Town Allocates Funding For Fort Pond Nitrogen Removal Project

MONTAUK, NY — The East Hampton Town board has approved a $25,211 grant, awarded to Concerned Citizens of Montauk, for the installation of an innovative pilot floating wetlands project in Fort Pond in Montauk.

As a temporary seasonal installation of native vegetation designed to remove nitrogen and phosphorus, the hope is that the floating wetlands will mitigate some of the nutrient pollution in the pond, thus reducing the extent and severity of the harmful algal blooms which have plagued the pond for the last few years, CCOM said.

CCOM President Laura Tooman reflected on the award: “CCOM has been working on a comprehensive watershed-driven approach to make measurable water quality improvements through science, monitoring, and implementation of targeted projects. This pilot mitigation project will work in tandem with all our other efforts aimed at reducing pollutant loadings in Fort Pond.”

Funding will be provided through the Town’s Community Preservation Fund water quality improvement program.