Westbury Fire & Water Districts' Abbatiello Among Commissioners Who Testified at LICAP Hearing as part of NSWCA Delegation

Westbury, New York; November 4, 2016 - A delegation from the Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association (NSWCA) recently presented testimony at a Long Island Commission for Aquifer Protection (LICAP) public information hearing. The purpose of the hearing was to collect public input on protecting Long Island’s sole source aquifer and the LICAP’s draft State of the Aquifer report. Leading NSWCA’s delegation were Westbury Water and Fire Districts Commissioner Vincent Abbatiello, Hicksville Water District Commissioner Karl M. Schweitzer, and Massapequa Water District Commissioner Thomas P. Hand.

During testimony, Commissioner Schweitzer commented that the pre-eminent concern should be the clean-up of toxic plumes, which he said “has dragged on for decades to the disadvantage of local suppliers who are all too often left to cope with circumstances that they did not create. The stakes are of the highest order. There is no margin for error and no excuse for prolonging an intolerable situation.”

“The sources of the toxic plumes are well known,” Commissioner Hand later added. “Since a core principle of our NSWCA mission is to provide a sustainable resource and to ensure the protection as well as efficient management of Long Island’s natural aquifer groundwater supply, LICAP must give toxic plumes the highest priority.”

Commissioner Schweitzer further stated, “The NSWCA is opposed to increasing bureaucracy and the formation of any aquifer management agency or water compact. As suggested, creating yet another agency, management board or water compact merely further crowds an already overcrowded field, and makes effective action more difficult to achieve.”

“Since the NYSDEC (New York State Department of Environmental Conservation) is empowered with managing and regulating Long Island’s water, we believe that it is imperative that proper professional staffing be restored or additional staff added so that the NYSDEC can properly fulfill their mission,” Commissioner Schweitzer added.

Commissioner Abbatiello addressed that the NSWCA delegation made additional recommendations for combatting nitrates, saltwater intrusion and conducting a professional review of regulations to keep road salt out of shallow wells.

In commenting on the LICAP testimony, NSWCA President and Massapequa Water Commissioner Raymond Averna noted. “There is a great effort underway to understand, appreciate and manage our aquifer system. For sustainability, NSWCA believes that professional action that stems from a plan based on scientific fact is the key to a non-political solution for all the communities that constitute Nassau and Suffolk counties.”

For further information:
NSWCA Agency Contact: Mr. Jamie Stanco, Progressive Marketing Group, Inc., phone: 631-756-7160, email: jpstanco@pmgstrategic.com.

NSWCA Contact: Mr. Raymond J. Averna, NSWCA President, phone, 516-650-5880, or email, raverna@massapequawater.com

Organized and chartered in 1981, Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association (NSWCA) is comprised of water commissioners from 21 Nassau and Suffolk County water districts. The NSWCA is dedicated to promoting environmental excellence and best practices as well as maintaining the highest standards of water quality and supply. NSWCA sponsors regular educational meetings on topics that include the environment, security, economics, rules and regulations, among other related issues.

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PHOTO CAPTION: Pictured is Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association (NSWCA) President and Massapequa Water District Commissioner Raymond J. Averna (far left) with representatives of the NSWCA delegation who recently presented testimony at a Long Island Commission for Aquifer Protection (LICAP) public information hearing: (from left to right) Massapequa Water District Commissioner Thomas P. Hand, Hicksville Water District Commissioner Karl Schweitzer, and Westbury Water and Fire Districts Commissioner Vincent Abbatiello.