Plum IslandBill proposes sea mammal protection zone around Plum Island

Three Long Island lawmakers — Assembs. Steve Englebright (D-Setauket), Fred Thiele (I-Sag Harbor), and Sen. Kenneth LaValle (R-Port Jefferson) – on 1 June introduced a bill which would create a marine mammal and sea turtle protection zone around Plum Island and two other environmentally sensitive eastern Islands.

The bill is expected to get a full vote in the legislature next week.

Newsday reports that the proposed legislation calls for creating a protection area from the high-water mark on the shore outward to 1,500 feet around Plum Island, Great Gull Island, and Little Gull Island. Inside this zone, harbor seals, harbor porpoises, and several species of sea turtles would be protected from “harassment.”

Groups representing local fishermen said they were concerned that the proposed measure would impose unreasonable limitations on fishing.

Plum Island is home to an aging Level 4 BioLab which conducts research on the most lethal pathogens. A replacement for the lab is being built on the campus of Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas, and the federal government has been looking to sell it to developers. Great Gull Island is owned by the American Museum of Natural History, and Little Gull Island is privately owned.

The law proposed by the three lawmakers would also create a Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Protection Area Advisory Committee within the Department of Environmental Conservation.

Englebright told Newsday that the bill is “really trying to make sure that if the island is sold, and we understand the federal government is pushing hard to make that happen, that we have a clear understanding of just how ecologically significant these areas are.”

Bonnie Brady, executive director of the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association, said her group was not consulted about the legislation, but said she had received a call Monday from Englebright to assure her that the bill will not restrict fishing. She added, though that “there’s no mention in the bill that commercial, recreational and charter fishing will be allowed in those areas in perpetuity.”

Englebright insists the bill doesn’t restrict fishing activities. “If somebody wants to fish they’re welcome to do that,” he said.

“The fishing community was very much in our mind, which is why this is not a marine reserve,” Englebright said. The bill is “very limited. It’s just 1,500 linear feet off shore of just three islands, and it’s only a protection area for marine turtles and marine mammals. It protects them from being harassed. It doesn’t speak to fishing or restrict fishing in any way,” he added.