by Rich Groh, Town of Babylon Senior Environmental Analyst
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| Estuary wetland restoration project underway |
The first phase of the Santapogue Creek project re-established marsh habitat at a site previously filled with dredge spoils. The three acre area is located just south of Montauk Highway in Lindenhurst. Most of the newly restored habitat is intertidal marsh, one of the most productive types of habitat in the world. The area is beginning to attract a wide array of fish and wildlife, including thousands of juvenile finfish. Osprey, Great Blue Heron and Egrets are also being observed at the site. The presence of these species demonstrates that the site has already improved significantly as a habitat.
Future plans for Santapogue Creek include construction of a biofiltration pond to purify runoff from Montauk Highway, creation of additional marsh south of the highway and construction of a nature walk north of the highway in Copaigue. The nature walk will traverse wetlands providing an opportunity to educate people about the dynamics of these areas and their importance to the South Shore Estuary ecosystem as a whole.
Work at Ketcham's Creek began in 1993 when over four million pounds of concrete was removed from a former wetland in preparation for restoring the area. Other sites along the creek have been identified in a Stream Corridor Plan which calls for various activities designed to improve water quality in the creek and the western part of Great South Bay. One proposed activity