Forums planned to discuss LI Sound restoration

A proposal for restoration and preservation of Long Island Sound will be presented next month at two locations.

The Long Island Sound Study’s citizens advisory committee and Save the Sound, a program of the Connecticut Fund for the Environment, will discuss the newly completed SoundVision Action Plan on Aug. 8 in Port Jefferson and Aug. 30 at Hempstead Harbor. Officials of the groups will arrive on the Stamford-based SoundWaters schooner; details on where the schooner will tie up are being worked out and will be posted at ctenvironment.org.

The action plan contains four major components: protecting clean water, creating safe and thriving places for all creatures in the Sound, building Long Island Sound communities that work in a sustainable manner, and investing in an economically vibrant Long Island Sound.

The plan was crafted over two years and unanimously adopted by the 37 members of the advisory committee, representing business, municipal, environmental, civic and academic organizations.

“This report is a true community vision for Long Island Sound,” said Leah Schmalz, director of legislative and legal affairs for Save the Sound. “We are hopeful that this opportunity to unite the citizens of Connecticut and New York around a common agenda will help all residents of the region understand how their actions can protect the Sound and our local heritage, now and for future generations.”