May 14, 2018 — The following was released by the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association:
Dell Cullum of East Hampton, NY, owner of Hampton Wildlife Removal and Rescue, is a master of many trades. In addition to rescuing wildlife, he also is a well-known local children’s book author, nature photographer, filmmaker, producer of the ImaginationNature.com television series, and an East Hampton Town Trustee. His roots also run deep to Montauk, New York’s largest commercial fishing port, through the Pitts and Burke families. So it seemed a natural fit for him to marry his love of nature with his concern for his roots when he decided to create the recently released two-part film, “Deepwater Dilemma.”
As a Trustee, Cullum is quite familiar with the South Fork Wind Farm being proposed by Deepwater Wind (DWW), the subject of his film. He said his impetus for doing it was born out of a desire to give voice to those who he felt were not being heard by DWW, the offshore wind energy company owned by hedgefund giant D.E. Shaw, in multiple public meetings over the last year with both the Town Board and the Town Trustees.
“After hearing the same old automated rebuttal, lacking fact and transparency, from Deepwater Wind’s representatives about real concerns from the East Hampton community, I felt it necessary to give those who oppose Deepwater’s method of operation a loud and clear opportunity to be heard, regarding environmental impact, industrializing our ocean, utility rate increases, wind power necessity, and the possible end, yet certainly danger to the local commercial fishing community and so much more,” Cullum said last week in an interview.
The resulting film in its entirety weighs in at slightly over an hour. Part one offers several perspectives from local concerned residents, including input from an energy consultant, an environmental planner, the former head of the Town of East Hampton’s Natural Resources division, an avid recreational fisherman who is also a Trustee, a former candidate for East Hampton Town Supervisor, and a former environmental liaison to a local citizens advisory committee.
Part two captures the voices of fishermen, both from Rhode Island where the first offshore wind mill was built in 2016, and from Montauk.
Cullum’s film can be watched in its entirety either by going to the Deepwater Dilemma Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/OceanSave1/ or directly to his YouTube Page here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe-2-hk96kW4eM2v-ioPuLQ/videos
A joint public hearing of the East Hampton Town Board and East Hampton Town Trustees to discuss the community benefits package being offered by DWW if the Town allows them access through Beach Lane in Wainscott for the South Fork Wind Farm will be held this Thursday, May 17th, at 6:30 p.m. at LTV Studios, 75 Industrial Road, in East Hampton.