What’s the decision?

The Town Trustees were scheduled to vote last night (Wednesday) on granting a wetlands permit for the Suffolk County Water Authority’s Orient water main project. The authority said if the vote is no, that will end the battle because it has no intention of filing a legal challenge.

Excuse our cynicism in not believing a word. The SCWA has wiggled and wriggled more than a bucketful of eels throughout the review process, first giving Congressman Tim Bishop the impression that it would not proceed in the face of public opposition, then only days later announcing that it could be ready to start digging right after Labor Day.

Is somebody in a position of political power pulling the strings? Since every member of the authority’s board of directors is a political appointee and the authority has ignored its own procedures and policies in the pursuit of this ill-conceived project, no other explanation makes sense.

Visit suffolktimes.com to see how the Trustees voted Wednesday night, and see next week’s edition for full coverage.