic development and environmental conservation, which is something that must be done "at a higher level" than the DEC's Long Island regional office, he said.

Further, Mr. Cardinale said, the DEC has "a tendency to assert jurisdiction in areas where they do not have it." He said he wants the town attorney to "verify" that DEC has the jurisdiction it is now attempting to exercise over the EPCAL site.

Mr. Cardinale has locked horns with both the DEC and the state Pine Barrens Commission over jurisdictional issues. Earlier this month, a state court upheld the town in its battle against submitting to the jurisdiction of the Pine Barrens Commission on development projects at EPCAL.

Article 11 of the state's Environmental Conservation Law gives DEC authority to determine which species of wildlife are of special concern, including species determined endangered or threatened. The law also prohibits the "taking" of those species, except by virtue of a permit issued by DEC.

Regulations enacted by DEC pursuant to the law designate the short-eared owl as an endangered species and the northern harrier as a threatened species.

Activity that might result in a taking of either species, including development activity, requires a permit from the DEC, according to a department spokesperson. The state law defines a "taking" as "pursuing, shooting, hunting, killing, capturing, trapping, snaring and netting fish, wildlife, game, shellfish, crustacea and protected insects, and all lesser acts such as disturbing, harrying or worrying..."

Add your comments below:

Your name:

Your email:

Subject:


Comments:



Enter text seen above: