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New pole, with platform for osprey, goes up in Riverside

That was quick.

Less than three days after residents went ballistic after hearing that a PSEG-Long Island subcontractor tore down an osprey’s nest off a pole on Flanders Road in Riverside, the company has installed a new pole that is specifically designed to allow for osprey nests that won’t interfere with the electric wires.

“We replaced the existing pole with a taller pole that has a state-of-the-art fiberglass platform on top so the birds can safely build their nest in close proximity to the original nesting area and away from the power lines,” said PSEG-Long Island spokesperson Elizabeth Flagler Wednesday.

The company took the nest down Monday morning after receiving two reports of arcing wires at the location.

They claimed there were no nesting birds there at the time, but neighbors claimed there were, and took pictures of the birds flying around trying to rebuild the next afterward.

The subject came up at Monday’s meeting of the Flanders, Riverside and Northampton Community Association, where residents, led by Terry Flanagan of Flanders, vowed to march in protest Saturday morning unless a new pole was put in place for the birds by Friday night.

Photo credit: On Wednesday, PSEG-Long Island installed a new pole that is specifically designed to allow for osprey nests that won’t interfere with the electric wires. (Credit: Tim Gannon)

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