Stewardship
The East Hampton Trustees have been the stewards of East Hampton public lands and waterways since 1661. We are one of the oldest bodies of government in our country and are one of the largest landowners in our beloved town of East Hampton.
East Hampton is facing many important environmental challenges, and we must all work together in order to improve our local environment and ensure clean water for future generations. We are very proud and pleased that several local community groups have been formed to undertake environmental projects and remediation on Trustee property.
The East Hampton Trustees welcome the opportunity to work with local community groups and members of the public on environmental projects. Please contact the Trustee office at 631-267-8688 to schedule a meeting regarding your project or community initiative today.
Aquaculture
The East Hampton Town Trustees own most of the Bottom lands found within the town of East Hampton on behalf of the residents or freeholders of the commonality of East Hampton. Our goal is to foster clean, safe waterways and responsible usage of our waters by the public.
An important component of our bottom lands management, is the partnership and cooperation with our town shellfish hatchery. The East Hampton Town Shellfish Hatchery has produced an outstanding body of work on behalf of our community focusing on the growing and seeding of Bay Scallops, Hard Clams and Oysters.
During 2016 a community shellfish garden was established on a Trustee approved area of Three Mile Harbor. During March of 2017 the size of the Three Mile Harbor shellfish Garden was increased and a new Shellfish Garden was established on Hog Creek via Trustee approval. In 2018 a new community oyster garden was added on Gerard Drive in Accabonac Harbor. In 2019 a community oyster garden was added at the end of Crassen Blvd in Napeague Harbor.
Please contact the Trustee office should you wish to contribute to the shellfish efforts in East Hampton or start a shellfish garden on your favorite town water body.
Harbor Management Committee
The Harbor Management Committee(aka HMC) was founded in 2001 through a Trustee resolution in order to engage the East Hampton community in the Trustee goal of maintaining healthy water flows and navigation in our local harbors and creeks. The regular review of these waters and the development of recommendations for maintenance and improvements are important and ongoing Harbor Management Committee activities.
Harbor Management Committee members serve for three year terms working on projects such as field observation, data collection, dredging, and habitat management and reporting. Currently up to five people can serve on the Harbor Management Committee. Members of the committee are appointed by the Trustee Board. The HMC meets monthly and reports to the Trustee Board periodically.
We are grateful for the important work the Harbor Management Committee contributes to the Trustees’ role as stewards of our local beaches and bottom lands. Please contact the East Hampton Town Trustee office should you like to be considered as a member of our HMC.
Georgica Pond
The real-time pond level gauge allows us to see changes in the height of the pond in relation to sea level. It operates via telemetry 12 months/year. The gauge is owned and maintained by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and funded by a four-year funding partnership (started in 2017) including the USGS, the Village of East Hampton and the Friends of Georgica Pond. This information appears on the Trustee website courtesy of the Friends of Georgica Pond Foundation.
The real-time water quality buoy was first installed in Georgica Pond in 2015. A project of the Gobler Lab at Stony Brook University School of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences (SOMAS) the buoy allows us to understand daily and yearly changes in the basic ecological parameters of the pond. Some of these changes have a direct effect on the water quality of the pond including harmful algal blooms. The water quality buoy is funded by the Friends of Georgica Pond Foundation. This buoy’s data will come online around May 28, 2020. This information appears on the Trustee website courtesy of the Friends of Georgica Pond Foundation.