Long Island Sound Report Card 2016
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
New monitoring initiative for your bays and harbors Healthy waters, How you can help Though they are not healthy communities depicted in this report During the recreational season fecal bacteria is Reduce water usage card, bays and harbors measured at the 200+ beaches that line the Sound to Less water means improved water treatment determine if the water quality meets the EPA guidelines at plants, plus less wear and tear on pipes. Long Island Sound around the Sound are for safe swimming. Exposure to fecal bacteria in critically important. recreational water can lead to a variety of illnesses including viral, parasitic, and bacterial infections. Eliminate or reduce fertilizer use Prevents nutrient runoff from polluting your The bays and harbors of Long Island Fecal bacteria levels are also measured in waters waterways. Report Card 2016 Sound – home to many beaches, where shellfish are harvested for human consumption parks, and marinas – are often the because consuming the bacteria in shellfish can lead Keep litter out of waterways to illness. The loss of beach days and shellfish harvests Grading the water quality and ecosystem health of the Urban Sea places where the public comes into Trash and debris are hazards to wildlife. has a direct negative impact on local economies direct contact with Sound waters. and livelihoods around the Sound. Investing in our Each bay and harbor (“embayment”) wastewater infrastructure keeps our beaches and Go native has its own unique hydrology shellfish healthy and accessible for public enjoyment. Natural vegetation and forested buffers (not influenced by a number of factors a lawn) along a stream, ditch, or waterfront including depth, tidal flushing, and This Report Card does not include data or grades for help filter pollutants. the presence of tributary streams bacteria levels in Sound waters. For data on bacteria and rivers. Measuring water quality levels at Sound beaches, visit SoundHealthExplorer.org. Pump out your septic system conditions in embayments requires a A properly maintained septic system different approach than the one used prevents costly repairs and untreated sewage to measure open water conditions. discharge into your local waterways. Every This Report Card only reports on 3-5 years is recommended. open water conditions. Care for your pipes To learn more about the health of Properly dispose of harmful chemicals, Sound bays and harbors, the Long household grease, and used cooking oil. The Island Sound Funders Collaborative pipes in your house protect the water you and Save the Sound have initiated drink and play in. a Sound-wide embayment study. A coalition of interested monitoring groups, scientists, and representatives of regulating agencies are Pollution affects shellfish harvests and local economies. collaborating on the study with the goal of gathering “apples-to-apples” data from a network of monitoring groups around the Sound. About the Long Island Sound Report Card Visit longislandsound.ecoreportcard.org for information on The study is designed to measure specific methodologies, indicators, thresholds, grading, and human impact on, and the relative subregion designations. health of, the bays and harbors This Report Card was produced by Save the Sound, a bi-state of Long Island Sound. Standard program of Connecticut Fund for the Environment, and published Operating Procedures are provided in October 2016 using 2015 data. Funding was provided by the and must be followed in their entirety by participating groups to ensure Top: Harbor Watch at sunrise conducting Long Island Sound Funders Collaborative. Science direction was provided by Jamie Vaudrey, Ph.D. and Jason Krumholz, Ph.D. consistent comparisons of embayments. The study was piloted by three water sampling. Bottom left: Mystic groups in the 2016 summer monitoring season and is open to participation Aquarium and Clean Up Sound and Harbors The Report Card provides a geographic assessment of annual (CUSH) surveying seaweed. Bottom right: Long Island Sound ecosystem health for 2015. by any interested, qualifying group or community on the Sound starting in Data provided courtesy of: Save the Sound measuring dissolved oxygen. the 2017 monitoring season. The findings of the embayment study – to be Cover photo is Five Mile Point Lighthouse, in New Haven, CT. published in future Report Cards – will further deepen our understanding of the Sound and inform our actions to preserve and protect it. longislandsound.ecoreportcard.org ~ savethesound.org New York City Department of Environmental Protection New monitoring initiative for your bays and harbors Healthy waters, How you can help Though they are not healthy communities depicted in this report During the recreational season fecal bacteria is Reduce water usage card, bays and harbors measured at the 200+ beaches that line the Sound to Less water means improved water treatment determine if the water quality meets the EPA guidelines at plants, plus less wear and tear on pipes. Long Island Sound around the Sound are for safe swimming. Exposure to fecal bacteria in critically important. recreational water can lead to a variety of illnesses including viral, parasitic, and bacterial infections. Eliminate or reduce fertilizer use Prevents nutrient runoff from polluting your The bays and harbors of Long Island Fecal bacteria levels are also measured in waters waterways. Report Card 2016 Sound – home to many beaches, where shellfish are harvested for human consumption parks, and marinas – are often the because consuming the bacteria in shellfish can lead Keep litter out of waterways to illness. The loss of beach days and shellfish harvests Grading the water quality and ecosystem health of the Urban Sea places where the public comes into Trash and debris are hazards to wildlife. has a direct negative impact on local economies direct contact with Sound waters. and livelihoods around the Sound. Investing in our Each bay and harbor (“embayment”) wastewater infrastructure keeps our beaches and Go native has its own unique hydrology shellfish healthy and accessible for public enjoyment. Natural vegetation and forested buffers (not influenced by a number of factors a lawn) along a stream, ditch, or waterfront including depth, tidal flushing, and This Report Card does not include data or grades for help filter pollutants. the presence of tributary streams bacteria levels in Sound waters. For data on bacteria and rivers. Measuring water quality levels at Sound beaches, visit SoundHealthExplorer.org. Pump out your septic system conditions in embayments requires a A properly maintained septic system different approach than the one used prevents costly repairs and untreated sewage to measure open water conditions. discharge into your local waterways. Every This Report Card only reports on 3-5 years is recommended. open water conditions. Care for your pipes To learn more about the health of Properly dispose of harmful chemicals, Sound bays and harbors, the Long household grease, and used cooking oil. The Island Sound Funders Collaborative pipes in your house protect the water you and Save the Sound have initiated drink and play in. a Sound-wide embayment study. A coalition of interested monitoring groups, scientists, and representatives of regulating agencies are Pollution affects shellfish harvests and local economies. collaborating on the study with the goal of gathering “apples-to-apples” data from a network of monitoring groups around the Sound. About the Long Island Sound Report Card Visit longislandsound.ecoreportcard.org for information on The study is designed to measure specific methodologies, indicators, thresholds, grading, and human impact on, and the relative subregion designations. health of, the bays and harbors This Report Card was produced by Save the Sound, a bi-state of Long Island Sound. Standard program of Connecticut Fund for the Environment, and published Operating Procedures are provided in October 2016 using 2015 data. Funding was provided by the and must be followed in their entirety by participating groups to ensure Top: Harbor Watch at sunrise conducting Long Island Sound Funders Collaborative. Science direction was provided by Jamie Vaudrey, Ph.D. and Jason Krumholz, Ph.D. consistent comparisons of embayments. The study was piloted by three water sampling. Bottom left: Mystic groups in the 2016 summer monitoring season and is open to participation Aquarium and Clean Up Sound and Harbors The Report Card provides a geographic assessment of annual (CUSH) surveying seaweed. Bottom right: Long Island Sound ecosystem health for 2015. by any interested, qualifying group or community on the Sound starting in Data provided courtesy of: Save the Sound measuring dissolved oxygen. the 2017 monitoring season. The findings of the embayment study – to be Cover photo is Five Mile Point Lighthouse, in New Haven, CT. published in future Report Cards – will further deepen our understanding of the Sound and inform our actions to preserve and protect it. longislandsound.ecoreportcard.org ~ savethesound.org New York City Department of Environmental Protection Water Quality Water quality illustrates the story of Long Island Sound’s ecological health Reducing nutrients that enter the Sound Indicators Long Island Sound is our nation’s great urbanized estuary. Western Narrows - Eastern Narrows Long Island Sound The primary pollutant that threatens the current and future F C-C QUEBEC health of the Sound is excess nutrients, particularly nitrogen, Dissolved oxygen en There is a gradient en xyg Wat The Westernyg Narrows received an F (51%), the gen o er x Thex yEastern Narrows received a C- (70%), a d c entering the water from our wastewater treatment plants, O O e la d lv r from west to east e d o i worstv grade of the Sound, because nutrient e s t Dissolved oxygen is critical to the l y A moderatelylv poor grade, reflecting degraded water s septic systems, fossil fuel burning, and fertilizer use. High o i o ME s D of unhealthy (F) to s s VT i s survival of fish and shellfish. Low levels levels and water clarity are very poor.