Paying bill for duck farm

Brookhaven Town and Suffolk County have purchased the

development rights to the 47-acre Jurgielewicz Duck Farm in East Moriches

[CORRECTION: The Jurgielewicz Duck Farm is in Moriches, and it is one of three

remaining duck farms in Suffolk, along with Crescent Duck Farm in Aquebogue and

Massey Duck Farm in Eastport. The location of the Jurgielewicz farm and the

number of farms were incorrect in a story Wednesday. PG. A11 ALL 5/12/07], a

move officials billed as a victory for the environment, open space and Long

Island's dwindling farmland.

At a news conference held yesterday amid the farm's quacking birds, County

Executive Steve Levy hailed the purchase "not only because it's good for our

economy, it's part of our history and it's a beautiful vista for anyone that

drives by."

Along with Suffolk, the Town of Brookhaven put up half of the $5.6 million

paid to the farm's owners as compensation for giving up the rights to develop

their residentially zoned parcel and for maintaining it as a farm in perpetuity.

"It makes sense economically, fiscally and environmentally for our town,"

Brookhaven Supervisor Brian Foley said of the purchase.

Foley and other town officials said the farm has taken steps in recent

years to remove the harmful duck effluent from water that the operation

discharges into the adjacent Forge River.

Councilwoman Carol Bissonette said she was certain - "absolutely, beyond a

shadow of doubt" - that the farm posed less of a threat to the river than the

40-some septic systems that would exist if homes were built on the property in

place of a farm.

But some still worry about potential nitrate pollution from the farm.

"Anything that's adding nitrates to the river is a problem," said Ronald

Lupski, of Mastic, who heads the citizens action group Save the Forge River.

Lupski said he wished the $5.6 million had been spent on restoring the river,

which has been plagued by foul odors and fish die-offs some link to runoff from

storm water, duck farms and leaky septic systems.

"We're hopeful, now that the town and the county have purchased the farm's

development rights, that they will be much more stringent on environmental

regulations there," Lupski said.

The Jurgielewicz operation is the largest duck farm on Long Island, and

it's still run by members of the family that founded it in 1919. The farm is

ranked as the country's second-largest producer of Pekin ducks. Pekin ducks -

not "Peking," which is the name of a dish - are the white quackers many know

from the mascot featured in Aflac insurance commercials.

Raising a million Pekins per year, the Jurgielewicz farm bills itself as

the largest free-range duck operation in the country.

Levy said Long Island's two remaining duck farms - Crescent Duck Farm in

Aquebogue and the Jurgielewicz operation - contribute $25 million yearly to the

local economy and play a key role in Suffolk's agricultural heritage, saying,

"Suffolk County is still the No. 1 agricultural producer in the state of New

York and that's because of farms like this one."

A few feathered facts

RAPID GROWTH. In 1900 there were about 30 duck farms in Suffolk, and by the

1950s there were more than 90.

DUCK CAPITAL. In the 1950s, two-thirds of all ducks processed in the U.S.

came from Suffolk.

THEN THERE WERE 2. Suffolk's two remaining duck farms - Crescent Duck Farm

in Aquebogue and the Jurgielewicz operation in East Moriches - now produce 10

percent of the nation's ducks.

1 MILLION. Jurgielewicz farm owners say they raise 1 million white Pekin a

year. They sell 12,000 ducks a week in New York City's Chinatown alone.