Seatuck Wins $1.99 Million in State Grants for Patchogue and Mattituck Waterways

Seatuck Environmental Association won $1,994,575 in grants from the state Department of Environmental Conservation to reopen blocked routes for fish and other aquatic life in Patchogue and in Mattituck. Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the awards on Oct. 30 under the department's Water Quality Improvement Project program. DEC listed more than $246 million statewide for 139 WQIP projects in the round.

Seatuck's Patchogue Lake Fish Passage Project receives $1,472,790, which DEC placed in its category for restoring and enhancing fish and wildlife habitat. The Mattituck Inlet Connectivity Project receives $521,785, which DEC classed as marine district habitat restoration. Both sums appear on the state's published Round 22 award list, and Kris Mielenhausen, Seatuck's conservation director, confirmed them.

Seatuck and the award list describe a dam and a culvert that now stop migratory fish on the Patchogue River. The group plans to build a pool-and-weir fishway so the fish can get around those barriers and reach waters in Patchogue and Canaan Lakes where they spawn. Mielenhausen said Suffolk County owns the culvert, which stands on the southern edge of Great Patchogue Lake, toward Holbrook Road, and that the work will open a path between the lake and the Patchogue River. Design of the fish ladder is already under way, he said, and Seatuck hopes construction can start in 2027. In its release, Seatuck credited Suffolk County, the Village of Patchogue and Legislator Dominick Thorne.

Mielenhausen said the Town of Southold is the owner of two tidal culverts in the Mattituck project, one in Mattituck Inlet and one in Mattituck Creek, at Westphalia Road and Wickham Avenue. Seatuck plans to remove the undersized culverts and put larger concrete box culverts in their place, a change meant to let more tidal water through and give aquatic life a way into nearby wetlands. Planning and design for the Mattituck project are due to begin in 2027, he said. Seatuck also named Suffolk County's public works department as a partner. Seatuck did not give completion dates for either project.

"It’s exciting to see these projects move forward and to have the opportunity to make meaningful investments in the health of our local waterways. Restoring and maintaining connections between aquatic habitats is critical to supporting healthy ecosystems and the wildlife that depend on them. We’re grateful for the partnerships and support that make this work possible and look forward to seeing these projects come to life," Mielenhausen said in the group's press release.

Seatuck, based in Islip, works to conserve wildlife and natural habitat on Long Island.