Mitigating Nitrogen in Accabonac Harbor
Letter to the East Hampton Star:
Springs
December 19, 2022
Dear Editor,
Thank you for the article “Plume Looms in Springs” about the ammonium plume entering Accabonac Harbor. The article is a stark reminder of how vulnerable Accabonac Harbor is to human activities that contribute to pollution, including nitrogen loading. Those activities include the use of lawn fertilizer carried by stormwater runoff, as well as effluent from on-site waste systems.
Once nitrogen is in the groundwater or in the open water of the harbor, it is difficult to remove it or mitigate its effects. Given the increase in year-round population, the Accabonac Protection Committee is working to ensure that the best technologies are in place to reduce nitrogen loading and that our households have the information they need about landscaping practices.
It is sobering to note that although the Springs School has installed an low-nitrogen septic system, known as innovative-alternative, the ammonium plume in the ground will continue to move into the harbor for many years to come.
The Accabonac Protection Committee funded three studies in 2022 with Cornell Cooperative Extension, to characterize sites where large ammonium plumes enter the harbor. These sites may be ideal places to intercept the ammonium plume and convert it to nitrogen that can be removed by such devices as permeable reactive barriers. The protection committee-funded studies were conducted by the extension near the Springs General Store, the north part of Accabonac Harbor, and in the southern part of the Harbor. As a nonprofit, the Accabonac Protection Committee uses its donations to fund pilot studies to collect data that can be used to develop projects eligible for community preservation fund funding.
There are good reasons for homeowners to install innovative-alternative septic systems. See the town of East Hampton website for incentive details. ehamptonny.gov/584/Septic-Incentive-Program. The Internal Revenue Service will no longer tax the incentive payments. Christopher Gobler of the New York State Center for Clean Water Technology recently presented encouraging data on a nitrogen-removing bio-filter using wood chips that is being piloted. This innovation is very promising, although still in the pilot stage; it could bring the nitrogen considerably lower.
In 2022, we committed funds to the Springs Presbyterian Church to pay for engineering plans for a stormwater runoff project and an innovative-alternative septic system for the church. The engineering plans will support the church in its efforts to qualify for C.P.F. funds for these projects.
To address the nitrogen once it is in the open waters of the harbor, we funded last year’s sugar kelp project led by Barley Dunne of the town shellfish hatchery. We are hopeful that the town’s oyster projects effectively remove additional nitrogen.
Coming up in 2023, the protection committee will provide mailings to all households in the Accabonac watershed, the theme being “What You Do on Your Property Matters.”
Mitigating nitrogen loading works. There is hope. Together we can protect Accabonac Harbor.
Best regards,
PATRICE DALTON
President
Accabonac Protection Committee
