Editorial

Protect the wetlands, our only defense in a hurricane

Posted

In short order over the last three weeks, two Category 4 hurricanes — Harvey and Irma — slammed into the U.S., wreaking havoc in Texas and Florida. At press time, what was left of Irma was pushing north from Florida.
The destruction has been massive. Congress approved, and President Trump signed, a $15.3 billion aid package for Texas alone. Florida’s damage will be historic, no doubt.
Long Islanders are all too familiar with the catastrophic devastation caused by a major hurricane. On Oct. 29, 2012, Superstorm Sandy leveled many areas of the South Shore. And it could have been a lot worse.
Long Island’s “mainland” is protected by a string of barrier islands. In between are thousands of acres of wetlands, with hundreds, if not thousands, of mudflat islands, where only Spartina marsh grass grows. In the event of a hurricane or tropical storm, when the Atlantic Ocean rushes toward the mainland, those mudflats act as giant sponges, soaking up the rush of water known as storm surge.
Without the mudflats between the ocean’s onslaught and us, we can only imagine the damage that Sandy could have caused — and the devastation a future storm might create if the mudflats didn’t exist.

Despite their central role in helping to keep us safe, Long Islanders abuse those mudflats. Boaters speed through the shallow channels between them, and their wakes erode the islands. People send untold amounts of trash, dog feces, pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers and chemicals into the wetlands via the street drains that empty into South Shore bays, threatening the wetlands ecosystem.
We all could, and should, do more to protect the wetlands. Here’s how.
• If you’re a boater, respect mandatory 5 mph zones.
• Don’t wash your car at home. The toxic soapsuds make their way into the street drains, and then into the bays. Instead, take your vehicle to a car wash.
• Don’t throw your dog’s waste down the drains.
• Use only organic fertilizer on your lawn, and sweep up excess fertilizer from sidewalks to ensure that it doesn’t get into the bays. And there’s little to no need for pesticides and herbicides in a properly managed yard.
• If you’re a smoker, don’t flick your butts onto the street. They eventually wash into the wetlands via the drains.
• Finally, don’t litter.