Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. (I, D, WF, WE - Sag Harbor) today announces that New York State is awarding the Suffolk County Water Authority (SCWA) $9.7 million to advance their efforts to connect Wainscott residents to municipal water and address emerging contaminants, including PFOS. This grant is made possible by the State’s $2.5 billion Clean Water Infrastructure Act’s WIIA and Intermunicipal Infrastructure Act.

“Access to safe drinking water should be a right, not a privilege, and any compromise to the water supply must be addressed immediately,” stated Assemblyman Thiele. “I thank the Suffolk County Water Authority and the Town of East Hampton for working tirelessly to combat the serious public health issue of emerging contaminants in the Wainscott drinking water supply, and I am pleased that the State is supporting these crucial efforts.”

Assemblyman Thiele and State Senator Kenneth LaValle worked closely with East Hampton Town, Suffolk County and SCWA to ensure residents were fully informed, had access to bottled water, and were quickly connected to the municipal water supply.

To date, SCWA has installed 48% of the water mains in Wainscott.