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Mattapoisett I From thg fluthors Those of us fortunate enough to be familiar with the open waters of Buzzards Bay enjoy one of the cleanest, highest quality estuaries on the entire eastern seaboard. Despite centuries of human use, pollution and alterations to its watershed, central Buzzards Bay water quality remains healthy. An ecosystem-wide change, however, is occurring along the coastline. This change involves inputs of nutrients, particularly nitrogen, which is already decreasing water quality and the health of the Bay at its most vulnerable points. At greatest risk are the Bay's more than 30 harbors, coves, and river mouths which receive the initial nutrient load from the watershed. Unfortunately, these same embayments and nearshore waters are often particularly sensitive to increased nutrient loading and support the most diverse ecological habitats, productive shellfish beds, and much of the recreational use and aesthetic values of the Bay. Since 1992, the Buzzards Bay Citizens' Water Quality Monitoring Program, known as "Baywatchers", has been monitoring and evaluating bay water quality and particularly the impacts of nitrogen loading. More than 300 dedicated citizen volunteers have contributed to the effort, sampling 180 different monitoring stations. Focused on nutrient loading and eutrophication, the degradation of water quality and loss of habitats from excessive amounts of nutrients entering the Bay's waters, the Baywatchers program is the primary source of long-term data assessing the health of the bay's embayments from Westport Rivers to Quissett Harbor on Cape Cod. As the largest citizens monitoring program in the state, Baywatchers has shown that monitoring is essential for environmental management to be based on informed, science-based decisions for the restoration and protection of Buzzards Bay. The results of our now seven-year-old water quality monitoring effort are documented in this Report. While much of the Bay remains healthy, our data reveals that over half of all Buzzards Bay harbors and coves are showing signs of eutrophication, or nitrogen-related water quality degradation. All of the twelve major embayments on the western shore are exhibiting some signs of eutrophication - eight of these actually drop to levels where shellfish, finfish, and other aquatic life are damaged. Poor water clarity, bad odors, eelgrass loss, suffocating algae growth, stressed marine organisms and even fish kills are all symptoms of this decline. Eel Pond in Mattapoisett - once considered one of the best oyster spots in all of Buzzards Bay, the Slocums and Little Rivers, the East Branch of the Westport, Padanaram & New Bedford Harbors, and the Weweantic and Agawam Rivers are the embayments that we are losing to nitrogen pollution. Fortunately, all of these areas are restorable. While eutrophication impacts the entire ecology of an affected area, it is not irreversible. The return of eelgrass beds to Clarks Cove in New Bedford and Dartmouth is a prime example of the Bay's ability to rebound once there is a reduction in nitrogen loading to acceptable levels. Nevertheless, there are few easy fixes. As a long-term ecological monitoring effort, our Citizens Monitoring Program documents trends and focuses attention to where problems exist. We have endeavored also to provide Management Recommendations for each embayment to set a course for the restoration of areas already suffering from nutrient overloading and the preservation of areas not yet harmed by human activities. There is much work to be done, but we believe that the body of data and information assembled here in this Report lays the foundation for better understanding and management of the Nitrogen Problem - the most serious and challenging threat to the health of our Bay. Brian L. Howes, Ph.D. Tony Williams Mark Rasmussen Director, Coastal Systems Program Water Quality Monitoring Coordinator Executive Director Center for Marine Science & Technology The Coalition for Buzzards Bay The Coalition for Buzzards Bay University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth New Bedford, Massachusetts December 1999 The Coalition for Buzzards Bay Contents . Organ~zat~ons.............................................................................................................. 2 Title Page .................................................................................................................... 3 Preface ........................................................................................................................ 4 Contents ...................................................................................................................... 5 Authors/Acknowledgements / Financial Support ......................................................... 6 Volunteers ................................................................................................................... 7 Buzzards Bay Background .......................................................................................... 8 Baywatchers Monitoring ............................................................................................. 11 Watershed Nitrogen .............................................................................................. 12 Water Quality Monitoring Parameters ...................................................................... 14 Buzzards Bay Health Index ........................................................................................ 17 Nitrogen Matrix ........................................................................................................... 19 Rain ............................................................................................................................ 20 Poster ....................................................................................................................... 21 Quissett Harbor .......................................................................................................... 22 West Falmouth Harbor ............................................................................................... 25 Wild Harbor. Rands Harbor & Fiddlers Cove ............................................................. 31 Megansett & Squeteague Harbors .......................................................................... 34 Red Brook Harbor ...................................................................................................... 38 Hen Cove ................................................................................................................... 42 Pocasset Harbor ........................................................................................................ 44 Pocasset River ........................................................................................................... 47 Phinney's Harbor. Eel Pond & Back River ................................................................. 49 Buttermilk Bay & Little Buttermilk Bay ........................................................................ 53 Onset Bay .................................................................................................................. 57 Wareham River Estuary ............................................................................................. 61 Weweantic River ........................................................................................................ 69 Sippican Harbor ......................................................................................................... 74 Aucoot Cove ............................................................................................................... 79 Mattapoisett Harbor .................................................................................................... 83 Eel Pond ..................................................................................................................... 87 Little Bay Nasketucket ................................................................................................ 90 New Bedford Harbor .................................................................................................. 95 Clarks Cove ............................................................................................................... 100 Apponagansett Bay ................................................................................................... 103 Slocums & Little Rivers .......................................................................................... 107 Westport River East & West Branch ......................................................................... 113 Cuttyhunk & Penikese Island ................................................................................. 121 Glossary .................................................................................................................... 123 References ................................................................................................................ 125 flbout the authors Dr. Brian Howes is manager of the Coastal Systems Program and Senior Fellow at the University of Massachusetts' Center for Marine Science and Technology (CMAST). He was one of the originators of the Buzzards Bay Monitoring Program while an Associate Scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. The Coastal Systems Laboratory conducts the nutrient analyses for Baywatchers and other monitoring programs throughout Massachusetts. Dr. Howes has been conducting ecological research on Buzzards Bay ecosystems for over 25 years and has more than
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