Letter: Don't let soil-water district close

Regarding "Nassau soil, water district low on cash" [News, Aug. 3], the Nassau County Soil and Water Conservation District has long provided cost-effective, efficient and valuable services. Unless the county restores a sustainable funding level in the next budget, the district will be forced to close.

The district enhances the mandated stormwater program and brings innovation that government cannot provide alone; provides mandated state Department of Environmental Conservation-certified sediment- and erosion-control training for contractors and municipal officials so that our waterways are protected from stormwater runoff; designs and helps build rain gardens, which conserve fresh water and help reduce runoff; replants dunes and wetlands with appropriate plants to reduce erosion and provide habitat for birds, fish and animals; helps manage the farmland the county purchased through environmental bond acts; educates schoolchildren and the public in environmental practices; and leads the way in Nassau County in the promotion of green infrastructure techniques.

If the district closes, we will be compelled to refuse a $75,000 grant and lose up to $60,000 in matching funds provided through the state Environmental Protection Fund -- an outcome that makes no financial or environmental sense.

Brian Zimmerman, Jericho

Editor's note: The writer is the manager of the district.