Plum Island preservation push is promising

The most extraordinary thing about the perennial efforts to preserve Plum Island from development and make it accessible to the public is that it’s been increasingly difficult to find anybody who strongly opposes the move.

The latest news is a recent plan from the Plum Island Coalition to preserve the mostly pristine parcel by having it declared a federal monument under the 1906 Antiquities Act. That’s the same designation that protects George Washington’s birthplace and the Statue of Liberty. And it is undeniably a way for the island to fulfill its potential as a recreational refuge graced with plants, wildlife and topography of extraordinary physical beauty, while being fully preserved.

Protection under the Antiquities Act is an apt answer for a piece of property that's already owned by the federal government; it ought to be enjoyed by the public, and should never bear the stress of commercial use.

Developers coveted Plum Island for commercial development when it was first announced that the USDA livestock disease research operation there would move to Kansas, and the federal government was slated to sell the parcel. But developer dreams of huge profits from beachfront luxury residential housing or a resort were always met by a wall of local opposition. That pushback led to zoning changes by the Town of Southold in 2013 which blocked for-profit construction on Plum Island.

The goal of permanently securing the undeveloped status of the 90% of the island that does not hold the high-tech lab has been stymied by intransigent bureaucracies, complex rules, and governmental departments watching their backs. The agreement thrown into last year’s federal budget that took the island off the auction block was only made possible because Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson was assured by Rep. Lee Zeldin and Sen. Chuck Schumer that the Department of Homeland Security would not be stuck with the property were it not sold.

Now the cleanup of lab biohazards is slated to be complete by 2028, and momentum seems to be unanimous for cooperation, preservation, and public enjoyment. Advocates generally want to see the island open to recreation, the undeveloped area left pristine, the historic military asset of Fort Terry preserved, and the labs put to a new research use.

But until recently it wasn’t clear where the state stood. That changed last month when New York’s departments of Environmental Conservation and Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation sent a letter to the federal government stating New York offered its "wholehearted support for Federal protection and ownership of this property."

There are still pitfalls. The cleanup has to assure safety, advocates say, and phrasing in the state's letter suggesting that only parts of the island should be federally protected seems misguided and must be overcome.

This effective bipartisan push from every level of government must continue for Long Island to be rewarded with this pristine treasure.