Letter to Cesar Perales, Secretary of State of NY and Marc Gerstman, Acting Commissioner, NY Department of Environmental Conservation - Dredging of the Long Island Sound

Letter

August 25, 2015

Mr. Cesar A. Perales, Secretary of State

New York State Department of State

One Commerce Plaza, 99 Washington Ave,

Albany, New York 12231-00001

Mr. Marc Gerstman, Acting Commissioner

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

625 Broadway Street

Albany, New York 12231-000

Dear Commissioner Gerstman & Secretary Perales,

We are writing to request that the internal final rule deadline for the Draft Dredge Material Management Plan (DMMP) and the Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (DPEIS) for the Long Island Sound (LIS) be moved to a later date to allow for an extended public comment period. The current deadline of April 30, 2016 for a final rule does not allow adequate time for public comment, undermining the ability of all interested parties to fully review the document and express their concerns.

On August 17, the Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) released the DDMP and DPEIS for public comment. Due to the internal deadline of April 30, 2016 for a final rule established by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation and New York Department of State, the ACE can only extend that comment period until October 5, 2015. We believe that this is an insufficient amount of time for all interested parties to adequately review the documents and fully express their concerns.

The DMMP and DPEIS for LIS is hundreds of pages long and expert knowledge is required to fully understand the impact on our communities in New York. It is unreasonable to expect the public to fully review this extensive report in a public review period that is too short to be meaningful due to the internal final rule deadline dictated by your agency. While we recognize that there is limited time in which this process must be completed, it is fundamental that the public be provided sufficient time to have a meaningful role. We have also sent a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers asking them to extend their comment period.

If the internal deadline for the final rule were delayed until at least August 2016, the ACE would be able to extend the comment period. An extended comment period would allow all interested parties to weigh in on this plan, which we believe would lead to a stronger final DMMP that balances the dredging needs of our waterways and the role we must play as stewards of the Long Island Sound.

Over the last few years we have made considerable progress in restoring the Sound, accordingly we need to ensure that this framework and any future rule protects our environment, support our economy, and allows future generations to reap the benefits of this valuable natural resource.

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

Steve Israel

Member of Congress

Kristen E. Gillibrand

United States Senator

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