In November 2011, the Village of Quogue (assisted by First Coastal Corp.) submitted an application for a permit to dredge offshore the Quogue Beach. At an estimated cost of $15 million dollars, the project would pump and dump 1.1 million cubic yards of sand along the entire 2.7 miles of Quogue Beach.

That permit application is now complete and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has begun a 30 day “Public Comment Period” ending November 29—representing what could be the only opportunity for concerned citizens to have a voice in whether the project is approved. The CCQ urges anyone concerned with the health of our beaches to communicate—in writing via email or letter—opinions regarding the necessity and ramifications of a project of this magnitude, and to implore the DEC to deny the permit.

Please consider the following:

• Federal Funds are not available to Quogue for this project, leaving the related tax and debt burden entirely on the community
• Most of Quogue’s beach is in very good shape (see photo below), as recently observed by noted coastal geologist Dr. Rob Young. Conclusion: we don’t need “beach nourishment”
• Dredged sand can be washed away in a single storm, with the related debt still to be repaid
• Dredging is temporary and requires additional maintenance projects to be repeated over time at additional cost (example: West Hampton Dunes)
• Dredging can have a detrimental effect on the coastal ecosystem; the assumption that it doesn’t is dangerously misguided
• Sand is a finite resource and should be reserved for when it is truly necessary. The proposed project will dredge a 100 acre trench 7 feet deep, from only a mile offshore.

For an excellent recent opinion of beach nourishment authored by Dr. Young, please consider this brief read in Yale Environment 360 and the following excerpt:

“Some try to put green lipstick on these dredge-and-fill projects by calling them beach restoration. But let’s be clear: Rebuilding beaches and dunes in front of buildings is not restoration; it is engineering. The beaches and dunes are not designed to maximize their effectiveness as ecosystems. They are designed for storm protection. …

Beach replenishment… is an effort to fight that natural trajectory by simply pumping sand onto a shoreline that is changing due to natural erosion or rising sea levels. Rebuilding beaches and dunes may be a ‘soft solution,’ as it is often described, but it is not restoration, nor is it environmentally benign.”

If you are opposed to this project, PLEASE WRITE to the DEC and express your views. Time is of the essence. Emails or letters must be received by November 29th.

Please include your physical address and reference the application ID: NYDEC 1-4736-01875

Email George Hammarth at gwhammar@gw.dec.state.ny.us

Or write to him:

Mr. George Hammarth, NYSDEC SUNY@ Stony Brook, 50 Circle Road, Stony Brook, New York 11790-3490