Tuesday’s primary for two Democratic Party ballot slots in the forthcoming general election for East Hampton Town Board and for nine town trustees on the Independence line is a rather rare event: There have been few primaries for local elected offices here over the years. 

The main event is among Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, who is hoping for a second four-year term, and Jeffrey Bragman and Zachary Cohen. Mr. Bragman is the East Hampton Democratic Party’s other official nominee, having been formally selected in May. Mr. Cohen had sought the Democratic nomination and petitioned to force a primary after being passed over. Whomever of the three emerge as the top two vote-getters will face the Republican candidates for town board on Nov. 7. 

For the most part, the primary is viewed as a contest between Mr. Bragman and Mr. Cohen. Ms. Burke-Gonzalez has, to no small measure, proven an effective board member by leading efforts to regain local control of the town airport, and she is expected to easily secure the ballot position. 

Mr. Cohen is well known to East Hampton voters. He was a candidate for East Hampton Town supervisor in 2011 but lost to the caustic incumbent in that post, Bill Wilkinson, while his Democratic running mates that year, Sylvia Overby and Peter Van Scoyoc, won handily. Mr. Cohen was politically active before and after that run in many capacities, notably acting as a self-appointed watchdog on town finances after the diversion of preservation fund money came to light and forced the resignation of Supervisor Bill McGintee.

Mr. Bragman’s name is one that has been in the news over the years, often as a lawyer taking on local officials. He was hired by neighbors of the controversial Dunes drug rehabilitation facility in a residential section of Northwest Woods and, more recently, represented neighbors battling the East Hampton School Board’s intention to build a bus storage and maintenance facility with an access driveway on Cedar Street.

 Meanwhile, Independence Party voters on Tuesday will be asked to select a slate of nine trustees, who are a mix of candidates nominated by the local Republican and Democratic Parties, and Julie Evans, who successfully petitioned her way into a primary race after failing to gain Independence Party endorsement. Hers is an interesting candidacy both in terms of her background in commercial fishing and in that she has showed admirable determination in seeking a trustee seat. In an era in which the parties’ trustee choices have too often centered on name recognition, or whoever was left hanging around willing to take a shot regardless of how much they knew about trustee issues, Ms. Evans’s level of commitment is very welcome. 

Registered Democratic and Independence voters will have an important opportunity to help shape the general election ballot on Tuesday. They should not miss the chance to have their voices heard.

The East Hampton Village Trustees appear willing to listen to ideas about how to lessen leaf-blower noise. However, as the board considers what primarily is an annoyance, it should also think about a safety problem on village streets — massive landscaping trailers parked in the lanes of travel as workers tend to adjacent properties.

It seems as if the number and size of landscaping trucks and trailers have grown with every season. Officials look the other way when they are left on narrow streets, often in no-parking zones, forcing passing vehicles into the oncoming lanes, especially in the estate sections of the village. 

Unlike officially permitted roadwork or tree trimming, for which the law requires workers to be stationed to direct traffic, these mowers and hedge clipping crews disappear from view the moment their trucks stop. The practice is a clear hazard and arguably illegal: New York traffic law prohibits leaving vehicles unattended in state rights of way; village law allows temporary stops for loading and unloading only.

Not all that long ago, a landscape worker lost his legs here when a passing vehicle squeezed him against a trailer he had left parked in a traffic lane. Pedestrians and bicyclists are similarly at risk, as they move around these obstructions. 

Oddly enough, village police are quick to ticket personal vehicles parked in the roadway, but not so commercial vehicles, which present far more of a hazard. The message is: Don’t try this at home, though it’s okay for the folks who mow your lawn.

Left to their own devices and without bother from law enforcement, landscapers have doubled down, using ever-larger equipment and not trying to back into clients’ driveways even when there is adequate space. Of course, their clients might share some of the blame; many have illegally blocked off public portions of the shoulders or grassed margins of the roads, where work vehicles might otherwise pull off safely. The bottom line is that the fact alone that a truck that is too big to park properly does not give its operator the liberty to leave it wherever he or she wants. 

It is fine that the village might want to do something about the noise from leaf blowers, but officials should not ignore the ultimately more serious problem with the trucks that carry them. 

The question on Election Day will be whether Albany could get any worse. New York voters will be asked on Nov. 7 to approve or reject a proposition that would trigger a constitutional convention, which could potentially revise state government completely. Support for the measure is divided along party lines, with conservatives generally urging against it and liberals saying yes. But thinking about the proposition in terms of ideological goals without considering the realities of how the process would work would be a mistake.

If voters agree to the possible rewriting of the State Constitution, a convention would be organized for the spring of 2019. Three delegates from each State Senate district would be elected, along with 15 at-large delegates. Once the convention got going, the delegates could throw out the entire State Constitution, pick and choose some portions to change, or even do nothing at all. Any revisions would have to be taken to the voters for ultimate approval.

A central argument in favor of a constitutional convention is that anticorruption efforts have failed in Albany and that the delegates might propose tough measures that would never make it through the State Legislature. Advocates also say that new rules, such as allowing early voting, would strengthen public participation in government and that a “bill of rights” could further protect access to abortion at a time when the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress are assaulting it. The convention could also break New York governors’ death grip on the budget process and some judgeships, and return more power to New York City officials. The State Constitution has not been updated since 1938, and some consider that enough reason for a yes vote.

Opposition comes not just from the right, but from many elected officials on the center and left who worry that union labor rights and pensions might be undermined. Some Republicans worry that a convention could shift the state even further toward liberal ideas. Firearms groups are concerned that anti-gun provisions might gain ground. Environmentalists say that important protections could be lost, depending on who the delegates are and how much pressure might be put on them to trade away existing rules.

Important for eastern Long Island voters to consider is who would represent them should a constitutional convention be called. Senator Kenneth P. LaValle, a Republican, has represented District One, which extends from Montauk to Port Jefferson, since 1976. It is safe to assume that the delegates elected to attend the convention from this district would be aligned with his views. However, they almost certainly would end up being drawn from the populous western end of the region, and not necessarily act in the East End’s best interest.

Odds are that the vote on Proposition One will fail, as did a similar proposition when the matter was last on the ballot, in 1997. As voters think about the issue, they should ask themselves to what degree they would trust those sitting for a constitutional convention to get it right. If the process is just an extension of how things are in state government now, the answer might well be not very much.

Two recent high-profile incidents involving Montauk party-fishing boats have drawn attention to a problem on the water in which paying customers take too many or too small fish, while the crews, captains, and vessel owners evade responsibility. 

The first of the busts happened aboard the Fin Chaser at the end of August at Star Island in Montauk Harbor. State Department of Environmental Conservation officers approached as the boat reached the dock, and customers were seen dumping hundreds of fish overboard despite orders to stop, then shuffling to their cars empty-handed. 

As the officers investigated, they discovered abandoned coolers, holding what they said were around 1,000 illegally caught black sea bass, porgies, and fluke. Seven anglers were cited for varying offenses, but the captain was issued only a violation ticket — for an incomplete trip report. 

D.E.C. officers were back at it again on Sept. 16, rounding up what they said were 1,800 undersized or over-the-limit fish from patrons on the Viking Starship. Twenty-three anglers received citations dockside in Montauk, but the captain was cited only for an unsecured sanitation device. The fish that could be salvaged went to charity.

There is an irony here. Captains boast of their ultimate authority while at sea. Yet when enforcement officers show up, these self-same Ahabs are able to hide behind a law that absolves them of blame if their clients happen to violate catch limits. This makes no sense. Something has to change. 

It also is interesting to note that the state appears to be finally paying attention to how recreational fishing affects fish stocks. For decades the majority of its enforcement efforts was directed toward commercial harvesters, despite statistics that, in many cases if not all, indicated that sportfishing had an equal or greater impact on the resource.

Party-boat operators insist that they make a good-faith effort to tell their customers about the regulations. This can nevertheless be read as an indictment of party-boat practices in general. It is frustrating for private anglers who scrupulously measure each fish they land and stick to the number allowed per day to find out that party-boat customers openly ignore the same regulations with a wink and a nod from those in charge.

If it is impossible to assure that anglers aboard party boats follow the rules, the next step would be to consider shutting down the industry. A logical and fairer approach is to change state law to make captains, crews, and boat owners legally responsible, through costly penalties, for what their customers do. 

A well-attended formal dedication of a pollinator garden at the East Hampton Historical Farm Museum on Sunday was a fitting tribute to the late Matthew Lester, the East Hampton High School student and Eagle Scout candidate who conceived it. But the event, which included lunch for 300 people, live music, speeches, and a brief ceremony, demonstrated that a new and important town square is available here.

The relatively new farm museum occupies a roughly three-acre site purchased in 2005 using $2.1 million from the East Hampton Town community preservation fund. Exhibits about agrarian life of a century ago fill the 1770s Jonathan Barnes house on the property, and a restored 1800s barn has a collection of agricultural implements. Near Matthew Lester’s garden at this time of year, bees buzz in and out of a hive. A few old fruit trees stand by. 

While the museum is still defining its mission, the property itself shows tremendous promise. On Sunday, dozens of cars and trucks — even a Springs fire truck — were guided by volunteers to parking spaces on the grass. Almost the town’s entire stock of wooden picnic tables, a long buffet of roast turkey, corn, potatoes, and other things, were set up, along with some 70 donated pies. And still there was plenty of room to walk around or listen to the musicians who took turns performing between the wide-open barn doors.

It is difficult to think of another location in East Hampton Town where so large a gathering could be more easily accommodated, particularly one with minimal disruption of passing traffic. With accesses on both North Main and Cedar Streets, it seemed that vehicles could come and go with relative ease, while guests enjoyed an afternoon of unmistakable community spirit. That this site seems ideal for such events could not have been missed by those in attendance. We hope to see many more days like this. As time goes by this preservation fund purchase may prove to be among the town’s most treasured places.

“The Affair,” a cable television series mostly set in and around Montauk, has been back in town lately, shooting scenes for its fifth season. For the most part, the filming has drawn little notice. 

The exception, so far, occurred last week, when the town police shut down a roughly mile-long section of Cranberry Hole Road in Amagansett at the behest of the production company for an entire day. Tempers flared, including, we heard, that of one police officer, who was fed up with irritated residents and others, among them a UPS driver delivering frozen soup, who needed to reach houses down that way. 

Credit is due to East Hampton Town Police Chief Michael Sarlo for responding as soon as he got word. Similarly, Town Supervisor Larry Cantwell was frustrated that the TV crew had pushed things as far as it did. 

Celebrity buzz aside, film and television productions don’t really do much for the East Hampton economy. And the bigger they are, the more they have to bring in supplies from elsewhere. We were amused this week when a trucker hauling food for those taping “The Affair” came into our Main Street office, lost, confused, and asking for directions to the American Legion in Amagansett, only he thought it was a Knights of Columbus hall.

Given that filming brings only an incidental financial gain to the area, officials are correct to keep disruptions — especially road closures — to a minimum.

While we were thinking about leaf blowers, we learned that East Hampton Town’s elected officials may be about to reinstitute free leaf pickup service in some form or other. This is an exciting prospect for residents, many of whom sorely missed the old program after it was eliminated in 2011.

Taxes were the explanation when the town board did away with leaf pickup, though there was also a bit of politics at play as well. Up until then, Highway Department workers had made regular rounds in the fall, vacuuming up piles of leaves left at the roadside. Positions for and against the program were generally divided along party lines, with Democrats urging that pickup continue and Republicans, pushing personal responsibility and fiscal restraint, saying it should be ended.

Now, because much of the equipment has languished and been left to rust, the price for returning to the approach of years past is thought to be too great. Instead, officials, including Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc and Highway Superintendent Steve Lynch, favor a bag system like the one in Southampton Town.

Southampton’s program works this way: Residents can buy biodegradable paper bags at a number of hardware and grocery stores. They fill them with leaves and leave them by the side of the road during announced collection periods. Each street is checked for bags once in the fall and once in the spring, no more. Outside of these collection opportunities, Southampton residents can take bags of leaves year round  to town transfer stations without charge. Hardship exceptions are available, allowing older or disabled residents to leave loose leaves at the side of the road for town collection.

Southampton’s approach is considered a success and seems like something that could work here. East Hampton is a smaller town, and since existing Highway Department trucks could be used to haul the bags, start-up costs would be minimal. The idea should receive serious consideration.

On the eve of the Hamptons International Film Festival, a rumor that the East Hampton movie theater was going to be no more tore through town with notable speed. Facebook was alight with variations on a story that a developer had plans to remove the screens and turn the site over to retail. Calls to the theater, now owned by the Regal Entertainment Group, as well as to the corporate office, were answered by plausible denials. 

Think what you might about the first-run Hollywood fare that the East Hampton theater serves up most of the year, the movie house remains important in the cultural scene here. Summertime movie-going is part of the annual ritual of many part-time residents, as is taking the kids to see something appropriate on a bleak winter’s day when there is absolutely nothing else to do.

For a discerning audience, the East Hampton Regal really comes alive during the film festival. For 25 years, the theater has been the hub of this fall highlight, with quite a number of Academy Award-nominated and winning films among the titles that have been there. Without the cinema’s five central screens, the festival would have a decidedly lower profile and ticket buyers far less enthusiastic.

There is no escaping the reality that times are tougher for movie theater operators than they once were. Attendance is at a two-decade low as more people use on-demand streaming services at home — and now technological advances may allow ordinary audiences to slip into virtual reality goggles wherever and whenever they please.

There still is nothing quite like the sensation of taking in a movie in a big, dark room with a crowd of strangers, and the smell of popcorn in the air as the opening credits roll. This experience will keep movie theaters in the picture for the foreseeable future. There still is no substitute for the big screen.

Incredible devastation has been the story of the 2017 hurricane season. With two Category 5 storms making landfall in the Caribbean, the period has been improbable, at least in terms of the historical record. Yet researchers have been saying for some time that years like this were possible, if not likely, as the oceans rapidly warm thanks to climate change.

The world’s oceans have gotten steadily warmer since the Industrial Revolution. And while the difference from one decade to another might not be enough to notice if you dip your toe into the sea, modest shifts over such a vast scale can have profound impacts on weather. The argument is that as seas and atmosphere get warmer, more water vapor is drawn into hurricanes, potentially making them larger, more powerful, and more destructive.

Hurricane Harvey was called a 1-in-1,000-years event, but because it was fueled by a Gulf of Mexico already affected by climate change, the rains that flooded Houston and its surroundings may well have been made worse by global warming.

Looking forward, powerful storms will become more frequent. At the same time, as sea level rises, hurricanes and other extreme coastal weather events will roll in on a much higher plane. One climate scientist we spoke to described it as akin to a slowly rising basketball court, “Given enough time, even guys like me will be able to dunk.”

Despite what has been said about future weather, public policy has been slow to respond. Starting at the top, President Trump pulled out of the Paris Climate Accord, now leaving the United States and Syria as the only nations not part of that agreement. At the village and town level, local governments are unable to say no to unwise development in vulnerable low-lying areas and are doubling down on infrastructure improvements in places where retreat from the shore is the only sensible path. In the middle, there are the states that can find the money to build bridges but not to aggressively deal with long-term risks on the coasts.

This week, as Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico, leaving what is now called a humanitarian crisis, passed off Long Island, another storm, Lee, reformed in the Atlantic. It was only a matter of days after Category-5 Hurricane Irma’s raging path across the Caribbean and South Florida.

Whether or not these storms can be directly tied to climate change, scientists say the trend is clear: More powerful hurricanes will be the inevitable result of a warmer ocean. Appreciation of the danger ahead must guide land-use policy on the East End.

No indication has been forthcoming about what caused the deaths of three, possibly four, dolphins found washed ashore along the ocean here and another discovered in distress in Three Mile Harbor. Whether or not a definitive cause of death is determined, the fact that several dolphins ended up separately over a relatively wide stretch of the East Hampton coastline in the space of a few days is cause for concern. 

Dolphins, like other marine mammals, are protected by federal law. They were here frequently during the summer, feeding on schools of menhaden, or bunker, often very close to shore. Chasing bait along the beach could have had something to do with the recent deaths; speculation among some observers has centered on commercial gill-netters, who have been working in the area in recent years. However, simple proximity does not make a case, and it would be wise to wait for an official report.

All may not be as fine in the ocean here as it appears. Humpback whales also were spotted during a several-week period this summer, feeding, like the dolphins, on the bunker schools. In the frenzy, some people saw nature’s miracle, signs of health and abundance. However, that may well have been wrong, at least as far as the whales are concerned.

According to researchers, disruptions among prey species in the Gulf of Maine caused by rapidly warming ocean water have forced hungry whales to migrate away from their usual feeding areas. These movements have put them increasingly at risk of strikes by ships. 

The critically endangered right whale population has lost 15 of its approximately 450 remaining individuals since April. Other kinds of whales suffered as well — including 53 humpbacks known to have died in about a year and a half, which the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration described as an “unusual mortality event.” A depressing account appeared in a recent Science section of The New York Times, linking shifts in the food that whales depend on to increased accidental killings.

Now it appears that the whales, which thrilled many South Fork beachgoers this summer, might have been a sign of a planet out of balance. The dolphins’ appearance here does not seem right, either. We may never know what caused their deaths, but it should remind us to keep a close eye on the sea — and to continue to press for action to reverse the climate trends that are putting both humankind and the wild world at risk.