MARK YOUR CALENDAR!

LIPA Board Meeting, Wednesday, September 28th

11:00 a.m.

333 Earle Ovington Blvd., 4th Floor, Uniondale

Dear Sandra,

As you may be aware, LIPA and PSEG are proposing a new underground transmission line between Bridgehampton and East Hampton that would involve deep horizontal directional drilling through the rare and delicate coastal plain ponds system of the Long Pond Greenbelt. Spectacular for its wealth of rare plants, animals and ecological communities, the Greenbelt has been designated a Critical Environmental Area by both Southampton Town and Suffolk County. And as one of the most ecologically significant areas in all of New York State, the Nature Conservancy ranks the Long Pond Greenbelt among TNC’s “Last Great Places” of Long Island.  

Beginning in the 1970s, for close to half a century, Southampton Town, Suffolk County, and The Nature Conservancy have preserved more than 800 acres of this diverse six-mile-long corridor of coastal plain ponds, wetlands, fields, forests and freshwater swamps, representing one of Southampton Town's longest-running conservation achievements. 

At the PSEG public hearing in June, public sentiment was overwhelmingly in favor of redirecting the route of the proposed new transmission line away from the Long Pond Greenbelt. 

• Now it’s LIPA’s governing body, the LIPA Board of Trustees, who needs to hear that message loud and clear. 
• PSEG has presented an alternative route, option #3, that doesn’t threaten the Long Pond Greenbelt. 
• To ensure the continued protection of this rare ecosystem, the alternative route must be taken. 
• Help make our voices heard during the public comment section at the next LIPA board meeting on Wednesday, September 28, at 11:00 a.m. 
• Please consider writing a letter, participating via Zoom, or attending the meeting at LIPA offices in Uniondale. 
• And . . . don’t forget to sign our online petition here.  

To submit a written comment or participate via a virtual link, please review this document for LIPA guidelines for public participation. If you would like to see a selection of letters already written by concerned citizens and local environmental organizations about the continued protection of the Long Pond Greenbelt, click here. 

If you are able to attend the rally or address the board via Zoom on the 28th, we ask that you let us know by filling out this form: https://forms.gle/gMjW7EgH3i4hYxQ76  

Now is the critical moment to make all our voices heard! 

2022 Sundays at Two Lecture Series Continues

Bees' Needs: Protect Our Local Honeybees, 

with Mary Woltz

Sunday, September 18th, 2:00 p.m.

Long Pond Greenbelt Nature Center

1061 Bridgehampton/Sag Harbor Turnpike

It’s in the news every year – our honey bee populations are in danger. Ever wonder what you

can do to support your local honey bees? Join us on Sunday, September 18th, to find out when local beekeeper Mary Woltz of Bees’ Needs will discuss the life cycle of honey bees and the challenges they face causing their declining populations. Most importantly, Mary will

review how we as homeowners can support our local honey bee population by understanding the bees’ needs, whether we are beekeepers or not.

Mary Woltz is the founder, owner and operator of Bees’

Needs. Mary’s introduction to honey bees occurred in

2002 while working at the Pfeiffer Center, a research and

training center in biodynamic agriculture in Chestnut

Ridge, New York. In 2003 Mary moved to rural Eastern

Long Island, NY where she managed the apiary of the

Hamptons Honey Company at the invitation of co-owner

Frederic Rambaud, a former student at the Pfeiffer

Center. There she assumed responsibility for 100 bee

colonies scattered over the North and South Forks. As the

company grew, it deemphasized bee management and

honey production in favor of honey distribution from

outside sources. This prompted Mary in 2007 to begin

Bees’ Needs, a smaller company with a bee-centric

mission. “I sell honey to support my bee habit,” states

Mary, who will only provide honey produced by her bees,

known here as “the girls.” The new venture was not

entirely unfamiliar as the bees she had cared for four

years were now hers.

Sundays at Two are free and open to the public. Refreshments are served.

Photos from FLPG's 25^th Anniversary Celebration

On Friday, August 19th, FLPG members along with local politicians, including NYS Assemblyman Fred Thiele, Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman, Southampton Town Councilman Tommy John Schiavoni, and Southampton Town Trustee Ann Welker, celebrated FLPG's 25th anniversary at world-renowned artist Hans Van de Bovenkamp's sculpture garden and studio in Sagaponack. Guests enjoyed wines donated by Wölffer Estate Vineyard, hors d'oeuvres by Janet O'Brien Caterers, and music by Marcello Pimenta. A special thank you to everyone who helped make the event a success, including Hans Van de Bovenkamp, Geralyne Lewandoski, Roman Roth, Janet O'Brien, Robert Katz, and the FLPG Board, especially Meghan Moore Katz who organized and coordinated the entire event.

Cheers to 25 years!

Thank you to our hosts Hans Van de Bovenkamp and Geralyne Lewandoski