Baywatch 2011: Peconic Baykeeper's Annual Report

8/3/2019 Baywatch 2011: Peconic Baykeeper's Annual Report

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THE STATE OF LONG ISLAND'S BAYS


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Long Island's bays were once famous fortheir clear waters, vast underwater eelgrassmeadows and abundant shellsh harvests.Today, they are more likely to be murky andclosed to shellshing. The decline in waterquality is being driven by increased nitrogen

pollution from decades of expanded devel-opment without the proper wastewater and

stormwater infrastructure. Last springs closure of shellsh harvesting in westernShinnecock and Quantuck bays due to Red Tide is just the latest chapter inan ongoing saga of harmful algal blooms plaguing our bays.

Nutrient pollution (nitrogen and phosphorus) is the leading cause of waterquality impairments in the U.S. Sewage wastewater discharges have beenidentied as the major cause of water pollution along one-third of Americasshorelines. Recent trends indicate that our local waters are in trouble. In

2006, New York State classied the western tributaries feeding MorichesBay as Impaired Waters (303d), a listing reserved for the most degradedand threatened waterbodies. In 2010, Great South, Moriches, Quantuckand Shinnecock bays were placed on the list due to reoccurring Brown Tideblooms attributed to excess nitrogen loadings from onsite sewage disposalsystems and runoff. Lake Agawam, Old Town Pond and Mill Pond werelisted for failure to meet dissolved oxygen standards. Although the speciccauses are undetermined, low dissolved oxygen levels are most often attributedto excess nutrient loadings.

Although recent data suggests some positive developments in the ght

against pollution and habitat degradation - hard clams and scallop populationsare improving, uke stocks are nearly rebuilt and porgies have surpassedtarget goals - steep challenges remain ahead. The ill effects from the currentapproach to wastewater management have reached the tipping point.

Our commercial and recreational shing interests, real estate values,tourism and the use and enjoyment of our maritime environment all dependon clean water. Clean water should be a right, not a privilege. If we let ourlocal waters continue to degrade, we have no one to blame but ourselves. Thetime to act must not be delayed.

A MESSAGEFROM YOUR BAYKEEPER

Red Tide in Great Peconic Bay

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CREATING THE REPORT"Baywatch 2011: The State of Long Island's Bays is

based on the best available information about indicatorsrepresenting three major categories - habitat, sheriesand pollution - in the Peconic and South Shore estuaries.These watersheds have distinct differences, so someindicators may be specic to one area or the other.

Wherever possible, Peconic Baykeeper accessed the most

recent data to build on information presented in "Baywatch2008." In all instances, information from governmentagencies, independent scientists, and other environmentalorganizations were used to analyze trends.

Peconic Baykeeper arrived at environmental-qualityratings by measuring current ndings against thoserecorded in the 1970s, when scientically derived baselinesfor many indicators rst became available. The conditionof the bays is further described in upward or downwardtrends; the arrow up (positive), sideways (neutral), or

down (negative) next to the letter grade indicates the effecthat the efforts of public or private agencies have had onparticular indicators of bay health. When confrontinglimits and gaps in available information, PeconicBaykeeper used its best judgment to determine the ratings

A = Excellent

B = Good

C = Marginal

D = Poor

F = Failing

ImproedOtlook

Little or NoResponse

DecliningOtlook

EELGRASS HOPE TAKES ROOTEelgrass beds provide shelter while serving as both spawning and nursing grounds. They also improve water clarity

by dampening wave energy, stabilizing sediment, producing oxygen, and sequestering nutrients to lower the leveof nitrogen and phosphorus in the water. Declines in local bay scallop populations are closely correlated to theeelgrass crash.

Long Island's once vast eelgrass meadows have suffered dramatic declines making restoration efforts essential.Monitoring throughout the Peconic Estuary shows most sites suffering 100% losses. But there is some encouraging newsas scientists from Cornell Cooperative Extension, working on healthy meadows at both Cedar and Orient points, haveseen shoot density increases. They hope to plant multiple acres of eelgrass at several sites within Suffolk County in thenear future.

Bullhead Bay

Gardiners BayNorthwest Harbor

Orient Point

Southold Bay

Three Mile Harbor

Cedar Point

Orient Point

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100

0

1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010

EelgrassDensity(shoots/m

2)

Eelgrass Density in the Peconic Estuary

D

HABITAT HEALTH

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Freshwater tributaries owing into the South Shore andPeconic estuaries allow diadromous sh to migrate betweenfreshwater and marine environments, often for spawning.Unfortunately, many passages are obstructed by dams,culverts, etc. Long Island is home to a number of diadromoussh, including alewives, American eels, river herring and

sea-run trout.Restoration efforts have been ongoing to remedy

obstructions to diadromous sh habitats and the SouthShore Estuary is now home to our rst permanent shpassage - a sh ladder in Carmans River. Another shladder has been established in Massapequa Creek.Several additional restoration efforts being planned couldpotentially reopen ten miles of habitat. Peconic tributarieshave also seen progress. A sh passage recently completedat Peconic River's Grangeable Park reopened 24 acres of

spawning ground and 1.5 miles of tributary water with

up to 50,000 alewives passing through this spring aloneMore work is planned for Peconic River and its tributariesBy improving our current knowledge of alewife populationsthrough continued monitoring, we can better develop and

evaluate restoration efforts.

The newly completed Grangeable Park sh ladder

DIADROMOuS FISH HABITAT CLIMBING THE LADDER

SEA LEvEL THE TIDE IS RISING

Climate change is a global issue with potentially localimpact. When water temperature increases water alsoincreases in volume, a phenomenon known as thermalexpansion. Because the volume of the oceans increases

while the size of ocean basins remains unchanged, sealevel rises. The melting of polar ice caps may also contributeto sea level rise.

Each aquatic ecosystem provides a valuable functionthat will be fundamentally changed by sea level rise. Atthe low estimates, tidal wetlands and the intertidal areasmay migrate inland when possible. Shoreline hardening

will prevent some of these migrations, resulting in species

loss. With higher levels, habitats will also be lost toinundation. Sea level rise will increase the depth of wateover eelgrass beds, reducing available light levels. It wilalso lead to ooding and inundation with some areassubmerged on a regular basis or even permanently.

Climate change is also expected to cause more frequenand severe storms, intensifying ooding and alteringsediment transport while modifying structure of tida

wetlands and beaches. It is difcult to determine theresponse of estuarine habitats to sea level rise as muchdepends on the changes (size and depth) to the baysCertainly, sea level rise will accelerate coastal erosionresulting in the potential loss of beaches and bluffs whileencouraging shoreline hardening. Barrier islands will facethe greatest impacts. At higher projections, storm surgesmight ow across the islands, creating new inlets andaltering adjacent estuarine communities.

A rise in sea level will also result in the water table risingThis will submerge septic systems in some areas, possiblyreleasing untreated human waste pollutants to coasta

waters. A higher water table will also saturate terrestrialands, leading to increased runoff. Freshwater systems wilexperience saltwater intrusion, with saltwater pushingfurther inland and altering established ecosystems byshifting vegetation and impacting anadromous shFreshwater habitats may try to migrate inland but willikely be rebuffed by structural barriers.

By 2020s By 2050s By 2080s

LOw END 2-5" 7-12" 12-23"

HIGH END 5-10" 19-29" 41-55"

Projected Levels of Sea Level Rise for Long Island

C s

C t

Photo by Tom Schlichter

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FISHERIES

Bay scallops are renowned for their delicately sweet avor and for once being a vibrant local shery. They spawnonly once during their two-year life spans and are highly vulnerable to environmental changes. Brown Tide and lossof eelgrass, in addition to overharvesting, have contributed to the collapse of this shery.

Since Brown Tide rst appeared in the Peconic Estuary back in 1985, bay scallops have been severely depletedLandings have hovered between 2,000 and 4,000 pounds for two decades and, despite the absence of Brown Tidesince 1995, it is possible too few scallops remain to drive a full-scale natural recovery. Still, landings have been on therise since 2007 with upwards of 18,000 pounds harvested in 2009. This may indicate some recovery of the populationImprovements in restoration techniques, replanting of eelgrass and the absence of Brown Tide in the Peconics havecontributed to the uptick in harvest numbers.

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dingsin

1,

00

0s

lbs

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Scallop LandingsPeconic Bay Estuary South Shore Estuary

BAY SCALLOPS A NUMBERS GAME

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9080

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02000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

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dingsin

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Hard Clam LandingsPeconic Bay Estuary South Shore Estuary

Hard clams improve water quality through lter feeding. At the height of the Long Island shery in the 1970s, abundanclams ltered 40% of Great South Bay. Today, they lter merely 1%.

With the demise of bay scallops in the Peconic Estuary, shing pressure shifted to hard clams resulting in severedecline. In 2008, Senator Chuck Schumer declared the shery a disaster. That same year, hard clam dockside value

was only $600 thousand compared to $12 million at the sherys peak. After steadying for a few years at approximately20,000 bushels, landings rebounded to more than 80,000 bushels in 2010, indicating a possible comeback thanks torestoration efforts supported by the South Shore towns, Suffolk County and The Nature Conservancy.

HARD CLAMS REASON FOR HOPE

C s

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The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)monitors Peconic Estuary nsh populations through towsurveys, recording 87 different species over the past 25

years. A number of these sh represent key commercialand recreational sheries. Some are forage sh - prey forlarger predatory sh - and an important link in the marinefood web. Many also use these estuarine waters as

spawning and nursery grounds. The strong connectionbetween nsh and their environment makes the health ofsh populations a good indicator of the condition of ourestuaries.

Not all of the news on the nsh front is bad. Scup(porgy), whose Mid-Atlantic stock was deemed overshedin 2006, is considered rebuilt with a biomass up to 130%of the target set by management agencies. Bluesh haveslowly recovered from low numbers in the 1970s and ourregional stock has been rebuilt since 2009. The summer

ounder (uke) stock is not quite rebuilt but spawningstock is at 89% of the target and rebuilt status maybe achieved by 2013 if projections hold true. This is asignicant improvement from uke stocks being overshedin 2006.

Of course, there are still points of concern. Manyspecies, although not technically overshed, show signsof stress. Changes in predation, competition and/orenvironment have increased natural mortality for weaksh.

Atlantic menhaden are troubled by low recruitment, andnumbers of spawning class buttersh are at an all-timelow. Outlooks for Atlantic herring and northern puffer areuncertain while windowpane ounder are overshed.Tautog (blacksh) are vulnerable to overshing due to slowgrowth and reproduction plus a tendency to congregatearound easily targeted structure such as rock piles.

Winter ounder are of most concern. A favorite ofanglers both recreational and commercial, the NewEngland/Mid-Atlantic stock is at an all-time low withdeclines in reproductive adults and recruiting juveniles.Flounder are considered overshed with a 2008 stock

assessment recording this species at only 9% of the biomasstarget. Because of its sensitivity to habitat degradation,

winter ounder are especially vulnerable to local decline.

Management efforts to rebuild winter ounder numbersrevolve around reducing shing mortality, particularly forthe spawning stock. This requires a delicate balancing act

with a mortality rate both sustainable for the atties andsufcient for anglers. Management plans also call forminimization of habitat degradation caused by pollutionand dredging.

FINFISH HIT AND MISS

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In

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Bay Anchovy Scup Finsh

Total Abundance of Finshin the Peconic Estuary

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In

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Winter Flounder Abundancein the Peconic Estuary

Winter Founder on Moriches Bay

* Considered of concern by Department of Environmental Conservation** Managed by Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council

*** Managed by Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council

OTHER IMPORTANT COMMON SPECIESBay Anchoy

weaksh **

winter Flonder *,**

Northern Pffer *

Tatog *,**

Smmer Flonder **,***

Blesh **,***

Striped Bass **

Herring

C+s

Photo by Tom Schlichter

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Although a natural component of aquatic ecosystems, nitrogen in high concentrations can cause problems. Excesslevels of nitrogen and phosphorus promote the growth of harmful algal blooms which consume oxygen, block lightneeded by other organisms and, in some cases, produce toxins.

As Peconic Baykeeper boldly asserted in "Baywatch 2010: Nutrient Pollution, A Plague to Our Waters,"changes ingroundwater nitrogen are primarily driven by population growth. Excess nitrogen is delivered to Long Islands

estuaries through residential cesspool leaching and sewage treatment plant efuent, fertilizers and agricultural runoffatmospheric deposition of polluted air and discharge from boats. A study by Kinney and Valiela found the primarysource of nitrogen loading to the South Shore Estuary to be wastewater from septic systems that have leached intothe groundwater. The recently released groundwater study (Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plancommissioned by Suffolk County reveals that nitrogen levels in groundwater have increased dramatically in the UppeGlacial and Magothy aquifers between 1987 and 2005 (40% and 200% respectively). Thus, nitrogen loading has agreater impact in areas that are not sewered, such as Moriches and Shinnecock bays.

In 2010, the DEC declared the entire South Shore Estuary as Impaired Waters citing Brown Tide and nitrogenloading as the cause. This area includes all of Suffolk Countys South Shore bays: Great South, Moriches, Quantuckand Shinnecock.

Peconic Baykeeper has been out in front on this issue, leading the charge to enact proactive measures restricting theamount of nitrogen released into ground and surface waters. We strongly encourage formation of sub-watershedmanagement plans that include establishments of Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for waterbodies harmed bynitrogen overload.

POLLuTION

Phytoplankton serve as the base of the water column food web. However, when numbers of these microscopic plantsgrow out of control, proliferated by elevated nutrient levels, they discolor the water resulting in Red or Brown TideThese harmful algal blooms disrupt ecosystems by producing toxins, shading sea grasses and consuming oxygen.

Brown Tide, caused by the microalgaAureococcus anophagefferens , rst appeared in Long Island waters in 1985

decimating local bay scallop and eelgrass populations. The worst bloom thus far, with a peak density of 2 million cellsper mL, occurred in Great South Bay in 2008, prompting Senator Chuck Schumer to declare a disaster for the hardclam shery. Although Brown Tide has virtually disappeared from the Peconic Estuary (PE) in recent years, it still reoccursannually in Quantuck and Shinnecock bays. Both areas have been included on the DEC's list of "Impaired Waters."

Long Island waters have also been home to Red Tide. Blooms ofCochlodinium polykrikoides rst appeared in 2004in Flanders Bay and eventually spread to areas of Great Peconic Bay and Shinnecock Bay, where it now occurs annuallyCochlodinium is known to be lethal to nsh and harmful to shellsh. Another Red Tide species,Alexandrium fundyensehas been found in the Forge River and Quantuck Bay of the South Shore Estuary (SSE) and in Meetinghouse Creek othe Peconic Estuary. This bloom is the causative agent of paralytic shellsh poisoning.

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02000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

BrownTide

(100,0

00ce

lls

/mL)

Coc

hlodinium

(1,0

00ce

lls

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Peak Harmful Algal Bloom Densities in SSE and PE

Brown Tide Cochlodinium

NuTRIENTS A PLAGUE TO OUR WATERS

HARMFuL ALGAL BLOOMS A CLOUDED FUTURE

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Bacterial pathogens are a signicant threat to our local waters. Oftenoriginating from stormwater runoff, particularly following heavy rains, theymay also originate from residential septic system leaching and boatdischarges. Elevated levels not only harm the ecosystem; they make the

waters unsafe for recreational use and shellshing.

Through the summer months, a number of beaches are closed to bathingby Suffolk Countys Department of Health Services due to elevated levels ofpathogens. The county continually advises 24-hour emergency closure ofmore than 60 beaches because of the potential levels of bacteria followingheavy rain events. The DEC also monitors for high levels of bacterialpathogens, specically relating to the safety of shellsh consumption.

Although this problem is not getting worse, it is still persistent and showsno signs of abating. Government agencies have taken measures to reducebacterial pollutants including reducing runoff, establishing managementplans for stormwater that include the development of Total Maximum Daily

Loads (TMDLs) for bacterial contamination, and designating "no dischargezones" for boating, which Peconic Baykeeper has been instrumental inestablishing.

BACTERIAL CONTAMINATIONBUGS IN THE WATER

Peconic Baykeeper is a member-supported environmentalorganization dedicated todefending Long Island's coastal

waters. Through science-basedmonitoring, public educationand legal initiatives, PeconicBaykeeper is working to restoreour bays to their traditional rolein Long Island life - a source ofpleasure and prosperity for all.

For more informationand to become a member,please contact:

Phone631.653.4804Fax631.653.4802

webwww.peconicbaykeeper.org

[email protected]

Ofce

P.O. Box 893Quogue, New York 11959

Special thanks to

mediaThe foundation, inc.,Long Island Community Foundation

and Mr. John de Cuevas for

providing the funding that

made possible the production

of Baywatch 2011.

SOuTH SHORE ESTuARY PECONIC ESTuARY

Total Total Acres % Acres Acres % Acres

YEAR Closed Closed Closed Closed

2007 32,901 29.7 5,765 3.6

2008 34,084 30.8 6,239 3.9

2009 36,284 32.8 6,048 3.8

2010 35,664 32.2 6,055 3.8

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Baywatch 2011: Peconic Baykeeper's Annual Report

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