Press Releases

Contact: Public Relations Department
Suffolk County Water Authority
PO Box 37
Oakdale NY 11769
(631) 563-0296

December 11, 1998
Suffolk Now A "Groundwater Guardian"

Peconic Bay area farmers working to reduce their chemical usage and local children designing posters for a yearly contest now have something in common with people all over North America through a program sponsored by the Groundwater Foundation in Lincoln, Nebraska, which recently designated Suffolk County as a Groundwater Guardian community.

In all, 181 entities, representing 37 states as well as Canada and Mexico, met the Foundation's requirements in 1998 by forming community teams and voluntarily working on groundwater protection projects. The local effort began in March when the Suffolk County Water Authority (SCWA) assembled a seven-member team that includes representatives of local government, business, agriculture and education as well as a citizen activist.

"The team chose two programs to focus on while applying for the Foundation's designation," said SCWA Chairman/CEO Michael A. LoGrande. "Now that Suffolk County has been officially accepted into the program, those two as well as two other Groundwater Guardian Result Oriented Activities (ROA's) have been formally endorsed for 1999. We are happy to support this worthwhile effort, especially since our system is the largest in the United States based entirely upon groundwater."

The Suffolk County Groundwater Guardian Team includes Civic Activist John Anderson; Dr. Henry Bokuniewicz, who directs the Long Island Groundwater Research Institute (LIGRI); Senior Public Health Sanitarian Kevin Dunn; Joe Gergela, executive director of the Long Island Farm Bureau; SCWA Lab Director Karen Randazzo; and Ken Tuthill, chief executive officer of Pine Barrens Pure Bottled Water. SCWA Public Relations Assistant June Bolton serves as coordinator.

The team selected a program which helps farmers in the Peconic Bay Watershed/Shallow Aquifer Area learn best management practices designed to prevent nitrates, pesticides and other chemicals from leaching into the groundwater as its first ROA. The program is a joint effort of Cornell Cooperative Extension, the Suffolk County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture.

In May, the team also formally endorsed the LIGRI Water Week Poster Contest as its second ROA. The colorful brochure now soliciting entries from students in grades 1-12 bears the official Groundwater Guardian logo, and four of the posters from last year's contest are being used on the SCWA website under Special Programs to illustrate an item on the Groundwater Guardian Program.

As additional Groundwater Guardian ROA's for 1999, the team has chosen the SCWA's Water Week Slogan Contest for third through eighth graders as well as a new project called SEND, which stands for Suffolk's Environmental News Digest. According to Dunn, who directs the Office of Environmental Outreach at the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, this effort will involve water professionals and volunteers in producing a publication for teachers, students, civic groups and other organizations interested in learning more about Suffolk's water resources.

"Residents will receive factual environmental news based on scientific analyses," he said. "This information will help residents make wiser decisions concerning their water supply and other events affecting their environment and their health. Decisions on the necessity of bottled water and water filters, and which way to vote on important environmental legislation, will be made more clear for residents." Dunn anticipates having the first issue of the newsletter ready for distribution in March.

The Groundwater Foundation, a private non-profit educational organization, may be reached at 1-800-858-4844. Each community Groundwater Guardian team selects projects for its own area, and the Foundation supports these efforts.

The Suffolk County Water Authority is a public benefit corporation operating by virtue of the Public Authorities Law of the State of New York. The Authority is operated solely for the benefit of the customers it serves.

All communities participating in the Groundwater Guardian Program are eligible to use the official Groundwater Guardian logo shown here.