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EPA Study Ranks Long Island Sound "Poor" In Overall Environmental Health
Most factors related to nonpoint pollution

In June the EPA has released the National Coastal Assessment, a study ranking the condition of 28 major estuaries in 18 states. While the overall condition of our nation's estuaries receives a grade of "Fair" Long Island Sound received a grade of "Poor."
The report focused on water quality, sediment quality, benthic index and fish tissue contaminates. Long Island Sound ranked low mostly due to the quality of the western portion of the Sound. The western Sound is highly urbanized and polluted runoff from paved areas contributes to the loading of contaminates both biological, chemical and physical, which includes garbage and debris.
Water Quality: Fair. In terms of nitrogen, only 53% of the Sound was rated good for dissolved inorganic nitrogen. Improvements in this area are due to Sewage Treatment upgrades for nitrogen--a major focus for Soundkeeper.
Sediment: Poor. 32% of the sediment in Long Island Sound was rated poor with 10% of the Sound's too toxic to support amphipod populations. Moderate to high concentrations of DDT and metals also appear in the far eastern and western portions of the Sound.
"We are moving too slowly on improvements to contain and treat storm water runoff. " Terry Backer
Benthic index: Poor. This is a measure of the life on the bottom of the Sound. The best results were in the western and central portions of the Sound. The worst is in both New York and Connecticut where rivers, streams and harbors empty their toxic runoff into the main body of the Sound.
Fish Tissue Contaminants: Poor. The Sound received a poor ranking in this area as well. PCBs, a common contaminant in other northeastern estuaries, were responsible in the most part for the low ranking. Thirteen samples collected resulted in one third of the samples in each category of good, fair and poor.
The report also highlighted the five major environmental challenges to Long Island Sound, which have long been known to be low dissolved oxygen levels or Hypoxia, pathogen contamination (the bacteria that causes beach closures and shellfishing restrictions), declines in populations of commercial and sport species of fish, loss of wetland and increased amounts of floatable debris.
Soundkeeper Terry Backer identified solutions to the problems outlined in the EPA report. "We are moving too slowly on improvements to contain and treat storm water runoff. We must do three things to slow this problem; 1) prevent storm water from becoming polluted with better development parameters and projects, 2) install vault and storm drain filters at street level and 3) get our regulatory agencies to start looking at more technological remedies rather than only the broad TMDL approach that has left our waters below the goals of the Clean Water Act".
Read the EPA's report on Long Island Sound

Bob & Mag

Very depressing news!

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JackC

Just a fast comment. I'm what is termed an "environmental professional" and while I don't care to dispute the study at all you need to look at the big picture. When I was a kid, New Haven Harbor was a mess (this was the 60s) - the mill river used to be contaminated "bank to bank" with industrial waste. The water quality today is much better than it used to be. We still have issues but from my perspective we have made major improvements. Sediment can not be cleaned up without removing it which would most likely cause more damage than leaving it in place.

Fish stocks- while we don't have a winter flounder run of note anymore our bass, scup, fluke stocks are in great shape. We may not like the regulations but that is part of the reason why we have good stocks. Bottom line is that our fishing is pretty good and the EPA study really has nothing to do with fisheries management, which believe it or not is working for inshore species in the Northeast.

Jack

seaclops

I agree that we have come a long way since the 1968 clean water act.
It just took so long to get the sewerage treatment plants updated,
hopefully it won't take as long to do something about the runoff problems.
FEDS we need $$$$$$$ NOW..What can be done to push this along??