Leave It Alone

Like the proverbial tree falling in a forest and the question of whether it makes a sound if nothing is around to hear it, a philosophical question arises regarding the Long Pond Greenbelt: Is a hearing still a hearing if nobody is listening?

PSEG Long Island, scrambling to meet the region’s growing electricity demands, especially in summer, held a public hearing on June 28 at LTV Studios in Wainscott on a proposed new 5.2-mile underground power cable that would link substations in Bridgehampton and East Hampton, adding 69 kilovolts.

The current plan is to use the most direct route: a Long Island Power Authority right-of-way through the center of the Long Pond Greenbelt.

For those who may be unfamiliar, the 800-acre greenbelt is an environmental jewel, a rare collection of coastal plain ponds, wetlands and woods between Sag Harbor and Sagaponack. As every one of the 50 people who spoke at the hearing noted, it has to be the worst path for an underground cable, which requires not just trenching but nearly a mile of horizontal directional drilling — encompassing a vernal pond that is the home of the endangered tiger salamander.

State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. pointed out that the tiger salamander is not alone: There are “species of global significance” in the greenbelt. “Literally tens of millions of dollars have been spent in public money to protect the resource that is the Long Pond Greenbelt,” he said at the hearing. “It is one of a kind, and it can’t be replaced.”

On the other hand … well, there really is no other hand. And that’s the point. The public is unanimous that an alternative route, perhaps following Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Turnpike and Montauk Highway, must be found. The shortest route, in this case, is the dumbest route.

But other speakers, including Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming, worried that the hearing is for naught, and the decision is all but made. PSEG already has said the proposed route “has significant advantages” over alternatives the utility looked at, which, indeed, sounds like the hearing is part of a mere checklist. As a line of environmentalists stepped forward to oppose digging a trench through the greenbelt, at least one speaker noted “the looks on your faces,” which suggested the PSEG officials were marking time rather than fielding input.

If PSEG is sincere about finding the best — not just the most “economical” — option, the LTV hearing provided a clear message that the community it serves is not at all on board with plans to gash an important preserve simply because it’s in the way of the region’s electrical needs. If it proceeds, it does so without support, and it means the entire effort at “public input” is farcical and fraudulent.

We’ll leave the last word to Jay Schneider, who lives in the greenbelt, and offered the most compelling remarks over Zoom at the hearing; if the gathering wasn’t just for show, the PSEG representatives should hear this message: “This is one of the most beautiful places in the world. Leave it alone.”