Officials vow to stop vegetation clearing

A group of longtime East Moriches residents say wetlands near Moriches Bay are in jeopardy from newer homeowners who are illegally clearing vegetation -- and Brookhaven Town officials promise to step up enforcement to stop the cutting.

The complainants say a handful of homeowners who have bought properties within the past five years have failed to heed restrictions about the clearing of trees and vegetation near the wetlands around Seatuck Cove, which feeds into the bay.

Brookhaven writes restrictions about clearing for properties in the area when the homes are built, and the rules transfer to new homeowners when the home is sold. Members of the Baywood Property Owners Association and East Moriches Property Owners Association, including 25-year resident Roy Reynolds, said they have complained to the town of newcomers clear-cutting their properties despite the law.

"People are going into these buffer areas and clearing all the trees and the vegetation," Reynolds said. "The town really isn't prepared to stop the clearing."

Reynolds and others said they haven't received much response from the town despite a few years of consistent complaints. But town Councilman Daniel Panico, who represents the area, acknowledged that tree clearing is a problem around Seatuck Cove and that the town needs to respond.

Panico said part of the problem is that clearing often happens on weekends, when it is more difficult for the town to issue stop-work orders. But he said he will soon propose a law allowing town code enforcement officers and Division of Environmental Protection workers to issue stop-work orders on weekends.

In addition, town officials will be more aggressive about handing out fines and court summonses for illegal clearing, Panico said. The offense can carry a $1,000 fine and an order to revegetate property.

Illegal tree-clearers put nearby wetlands in danger and "contribute to the diminution of the vista for the entire community," Panico said.

Property association members have lodged complaints of illegal clearing against the owners of two homes on Inlet View Path in East Moriches, town records show. The owners of both homes denied wrongdoing, in interviews with Newsday.

"We have herons and ospreys," said Nathy Yakaitis, one of the homeowners. "Who would want to ruin that? Not us."

East Moriches Property Association member Lauren Stiles, who lives in a home her husband's family has owned for generations, said she hopes the town increases enforcement of wetlands protection.

"That's why we have these rules, to protect the neighborhood," Stiles said. "With Moriches Bay, let's try to keep it as intact as we can."