Historical Perspective

A Brief History of Suffolk County's Agricultural Stewardship Program

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The Agricultural Stewardship Program is modeled after NY State’s AEM Program and focuses on nutrient and pest management practices as they relate to non-point source water quality issues. A brief history of the program follows:

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• Long Island’s Agricultural Stewardship Working Group was organized in 1999 and became a subcommittee of the Suffolk County Farmland Protection Board, which is under the umbrella of the NY State Agricultural Environmental Management (AEM) Program.
  
  
  
  
• NY State’s AEM Program was signed into law by then Governor Pataki in 2000. AEM is a voluntary, incentive based program that provides education, technical assistance and a farm-by-farm specific plan to identify and manage non-point source water quality issues.
  
  
  
  
• The Suffolk County Legislature appointed an Agricultural Stewardship Task Force in 2003 to consider a program of agricultural stewardship for nitrogen and pesticide reduction.
  
  
  
  
• The Suffolk County Legislature approved the Task Force’s recommendations in May of 2004 and designated Cornell Cooperative Extension to coordinate Suffolk County’s Agricultural Stewardship Program.
  
  
• Since 2004, Cornell Cooperative Extension has hired a program coordinator, three technicians, and an administrative assistant to help in the planning, organization and implementation of the Agricultural Stewardship Program.
  
  
  
  
• To date, the Agricultural Stewardship Program has completed the AEM worksheets with over 100 growers. Program staff has assisted in the design and implementation of over 50 research and on-farm demonstration projects, looking at better management practices that help to reduce the environmental impacts of agriculture on Long Island. The program has developed numerous educational materials and has held several workshops for local growers.
  
  
  
  
• The Agricultural Stewardship program continues to expand in all of its program areas and welcomes participation by any interested grower.
  
  
  

More on the AEM Program

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This program is funded by the
Suffolk County Water Quality Protection and Restoration Program.

Jan 2008