Editor's Note: Last month, Diane Yatauro was selected to be the new presiding officer of the Nassau County Legislature when they reconvene in 2008. In this article by Deborah Wetzel, we invite you to meet Yatauro and learn about her priorities. We also honor Judy Jacobs, the outgoing presiding officer, for all of her work on behalf of Nassau's environment.

Diane Yatauro, the presiding officer-elect, hopes to preserve more open space in the county.Legislator Diane Yatauro is very eager to begin serving as presiding officer of the Nassau County Legislature. That's because she has an ambitious list of environmental goals she hopes to accomplish. “I really think that everyone is talking about the environment, including the presidential races, and people realize that we haven’t been very kind to our environment," she says. "When the little ones talk about the drowning of polar bears, they are the next generation of environmentalists. We better make sure we protect things for them.”

Yatauro, who represents the 18th District in Glen Cove, moves into her position at an exciting time for Nassau's environment. In November, the county's Environmental Program Advisory Committee recommended 95 priorities for a $100 million environmental bond program that voters approved in 2006. The Legislature will play a key role in shaping the final program and making sure that money is well spent. ““We (the Legislature) are pleased that the $100 million bond was just announced. We have to reach out to our constituents and we need to show them what we’re doing with this bond,” Yatauro says.

She explained why she’s passionate about environmental issues. “I’m a city kid who married a Long Island boy, moved to Glen Cove and found it an oasis. But things that were so local just slowly disappeared, and you don’t realize the full ramifications when a horse farm becomes developed into homes. One of the things I really started paying attention to was that developers were driving around and offering lots of money to buy up properties when we weren’t paying attention.”

Improving the balance between preservation and development is one of the first things Yatauro hopes to pursue in the new year. She plans to have Nassau identified as an Agricultural Zone, which could help all farms and horse farms in the county. She plans to put together a board to determine how much property is needed to qualify for a zone.

She also looks forward to working with the New York League of Conservation Voters and its members to identify priorities. “That’s what keeps us on our best game. I’ve talked to League members and that’s helped me determine what’s important, that helped me get things moving,” she concludes.

Judi Jacobs has served as presiding officer for eight years.Environmentally speaking, Yatauro has some pretty big shoes to fill. Judy Jacobs, the presiding officer for the past eight years, leaves a legacy of accomplishments. “Early on, I was a leader in the drafting of the referendum of the Open Space Initiative and amazing to me, the electorate passed this overwhelmingly,” she says. The first initiative was for $50 million; the second for $100 million.

“When I came in as presiding officer, that was 2000, we had our hands full. Despite dealing with the county’s financial problems at the time, we focused on the environment. We passed the Green Power Law. I have always made the health and safety of residents a top priority," she notes.

Jacobs was also very active in zoning applications, the cluster development of zoning and preserving open space. “I represent an area with some of the most beautiful open space in Nassau County and I take that responsibility very seriously. Anything we can do to preserve farms and open space is a big plus,” she adds.

Jacobs, who represents the 16th District in Woodbury, made a name for herself in the environmental community even before she was elected. Back in the late 60’s, she became a civic leader and took on the Town of Oyster Bay in an effort to close the Syosset landfill in her neighborhood. Her group, called Residents against Garbage Expansion- RAGE, fought "as far as you can fight to stop it from opening. The town was not fighting on our side. We did get the state DEC involved and that was the smartest thing we ever did. We stopped it from opening. I was very proud of that achievement. If anyone ever told me at the time that I would be in politics and I would play an instrumental part in the environment, I would have looked at them and said I doubt it. But I know my environmental work was a motivating force for me to be on the Legislature.”

What does Jacobs consider to be a top priority now for Nassau County? “We can’t let our guard down. The environment must always be on our minds. Among all 19 legislators, there’s one thing we can agree on and that’s the environment. Hopefully the county can continue on a good financial path so we can continue to improve the environment.”

Jacobs also had praise for the League. “The league has been pivotal and imperative in their guidance and advice as well as their applause and criticism. It’s a phenomenal help to elected officials because the League has been so positive in their influence.”

Newsletter Issue

• Ecopolitics Monthly --- December 2007