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Water Issues Are Not Unique to Long Island
Water Issues Are Not Unique to Long Island: Conservation in the “River of Grass” “The Everglades is a test. If we pass it, we may get to keep the planet.” ~ Marjory Stoneman Douglas, founder of Friends of the Everglades Guest Author Philip Kushlan, president of Friends of the Everglades, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting, preserving and restoring the only Everglades in the world. Learn more on Facebook or at everglades.org. The Florida Everglades is one of the most unique ecosystems in the world. Home to the American alligator, the Florida panther and countless other endemic species, the Everglades also provides important ecosystem services to South Florida such as replenishing our freshwater aquifers and buffering us from storms and flooding. The Everglades also face some huge challenges to its conservation. It depends on just the right amount of fresh water flowing through the southern end of the state, in wet years and in dry years. It needs incredibly clean water, devoid of any extra nutrients, or it quickly shifts from the sawgrass dominated ecosystem the rest of the native animals depend on to a cattail dominated one. Discharges of toxic algae from Lake Okeechobee through the St. Lucie river to the coast in 2016. Photo credit: Greg Lovett, Palm Beach Post Photo credit: Greg Lovett, Palm Beach Post Nature gave us the blueprint for how to keep this balance – when it rained too much, the water sheeted across the wide, flat state and the hot Florida sun evaporated the excess. When it rained too little, the porous limestone bedrock sucked up every drop and shuttled it south. The marshes between Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades took care of any excess nutrients, sequestering them as plant biomass as the water flowed south. But that was then. Today, in large part because of the influence of the agricultural industry, water is held back in Lake Okeechobee for irrigation purposes. Decades of pollution from stormwater and agricultural runoff north of Lake Okeechobee have resulted in massive blooms of toxic algae. When the lake is held too high and a big storm comes, the Army Corps has no choice but to dump the water to the coasts, toxic algae or not, and that’s what happened in the summer of 2016. Our coastal estuaries and their fishing and tourism-based economies were decimated, not to mention creating a legitimate health crisis for the people living there. These toxins have been shown to cause serious respiratory problems and there is evidence that the neurotoxins released may lead to increased instances of diseases like Parkinson’s and ALS. South of the lake, we lack the land we need for “treatment marshes” to clean the water flowing south to below the 10 ppb of phosphorus that the Everglades needs to survive. In 2018 Florida passed a plan to create a 23-foot deep reservoir south of the lake that included less than one third of the treatment marsh acreage needed to clean the water it can hold, risking us creating a new, “mini-Lake Okeechobee” in the southern end of the system. Classic tree hammock swamp in the Big Cypress National Preserve, adjacent to Everglades National Park. Photo credit: National Park Service Photo credit: National Park Service Despite these challenges, we have a good idea of how to fix them. Nature, after all, has already provided us with the blueprint. We need to alter the Army Corps lake operations manual to send more water south in the dry season, lowering the lake level so that if a big storm comes, the lake can simply absorb the excess water without discharging toxic algae to the coasts. For this effort to be successful, more land needs to be secured for use as treatment marshes and that takes political will. The best way to generate political will is through grass roots advocacy. So when people ask what they can do to help solve the problem, I say they can learn about the issues, they can support organizations doing the hard policy work and they can support political candidates who are champions for the cause. But the single biggest thing they can do is to get out there and spend time in these amazing places. Go camping in Big Cypress, go kayaking along the mangrove shores, go for a full moon bike ride along Shark Alley, take a drive around Loop Road or a stroll over alligators down the Bobcat Boardwalk! Take someone who has never experienced these magical places and post your amazing photos on social media! The Everglades may be a very different ecosystem from Long Island’s North Shore but our conservation challenges are similar. In many ways these conservation efforts are a test for all of us, and the biggest key to success is showing people the reason these places are worth saving in the first place. So, for those of you who may spend time in South Florida this winter, be sure to take a day and see for yourself what makes the Everglades so special and worth fighting for!
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Loss of Plant Species
Biodiversity is being lost at an unprecedented rate! Over the course of our lifetimes, it is possible that another 130,000 plant species could be wiped out if we do not take action now. Biodiversity is being lost – locally, regionally and globally. It is now estimated that approximately one third of global plant species are at risk of extinction. Scientists say that plant extinction is occurring up to 500 times faster than what would be expected naturally. Over the last 250 years, almost 600 plant species have disappeared. Over the course of our lifetimes, it is possible that another 130,000 plant species could be wiped out if we do not take action now. Plants are very important to our planet; they form the critical base of food chains in nearly all ecosystems. Without plants there would be no oxygen to breathe and no food to eat. In addition, plants help filter water and air, contain many medicinal properties and provide humans with the ability to make fire and build houses. Scientists believe humanity is a long way from utilizing the full potential of biodiversity, in particular plants and fungi. They also believe it is critical to explore the solutions plants could provide to the many global threats we face today. For example, rice and corn are staples to more than half the people on earth. It is estimated that by 2050 10 billion people will inhabit the planet. (That is a lot of rice and corn to go around!) Researching the earth’s edible plants is key to finding food sources that will be able to sustain our growing population. According to a study conducted by the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in London, there are nearly 7,000 species of edible plants on earth (not including famine foods eaten during emergencies), yet only around 400 of them are currently considered food crops. Scientists are working to find alternative food sources. Why are plants disappearing? It’s plain and simple – human activities are accelerating the loss of biodiversity. The greatest threats to plant species include habitat loss, climate change, pollution and overexploitation. Every hour, 6000 acres of rainforest are burned or cut down to make way for agriculture, livestock, logging and mining. In a single year, the ozone pollution in India kills enough crops to feed 94 million people. What can YOU DO? Long Island is home to many different species of trees, shrubs, wildflowers and grasses. If you are not already doing so, consider planting Long Island natives on your property! Restoring native plant communities is vital to preserving Long Island’s biodiversity, providing shelter and nutritious food for pollinators and other desirable wildlife and helping prevent invasive species from taking over. Sources for Native Plants (1) Long Island Native Plant Initiative and its native plant sales – the best! Plants sold by LINPI are not only native but also genetically appropriate (ecotypic) for Long Island – www.linpi.org (2) NYC Parks Department of Parks Natural Resources Group’s Greenbelt Native Plant Center – availability of plants for sale to general public may be somewhat limited but DEFINITELY worth looking into. www.nycgovparks.org/greening/greenbelt-native-plant-center/products (3) Long Island Natives – www.longislandnatives.com (4) Glover Perennials – www.gloverperennials.com
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Schmidlapp-Humes Estate listed on Registers of Historic Places
This past spring the Land Alliance made application to have the Schmidlapp-Humes Estate Historic District listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. The area making up the historic district encompasses 81 acres of the original 83-acre country estate that Carl and Frances Schmidlapp built from 1923 to 1927. The District includes the Land Alliance’s Humes Preserve and John P. Humes Japanese Stroll Garden, the lower half of Shu Swamp (30 acres formerly known as the Schmidlapp Lowlands), Nassau County land protected as part of the 2008 Environmental Bond Program and two private properties that were the former estate’s main house and stable complex. The Schmidlapp-Humes Estate is recognized as a significant cultural landscape associated with the development of summer estates on the North Shore of Long Island during the second wave of the Country Estate Era. It also is considered significant in the areas of architecture and landscape architecture because of people the Humes and Schmidlapps hired to make improvements on the property from 1921 through 1966. Some of the Gold Coast’s most noted and prolific architects and landscape architects including Peabody, Wilson & Brown, Ellen Biddle Shipman, Ferruccio Vitale and Innocenti & Webel were involved in projects there. Later architects included Bradley Delehanty and Alfred Shaknis as well as Japanese Stroll Garden designer Douglas DeFaya. They all helped to craft what the property reflects today. Preservation grants supported this project and allowed the Land Alliance to work with historic consultants on the surveys and inventories that served as the basis for our application for listing. This historic designation makes the properties eligible for various public preservation programs and services, such as matching grants. The Land Alliance has already begun to pursue grants for the adaptive reuse of the Tavern House to serve as our future offices. The surveys, inventories and application also permanently document the significance of the former estate for the community and broader public. An overview of the evolution of the property is on display at the Humes Preserve tennis hut. To view the presentation that Patricia O’Donnell of Heritage Landscape Architects has shared with us: please click the link: www.northshorelandalliance.org/videos. Frances and Carl Schmidlapp’s pool circa 1930 designed by Ferruccio Vitale, Vitale & Geiffert (now part of a private residence) Jean Schmidlapp and John Humes pool circa 1970s designed by Innocenti & Webel. Richard K. Webel and Umberto Innocenti worked for Vitale & Geiffert in 1930 and later formed their own firm.
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Coming Soon – Humes Preserve, Mill Neck
The North Shore Land Alliance purchased the Humes Estate (28 acres) from the Humes Family for conservation purposes on July 10, 2015. Two years later we purchased the adjoining Humes Japanese Stroll Garden (7-acres) and Smithers connector parcel (7 acres). The Estate property had been severely neglected for many years prior to our acquisition. It included eight structures in various stages of disrepair, a central meadow which had been used as a public dump (for a decade) and eight underground oil storage tanks that required removal! The purchase price was $5.2 Million, and the Land Alliance needed to borrow $4 Million to close the deal. At this point, some might have questioned why we took on this challenge. Five years later, thanks to the help of many (and a few complicated transactions), the Land Alliance retired its Humes debt in January 2020. With that behind us, we have begun to make the long-awaited improvements necessary to open the Humes property to the public. In this instance, foresight has paid off and things are coming together beautifully. The Land Alliance hopes the Humes Preserve will become an integral part of our community – a place where people can watch birds, observe native plants, hike woodland trails or sit on a bench by the meadow watching the grasses bend in the wind. We see this as a place where a growing family can push a stroller, a young child can safely learn to ride a bike or climb on a log and feel joy when a chipmunk pops out to say hello. We hope this will be a place where people can connect with the wonders of nature while appreciating the richness of the past and working together to build a better future. The Humes Preserve is not intended to have the manicured perfection of Planting Fields or Old Westbury Gardens, nor will it have the undisturbed nature present in Shu Swamp. It is more of an in-between place – a place where people meet nature! On one end of the preserve, one can experience the culture and formality of the Humes Japanese Stroll Garden. From there you can connect to a trail which will take you through the woods to the wonders of Shu Swamp and extends all the way to Upper Francis Pond. If you veer right, you will pass the outdoor exercise area, cross the child-friendly interior road and end up in the newly restored meadow. The possibilities are endless! While we will have to get back to you as to an exact date for opening (pending Mill Neck Village approval), we hope to welcome you later this summer. Only then will you understand why it was so important to protect this wonderful place. While taking on the debt took some courage, the conservation value of the land, then and now, was just too great to risk losing it to development. Those values included: Connectivity: With its location between Shu Swamp, Upper and Lower Francis Ponds and adjoining 15-acre Nassau County property, the Estate created an important open space corridor on the North Shore of Long Island, totaling nearly 150 contiguous acres. Water Quality: The Humes property is referenced as a priority parcel in the 2009 and 2014 New York State Open Space Conservation Plans. It is a Class I freshwater wetland area and falls within the Town of Oyster Bay’s Special Groundwater Protection Area. It also is a United States Geological Service designated watershed and in FEMA’s 100-year flood zone. Scenic and Habitat Value: The Humes property is comprised of beautiful sloping land, specimen trees, historic buildings and garden remnants. It has the potential for a series of scenic hiking trails. It will provide community access (including disability access) to a valuable natural area that has not been previously available to the public. It also is home to noteworthy flora and fauna, including regionally rare plant species. In addition, it provides an area for species adaptation as sea level rises. Historic Significance: The Humes Estate is part of a historic 1650 border treaty, which created the boundary between the Dutch to the west and the English to the east. The evolution of the property paralleled the development of the North Shore from its earliest days as a home to the Matinecock tribe, followed by farmers and finally, the country estate of former U.S. Ambassador to Austria, John P. Humes, Sr. and his prominent wife Dr. Jean Schmidlapp-Humes.
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10 Land Alliance Preserves to Visit
During these uncertain times, nature can help us slow down and recharge. In fact, the latest research suggests that spending time in nature reduces stress and anxiety. The Land Alliance currently owns or helps maintain ten preserves open to the public. These properties boast intricate trail systems, diverse ecological communities like salt marshes, wetlands and meadows, and are home to an array of native animal and plant species (some of which are estimated to be over 1,000 years old). Cushman Woods – 28 acres, South end of Still Road, Matinecock (south of Duck Pond Road) Beautiful yellow trout lilies are among the many native plant species that are blooming at the 28-acre Cushman Woods. According to the latest research, the average age of a trout lily colony can be up to 150 years old. They potentially can be over 1,000 years old in undisturbed forests. The trail system at Cushman Woods is the largest of all the North Shore Land Alliance preserves. It boasts several restored carriage trails that were once used for fox hunting. In the 1920s, the property was part of the estate of Paul Cravath, a prominent Manhattan lawyer and partner of the law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore. It was purchased by the Land Alliance with the invaluable support of Verena and Roderick H. Cushman in 2016. There is a small parking area at the entrance to the preserve. Hope Goddard Iselin Preserve – 42 acres, Chicken Valley Road, Upper Brookville The Hope Goddard Iselin Preserve is home to beautiful sugar maples (the New York State tree), a colorful meadow and white pine forest. Red fox, box turtles, Eastern screech owls and red-tailed hawks are just a sampling of the animals that inhabit there. The preserve used to contain two fields, a portion of which remains, that were farmed by the Youngs family. Farming there was discontinued in the 1960s due to lack of irrigation. Who is Hope Goddard Iselin? Mrs. Iselin was an American heiress, sportswoman and conservationist who, in 1931, gave the Village of Upper Brookville its name. The 42-acre preserve was named after Mrs. Iselin as it used to be part of her exquisite 160-acre estate, Wolver Hollow, which was built by her and her husband in 1914. The preserve contains a one-mile interpretive trail and parking for four to five cars. Cordelia H. Cushman Preserve – 15 acres, Southside of Route 25A across from Yellow Cote Road, Oyster Bay Cove A dozen native plant species protected by New York State make their home at the 15-acre Cordelia H. Cushman Preserve. There you may spot lovely pink lady’s slipper, spotted wintergreen or dwarf rattlesnake plantain (a low-growing wildflower). Protecting native plants is crucial because they are the foundation of healthy wild ecosystems. Over 100 years ago, part of the Cushman property was used to raise racing horses. The land was acquired by Mr. and Mrs. Paul Cushman in the 1930s. In 1973, their son Roderick Cushman donated 15 acres to The Nature Conservancy (TNC). TNC has since donated the property to the Land Alliance. The woodland there has not been forested for generations. Trails follow a nice short loop, with moderate elevation. There is a tiny parking area, which can be accessed off Route 25A. Shore Road Sanctuary – 8 acres 95 Shore Road, Cold Spring Harbor A thriving grassland, saltwater marsh, beach and wet meadow comprise the eight acres that is Shore Road Sanctuary. These diverse ecological communities attract and support countless wildlife and native plants, including a variety of birds, butterflies, horseshoe crabs, warm-season grasses, sea lavender and more. The preserve did not always look this way. It was operated as a petroleum fuel distribution terminal from 1924-2003! ExxonMobil completed the removal of the storage tanks and buildings from the harbor-front property in 2010 and soil remediation followed. The property was donated to the Land Alliance in 2012. The preserve, which contains a small parking area, lies within a New York State-designated Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat and National Audubon Society-designated Important Bird Area. The loop trail that winds through the grassland is enhanced by educational signage. John P. Humes Japanese Stroll Garden – 7 acres, Dogwood Lane, Mill Neck This unique and historic 7-acre gem of landscape design and woodland is home to an impressive collection of North American and Asian plants that constitute a beautiful Japanese landscape. They impart a meditative experience. Take a stroll down the stepping-stone path and you’ll see bamboo groves, Japanese cedars, Yakushima rhododendron, a koi pond and an authentic Japanese teahouse. The Garden was created by Ambassador and Mrs. John P. Humes following a visit to Japan in 1960. They hired Japanese-American landscape designer Douglas DeFay and his wife, Joni, to design the garden on their Mill Neck estate. The Land Alliance purchased the property in 2017 for conservation purposes. The acquisition of this parcel completes a conservation corridor that stretches over 150 acres in the middle of the Beaver Brook watershed. It effectively links the Stroll Garden and larger Humes property (also owned by the Land Alliance) to Shu Swamp and the two Francis ponds. Corridors like these are crucial for movement of wildlife, as they prevent inbreeding or reduced genetic diversity. The garden opened in May this year for the season. For more information, please visit our website at www.northshorelandalliance.org. Red Cote Preserve – 30 acres, Yellow Cote Road off Route 25A, Oyster Bay Cove This 30-acre property contains a spacious parking area. It boasts woodlands, scenic trails and two large wildflower meadows that seasonally burst with color and the hum of insects like the Monarch butterfly, (a species whose numbers have declined over 80 percent since 1990 and is now at risk of extinction). Meadows can be biodiversity hotspots, hosting scores of different species of wild flowers and/or grasses that support a myriad of insects, which in turn support many birds and other small animals. In addition, they capture vast amounts of carbon and help mitigate flooding by holding onto rainwater. Three Eastern red cedar trees that are estimated to have grown to nearly 70 feet in height can be found in the western meadow. These trees are native to Long Island and can live for over 1,500 years. Red Cote Preserve was used for farming for many decades. Aerial photographs from the 1920s show farm fields with narrow hedgerows of trees between them. The North Shore Land Alliance manages this preserve under a stewardship agreement with Nassau County. Tiffany Creek Preserve – 200 acres, Sandy Hill Road at Berry Hill Road, Oyster Bay Cove A mix of ecological communities can be found on this spectacular 200-acre preserve, such as old growth woodlands and oak forest, extensive fields, freshwater wetlands and a large pond. The last of which was acquired by Nassau County with Environmental Bond Act funding. The preserve lies within the Oyster Bay Special Groundwater Protection Area, Nassau County’s largest SGPA. Protecting undeveloped land, whether at this preserve or at any of the Land Alliance preserves, is critical to protecting Long Island’s sole source aquifer. This large piece of property is surrounded by an additional 250 acres of privately protected lands, which enhance the conservation values found there. Nassau County acquired the parcels of land that makeup Tiffany Creek Preserve from the John M. Schiff family in 1992 with help from The Nature Conservancy. The Land Alliance stewards 14 meadow acres of the preserve. Fox Hollow Preserve – 26 acres, Route 25A near White Oak Tree Road, Laurel Hollow This beautiful 26-acre preserve contains an unusual variety of distinct forest types that feature a diversity of oak, beech and other hardwoods; white pine woodland and shrub layers dominated by mountain laurel and maple-leaved viburnum. The diversity of trees and other plants attracts many different bird and other wildlife species to the preserve. Take a stroll there down the hilly trails, which contain some of the steepest sections of trail in Nassau County. Depending on the time of year, you could easily spot or hear great horned owls, red-bellied woodpeckers, a diversity of warblers and red-tailed hawks. Fox Hollow used to be part of a 1,000-acre farm. In the 1920s the field was planted with white pine trees and in the 1930s the site was turned into an equestrian center. Fox Hollow is part of the Route 25A Heritage Area and also located in a state-designated Special Groundwater Protection Area. Groundwater recharge occurs on Long Island when precipitation seeps into permeable ground and replenishes the underground aquifer, the sole source of Long Island’s drinking water. Protecting open space is critical for protecting drinking water. In 2012 The Nature Conservancy donated the preserve to the Land Alliance. Fox Hollow welcomes visitors arriving by foot. No designated parking is available at this preserve. You can walk or bike or park at the nearby Cushman Preserve. Wawapek – 32 acres, 3 Mowbray Lane, Cold Spring Harbor A thriving grassland, saltwater marsh, beach and wet meadow comprise the eight acres that is Shore Road Sanctuary. These diverse ecological communities attract and support countless wildlife and native plants, including a variety of birds, butterflies, horseshoe crabs, warm-season grasses, sea lavender and more. The preserve did not always look this way. It was operated as a petroleum fuel distribution terminal from 1924-2003! ExxonMobil completed the removal of the storage tanks and buildings from the harbor-front property in 2010 and soil remediation followed. The property was donated to the Land Alliance in 2012. The preserve, which contains a small parking area, lies within a New York State-designated Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat and National Audubon Society-designated Important Bird Area. The loop trail that winds through the grassland is enhanced by educational signage. Louis C. Clark Sanctuary – 8 acres, Valentines Lane near Longridge Lane, Old Brookville This eight-acre preserve is one of the Land Alliance’s most ecologically diverse preserves. It contains a mix of upland forest and freshwater wetlands, with trails traversing the narrow strip of woodland separating Valentines Lane from the wetland in the northern parcel. Over the past 130 years, the Long Island Sound area has lost 31 percent of its tidal wetlands (according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service). Despite tidal wetland legislation passed in the 1970s, wetland decline in Long Island Sound continues. Over 100 bird species make their home at this preserve and nearby James Preserve. According to the latest research, there are three billion fewer birds in North America than there were 50 years ago; protecting open spaces like these helps protect critical bird habitat. There are also several species of fish, frogs and turtles that inhabit the property. Prior to its protection, this land belonged to a larger parcel known as Valentines Farm. Louis C. Clark Sanctuary was donated by Frances S. Weeks to The Nature Conservancy in 1965 in memory of her son Louis Crawford Clark. TNC donated the property to the Land Alliance in 2012. Louis C. Clark Sanctuary has a tiny parking area and welcomes visitors arriving by foot.
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