N. CURRENT ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND CONDITIONS IN SOUTHAMPTON GENERALLY AND AT WESTWOODS
(1) WATER RESOURCES
Southampton, as well as the rest of Long Island, obtains its water supply solely from ground water sources, which consist of three primary aquifers: the Upper Glacial, Magothy, and Lloyd aquifers. (S125, at 12; Stipulation, dated January 16, 2007, Stip. Nos. 7, 9-10.)Infiltration from precipitation, runoff, and snowmelt are the only sources of recharge to these aquifers, and where no development has occurred, approximately 50% of the precipitation that falls on the land could be expected to recharge the underlying aquifers, with the remainder of the precipitation lost through evaporation and plant transpiration. (S125, at l3; S162, at 9-11.)
Where development has resulted in impervious surfaces (e.g., rooftops, parking lots, streets, and sidewalks), a greater percentage of precipitation becomes overland flow-runoff-before infiltrating to the aquifers. (S125, at 13.) Most of the surface waters on Long Island are fed from the ground water. (S125, at 13.) Eight specific hydrogeologic zones based upon different flow patterns have been identified on Long Island, and Southampton is located within Zones III, IV, V, and VI. (S125, at 14, and Figure 6 .)
*34 Westwoods is located in hydrogeologic Zone IV, and adjacent to Zone III. (S125, at 14 and Figure 6; D298.) Zone III is an area that has good ground water quality in both the Upper Glacial and Magothy aquifers. (S125, at 14.) Zone IV encompasses the northern and eastern portion of the South Fork, and is characterized by shallow flow systems that discharge directly into streams and marine waters. (S125, at 14 and Figure 6; S162, at 9; D298.)
There are no named streams, ponds, or lakes on Westwoods, but nearby or adjacent water bodies include: (a) Great Peconic Bay (approximately 19,100 acres), which borders the site to the north; (b) Shinnecock Bay (approximately 4,550 acres), which is located approximately one-half mile to the southeast; (c) Shinnecock Canal, which connects Great Peconic Bay and Shinnecock Bay, is located approximately one-quarter mile to the east at its closest point; (d) Squire Pond (approximately 19 acres), which is located approximately one-quarter mile to the northwest; and (e) Flanders Bay and Reeves Bay (approximately 2,600 acres), which are located approximately 7 miles to the west, at the westernmost area of the Peconic Estuary. (S125, at 15.)
Westwoods is located within the watershed of the Peconic Estuary. (S125, at 15; Stipulation, dated January 16, 2007, Stip. No. 15). Storm water and snow-melt water runoff in the watershed that does not percolate to ground water is conveyed by overland flow to Great Peconic Bay, and runoff from Westwoods and other lands within the watershed have a cumulative qualitative and quantitative impact on the Great Peconic Bay. (S125, at 15.) The Great Peconic Bay is a part of the Peconic Estuary, which separates the North and South Forks of the eastern end of Long Island; the Peconic Estuary consists of over 100 bays, harbors, and tributaries, and includes over 128,000 acres of land and 120,000 acres of surface waters. (S125, at 15.) The Peconic Estuary is part of the Natural Estuary Program (?NEP?), which has designated it as an ?Estuary of National Significance.? (S125, at 15.) The portion of the Westwoods property along the shoreline of the Great Peconic Bay is within a flood zone area. (S125, at 17 and Figure 9; S137.) The Great Peconic Bay and the Shinnecock Canal have been mapped by the DEC as tidal wetlands (littoral zone). (S125, at 19; Stipulation, dated January 16, 2007, Stip No. 13.) Westwoods includes tidal wetlands along its Great Peconic Bay shoreline. (S125, at 19; Stipulation, dated January 16, 2007, Stip. No. 13.) A federal National Wetland Inventory map published for the Mattituck quadrangle contains the Westwoods property and identifies wetland habitats on the Westwoods property along the Great Peconic Bay shore that coincide with the United States Geologic Survey mapping of hydric soils, also an indicator of potential wetlands. (S125, at 19-20.)
The Coastal Area mapped by the NYSDOS includes a portion of the Westwoods property north of Newtown Road within the coastal zone for purposes of the federal Coastal Zone Management Act and related New York statutes. (S156; S125, at 19-20.)
