The Fire Island Association has put together a informative memo on
the FIMP / FIMI Project.: Click
here for the FIMI memo

FIMI (Fire Island to Montauk Inlet) was our share of the
overall FIMP (Fire Island to Montauk Point) project, a federally-funded
shore protection project enacted after Superstorm Sandy.
FIMI encompassed rebuilding of the beach and berm together with grass-planting,
new crosswalks and related real estate work. With the recent completion of
beach grass planting in our community, FIMI is complete.

As explained in the FIA memo, various maintenance and renourishment obligations
come along with FIMP. We are working on installing new sand fencing
funded by our Erosion Control District ‘ECD’ (materials) and the DPA
(installation).
We have ECD funds and stockpiled sand to hopefully see us through initial cycles
of renourishment under FIMP. We would work with the Town and County to fund
their share of the local 15% renourishment cost in proportion to their share of
the beachfront.
In future, if our share of the costs exceed our ECD funds, the Town or County
would likely issue bonds to be repaid by ECD tax revenues over the life of the
bonds, similar to the funding for our 2008-09 beach nourishment project.

Once again, thanks to all who made this important project for Fire Island a
reality: Our Senators and Congressional representatives, the US Army Corps of
Engineers, the NY Department of Environmental Conservation, Suffolk County, the
Towns of Brookhaven and Islip, the FIA and community organizations and all the
individuals and contractors who worked tirelessly to accomplish this.

– The DPA  

PS: To contact us, please use email at dpa@davispark.org

For better viewing – printing, suggest you
…
Right Click on Above Links & Select “Save Target As“

Source: www.nan.usace.army.mil/fimp/reform.htm
[ These documents may be freely distributed and used for non-commercial,
scientific and educational purposes. ]

The purpose of the on-going Fire Island to Montauk Point (FIMP) Reformulation Study
is to identify, evaluate and recommend long-term solutions for hurricane and storm
damage reduction for homes and businesses within the floodplain extending along
83-miles of ocean and bay shorelines from Fire Island Inlet to Montauk Point. This
area extends as far landward in some locations as Sunrise Highway and Montauk
Highway. The study considers all areas within the maximum estimated limit of
flooding, and is located entirely within Suffolk County. This encompasses the
Atlantic and bay shores of the Towns of Babylon, Islip, Brookhaven, Southampton, and
East Hampton and incorporated Villages. The study area also includes 26 miles of the
Fire Island National Seashore, which is under the jurisdiction of the National Park
Service.

Congress and New York State have asked the United States Army Corps of Engineers
(Corps) to develop a comprehensive long-term plan of protection for areas that are
prone to flooding, erosion and other storm damage. This plan would replace the
numerous uncoordinated measures that have been used to protect individual properties
with a comprehensive management approach that considers the entire coastal system.
The objective of the study, therefore, is to evaluate and recommend a long-term,
comprehensive plan for storm damage reduction, which maintains, preserves or
enhances the natural resources. The New York State Department of Environmental
Conservation (DEC) is the Corps’ non-Federal partner.

The Reformulation Study approaches the issue of storm damage along Suffolk County’s
south shore in a different way than previous studies:

It looks at the study area as a comprehensive coastal system and evaluates
alternatives for their impacts at specific locations and on the entire system.

The study team includes the participation of all concerned Federal, State and local
government agencies, as well as major scientific and environmental organizations.

It includes state-of-the-art engineering, environmental, economic and planning
studies to provide information about historic conditions and to model possible
future conditions. To ensure objectivity and high standards, these studies are being
independently reviewed.

PROCESS:

The 83-mile long Fire Island Inlet to Montauk Point study area contains many
different physical environments and distinct geographic areas, each having
individual problems and needs. The planning process consists of a series of steps to
identify problems, propose and evaluate alternative solutions, and ultimately
identify a recommended plan. The development of alternative plans will combine
different measures in different locations of the study area. This approach offers
both flexibility and opportunities for long-term decisions about what works best for
each location, as well as for the entire study area. While the specific solutions
will vary, the following basic components are being evaluated at all locations:

• Coastal Management Measures (inlet modifications or breach contingency
  plans)
• Storm Damage Reduction Options
• Locally Implemented Floodplain Management Plans

Coastal management measures will address issues such as the condition of inlets
including the need for sand bypassing, and emergency response to storm events. This
assessment may result in adopting new procedures for maintaining navigation inlets
or responding to breaches in the barrier system. Storm damage reduction options may
include structural and non-structural options, and may supplement the effectiveness
of coastal management measures. The study approach is to identify cost-effective
regional or coastal protection features, such as beach and dune fill and groin
modification. Concurrently, the direct protection of flood plain development through
measures such as flood proofing or structure acquisition will be evaluated and
ultimately integrated into a comprehensive plan. An additional element of the FIMP
project will be a Floodplain Management Plan to ensure the future effectiveness of
the Coastal Management Measures or the Storm Damage Reduction features. The elements
of the Floodplain Management Plan will be developed in parallel with the development
of the Coastal Management Measures and Storm Damage Reduction features.

While Coastal Management and Storm Damage reduction features may be implemented with
federal funding support, the Floodplain Management Plan is implemented at the state,
county and community level.

• United
  States Geological Survey
• Fire Island National
  Seashore
• U.S.
  Fish & Wildlife Service (Northeast Region)
• Federal
  Emergency Management Agency (Region 2)
• National
  Marine Fisheries Service (Northeast Region)
• Environmental Protection Agency
  (Region 2)
• Suffolk County
  Government
• New
  York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Image below (click
image for larger view) shows example of the storm damage problem is the
extratropical storm of March 6, 1962. A total of 50 wash-overs occurred,
and one new inlet at Westhampton Beach was formed. On Fire Island, a total of 47
homes were destroyed and 75 were damaged.

As a result of this storm, the New York District of the Army Corps constructed
emergency protective works throughout the study area (“Operation Five-High”).
Assistance was provided to the local communities in the removal of debris, and in
the rebuilding of beaches and dunes. One of the first response actions of the Corps
was to assist in the closure of the breach at Westhampton. In total, over 2 million
cubic yards of material were used to rebuild over 23 miles of beaches and dunes in
the study area.

March 6,
1962 Westhampton Beach, NY

Additional FIMP information at: LINK