The Intermunicipal Agreement between Nassau County and the Town of Oyster Bay to transfer Stillwell Woods Preserve from the county to the town is a budget move of $12 million without any project proposal [“Stillwell Woods park deal sparks concern again,” Long Island, May 18]. This is a recipe for the decimation of open space. The town has already damaged the Syosset habitat by breaching into woodland with sand and sod adjacent to the athletic fields.

A biodiverse special groundwater protection area, this designated perpetual preserve supports declining forest indicator species, including the bald eagle, three warbler species, chimney swift, scarlet tanager, wood thrush, and the rapidly declining rusty blackbird. Last year, even a rare Bullock’s oriole was spotted there, marking one of just a handful of sightings.

Rather than be complicit in the preserve’s demise, Nassau County must ensure not one additional acre of undeveloped green space is removed. To safeguard its protection, the town must only be “sold” land on which the town has already developed infrastructure. To protect this environmental treasure for the benefit of all New Yorkers while perfectly matching the state Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation acquisition criteria, this is best achieved by ceding 270 acres of this undeveloped sanctuary and the trails within it to the historic preservation office.

The writer is the conservation co-chair of the South Shore Audubon Society.

The budget bill proffered by President Donald Trump is so unacceptable [“Speaker vows to march ahead after tax bill talks,” Nation & World, May 22]. It is big, but it’s the opposite of beautiful.

The transparency of his agenda is the only commendable aspect: Make the poor poorer and the rich richer. All he seems to care about is money, and he is not even handling that well — just look at the tariff situation.

And now a Golden Dome to protect us/him? Why? At this rate, in part thanks to Trump, the effects of climate change are going to kill us sooner than any enemy. He can spend his own money to put a dome over his house and the plane from Qatar — and leave us out of it.

I’m confused. The Lee Zeldin-led Environmental Protection Agency is weakening regulations on toxic “forever chemicals” found in Long Island drinking water [“ ‘Forever chemicals’ cap nixed,” News, May 15] and the National Institutes of Health is overseen by an anti-vaxxer and science skeptic, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is reducing staff and cutting funding for research [“Kennedy gets challenged on cuts, freezes,” Newsday May 15].

How is this making America healthy again? An agenda fueled by shortsighted greed and apparent willful ignorance will certainly cause more harm than good health.

As a former state assemblymember, I fought to require the Long Island Power Authority to competitively bid out its major contracts — to protect ratepayers and ensure transparency. And as a former LIPA trustee, I often pushed back against the idea that trustees are merely there to affirm staff decisions.

Some trustees I served with believed our fiduciary duty was primarily to bondholders. I disagreed — then and now.

Our obligation first and foremost is to the ratepayers who depend on a reliable, affordable grid. It’s disappointing to see that some of those fiduciary views persist and continue to blur the important role of independent oversight.

Your editorial “LIPA needs a power switch” [Opinion, May 21] rightly underscores the need for greater transparency and accountability in the current contract process. While LIPA staff serves an important role and works under complex conditions, the board must provide clear, independent governance — not symbolic oversight.

I also agree with Newsday’s call for Gov. Kathy Hochul to negotiate a short-term extension with PSEG-LI. A thoughtful reset is needed — one that restores public confidence and puts the focus back where it belongs: on the people of Long Island.

While the great debate rages on “Lawn Island” about gas blowers versus electric blowers, allow me to suggest a third option [“On ‘Lawn Island,’ noisy gas blowers are still the rule,” News, May 4].

For a one-time investment of around $20, a good old-fashioned manual leaf rake might just fit the bill. For those homeowners with smaller yards, you get a nice upper-body workout in the great outdoors.

 Just go to and follow the prompts. Or email your opinion to [email protected]. Submissions should be no more than Please provide your full name, hometown, phone number and any relevant expertise or affiliation. Include the headline and date of the article you are responding to. Letters become the property of Newsday and are edited for all media. Due to volume, readers are limited to one letter in print every . Published letters reflect the ratio received on each topic.