Farmers, Suffolk County Water Authority To Mitigate Impacts of Ag Chemicals on Groundwater

A new program is on the table that aims to reduce the impact on groundwater of chemicals used in agricultural production.

The Suffolk County Water Authority will work with North Fork farmers on the plan; the SCWA agreed to finance the first step in seeking to gather data on current agricultural practices used on farms within the 25-year capture zone of SCWA’s North Fork public supply wells.

The pilot project, which will be conducted by Cornell Cooperative Extension near the SCWA well field on Middle Road in Peconic, will help to develop a long-term plan for the supply of safe drinking water to North Fork residents.

The goal is to reduce the impacts on groundwater from pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers used in agricultural production, the SCWA sAID.

“Currently, 27 out of 56 Authority supply wells on the North Fork are on treatment for pesticide-related contamination,” said SCWA Chairman James F. Gaughran. “As the equipment needed to filter out these chemicals is extremely expensive, it’s in the best interest of our customers to take whatever steps are possible to reduce the amount of these chemicals entering the aquifer system.”

Cornell hopes to gather information from area farmers about crops being grown, products used on these crops, storage and handling of the products and annual irrigation. As agriculture is exempt from pesticide reporting requirements, there is no other way to obtain such information.

In July, North Fork farmers also addressed the issue of fertilizers, when a group of farmers announced they were taking steps to cut fertilizer use — and still ensure sustainable crop yields.

The water-quality improvement projects were part of a program being offered by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County,American Farmland Trust, and AgFlex, a private company that minimizes farmers' risks when adopting new conservation practices.

With nitrogen loaded waters a critical issue on the East End, concerns have been raised about the quality of drinking water, as well as protecting the Peconic Estuary and the Long Island Sound.

Of the 35 farmers farmers participating in the program, 16 sweet corn and potato farmers said they would test a new controlled-release fertilizer, which is designed to break down over time, according to the plant’s need for nutrients.  Conventional fertilizers can dissolve during heavy rains and enter local water supplies.

The farmers are enrolled in the BMP Challenge, a program developed by American Farmland Trust and AgFlex to eliminate financial risk as a barrier to farmers’ adoption of new, green conservation practices. 

Introduced to 10 Suffolk County sweet corn growers in 2012, the program pays farmers cash if yield and income are slashed due to the new conservation practice, such as use of controlled release nitrogen fertilizer. 

"Farmers in Suffolk County are specialty crop producers who have farmed this land for generations," said Becky Wiseman, agricultural environmental stewardship coordinator of CCE. "They are as invested in water quality as anyone, because their families drink the water, too. This program provides risk protection for farmers interested in reducing their nitrogen fertilizer use, but who are concerned about possible yield losses from adopting a new practice."

Martin Sidor, whose family has farmed potatoes on the North Fork since 1908, said the new controlled-release fertilizer fits well in his planting and fertilizing plan. "It’s very user-friendly," said Sidor. "I have seen crops that store better, and I have not seen one deficiency in the field through all this time."