EPA 902 - D-- 93 - 001
COMPREHENSIVE
CONSERVATION &
MANAGEMENT PLAN
January 1993
The Long Island
Sound Study
LONG
ISLAND
SOUND
STUDY
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THE LONG ISLAND SOUND STUDY
Estuary or National Significance
The Long Island Sound Study (LISS) involves federal, state, interstate, and local agencies,
universities, environmental groups, industry, and the public. The LISS began in 1985 when
Congress appropriated funds for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to
research, monitor, and assess the water quality of Long Island Sound. With the Clean Water
Act Amendments in 1987, Section 320 of the Act officially established a National Estuary
Program. At the request of the States of Connecticut and New York, Long Island Sound was
officially designated an Estuary of National Significance under Ibis new program, and a
Management Conference for the Long Island Sound Study was convened in March of 1988.
The Study culminates with the issuance of this Comprehensive Conservation and Management
Plan for Long Island Sound that will, when implemented, Improve the health of the estuary
while ensuring compatible human uses within die Sound ecosystem.
Priority Areas of Concern
Recent efforts to characterize conditions in Long Island Sound have revealed water quality
problems that will require changes in the way Long Island Sound is managed. The LISS has
identified seven issues that merit special attention: (1) low dissolved oxygen (hypoxia), (2)
toxic contamination, (3) pathogen contamination, (4) floatable debris, (5) the impact of these
water quality problems and habitat degradation and loss on the health of living resources, (6)
public involvement and education, and (7) land use. The LISS has focused its efforts and
resources on the most pressing problem among these, low dissolved oxygen, which impacts
substantial areas in western Long Island Sound in late summer.
Purpose of the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
The Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) characterizes each priority
water quality problem of Long Island Sound and describes the general approach and specific
actions needed to solve it. The plan also lays out actions to protect aquatic habitat and living
resources, educate and involve the public, improve the long-term understanding of bow to
manage the Sound, monitor progress made, and redirect management efforts. Wherever
possible, the CCMP for Long Island Sound contains commitments by federal, state and local
agencies to take actions addressing these issues.
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Table Of Contents
Table Of Contents i
Introduction ii
1. Long Island Sound in Perspective 1
A. Geography 1
B. Ecological Importance 1
C. Economic Importance 3
D. Population and Land Use 3
E. Water Quality 4
II. The Long Island Sound Study 5
A. Background 5
B. Goals for Long Island Sound 5
C. Priority Areas of Concern 7
D. Commitment to Act 10
III. Plan of Action 11
A. Public Involvement and Education 12
B. Water Quality Problems 17
1. Hypoxia 17
2. Toxic Substances Contamination 41
3. Pathogen Contamination 51
4. Floatable Debris 61
C. Living Resource Management and Habitat Protection 66
D. Land Use 75
E. Monitoring and Reporting 78
IV. Costs/Funding 81
A. Capital Needs 81
B. Continuation of the LISS Management Conference 86
V. Process for Public Review and Comment 89
Appendix A. Bibliography of CCMP Supporting Documents 91
Appendix B. Connecticut and New York State Initial Infrastructure Project List 92
Appendix C. Glossary of Terms 95
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THE LONG ISLAND SOUND STUDY
COMPREHENSIVE CONSERVA TfON AND MANA CEMENT PLAN
Introduction
Long Island Sound is an estuary, a place where fresh and salt water meet and mix. Like other
estuaries, it is, by its nature, biologically productive, rich in a diversity of plant and animal species,
and beautiful.
Since it was formed more than eight thousand years ago with the retreat of glacial ice and a rise in
sea level, the Sound has been an important resource for the people who have lived along its snores.
Native Americans were sustained by its abundant resources. The European colonists used the Sound
for harbors. The Sound continues to serve human needs. It provides recreation and other benefits,
estimated to be worth $5 billion a year, to the residents of the nation's largest metropolitan area. It
continues to be important for marine transportation, as a source of seafood, and as habitat for fish and
wildlife. It is also a central feature of the quality of life of the region and a source of grace and
inspiration which contrasts to the cares of metropolitan life.
But Long Island Sound also serves another important purpose-that of waste disposal for homes and
businesses. It is the recipient of effluent from sewage treatment plants and the polluted runoff from
streets and storm sewers. Over 8 million people live and work in the Sound's watershed. Their
wastes threaten not only Long Island Sound's use for recreation, for commercial fishing, and as an
attractive setting near which to live and work, but also its very existence as a functioning ecosystem.
Substantial progress has been made in cleaning up the Sound's waters over the twenty years since the
passage of the federal Clean Water Act. Statutory treatment requirements have addressed the most
obvious sources of pollution. But the job is not finished. The fate of Long Island Sound still hangs
in the balance as evidenced by the summers of 1987 and 1989 when beach closures and low dissolved
oxygen levels raised new alarms about the Sound's future.
The Long Island Sound Study (LISS) was initiated in 1985 to better understand the Sound's complex
water quality problems and to propose cost-effective actions to solve those problems. This
management plan is the result of that work. While unanswered questions remain, it is clear from the
years of research that Long Island Sound will not recover by itself. Only concerted and coordinated
actions by government at every level and throughout the Sound watershed will save this exceptional
body of water.
This management plan is not, therefore, the end of an effort, but a blueprint of how to proceed. Its
ultimate success will depend on more than just the commitments of government agencies but on the
will and desire of the people in the region. A substantial public will is required to make this plan a
reality and to maintain the diverse public values of the Sound for the generations to come.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
I. Long Island Sound in Perspective
A. Geography
Long Island Sound lies in the midst of the highly urbanized and suburbanized northeast seaboard, one
of the most densely populated regions in the nation. Characterized by the nearly unbroken chain of
urban centers, including the country's largest city, New York City, the region's central economic and
population focus lies adjacent to the Sound.
The watershed of the Sound drains an area of more than 16,000 square miles. It encompasses
virtually the entire State of Connecticut, portions of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont, a
small area in Canada at the source of the Connecticut River, and portions of New York City, and
Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties in New York State. With such an extensive drainage
basin, management attention must begin in those areas most directly impacting water quality in the
Sound. As a result, the specific area included in the Long Island Sound Study is smaller than the
total drainage basin, focusing on the watershed within the States of Connecticut and New York. The
boundaries of the Sound have been established at the Battery on Manhattan Island to the west and at
The Race to the east (Figure 1).
Unlike a typical estuary, the Sound has no major direct source of fresh water at its head. Instead, the
lower salinity waters enter the western Sound from the Upper Bay of New York Harbor through the
East River and Harlem River tidal straits. Higher salinity Atlantic Ocean waters enter at its eastern
end, through Block Island Sound. The largest source of freshwater is the Connecticut River,
discharging into the eastern Sound. These unusual characteristics contribute to the complex
circulation and mixing patterns of the Sound. Furthermore, the waters that enter the Sound have a
significant impact on its water quality, underscoring the need for comprehensive, regional
management.
B. Ecological Importance
Estuaries are highly-productive ecosystems. While this report documents the problems the Sound
experiences today, it is important to note that it remains highly productive, with a great abundance
and diversity of plants and animals inhabiting it for part or all of their lives. Improving and
maintaining water quality is critical to their continued presence and health. In addition, Long Island
Sound is not an ecologically-isolated estuary; but is part of the East Coast migration route. Fisheries
of the Sound, other estuaries, and the open ocean are linked together; and pollution in one waterbody
can affect the productivity of the entire system.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
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Long Island Sound Study
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
Important ecological components of the Sound are its diverse and distinctive habitats, which provide
feeding, nesting, and nursery areas, as well as shelter, for finfish, shellfish, plankton, birds, and other
organisms inhabiting or visiting its waters. The many different types of habitats include tidal
wetlands and flats, beaches, dunes, bluffs, rocky intertidal areas, eelgrass beds, natural and artificial
reefs, the water itself, and the sediment floor of the Sound. Each habitat not only supports its own
community of plants and animals but contributes to the productivity of the Sound as a whole. All of
the habitats that make up the Sound are interconnected through the food web and are an integral part
of the quality of the Sound.
C. Economic Importance
Long Island Sound strengthens the economy of the region through the many valuable uses that it
supports. While some of the uses, such as shipping, ferry transportation, electric power generation,
industrial use and waste disposal, are not dependent on water quality, others such as tourism, fishing,
boating, and beachgoing clearly depend on good water quality. A few of the animals that are
economically important in terms of commercial or recreational fisheries are oysters, clams, bluefish,
flounder, fluke, striped bass, weakfish, and lobster.
While no one would want 10 assess the value of the Sound in purely economic terms, it is instructive
to estimate the economic value for some of the significant water quality-dependent economic
activities. The total annual use value of commercial and recreational fishing, beach swimming and
boating for the year 1990 was estimated to exceed $5 billion, a figure that does not include the
intrinsic value of the Sound as a natural resource worth protecting and preserving for future
generations. Nor does it include other water quality-dependent values that are more difficult to
estimate but also contribute to the economic vitality and overall quality of area, such as the
importance of natural habitats and good water quality to nearshore residential property values.
D. Population and Land Use
The rich estuarine and woodland resources of the Long Island Sound coastal areas once supported
some of the largest concentrations of Native North Americans. The abundant natural resources of the
area made it attractive to European settlers as well. Though both Connecticut and New York State
(including Long Island) were almost entirely forested at the time of Verrazano's arrival in die 16th
century, growth in agriculture had resulted in widespread deforestation of the basin by the late 1700s.
By 1774, Connecticut was one of the most densely settled of any of the American colonies, with
much of its population living in the shore communities and relying on agriculture and coastal trade.
During the Industrial Revolution, the regional economy shifted away from agriculture to small
manufacturing and maritime trades. Factory towns sprouted along the shorelines of New York and
Connecticut, reflecting the reliance on water for transportation and commerce. The mid-nineteenth
and early-twentieth centuries saw both southwestern Connecticut coastal communities and Long Island
increasingly oriented towards New York City as the center of commerce. The arrival of railroads,
first on Long Island and then along die Connecticut coast, enhanced the ability of many Long Island
and Connecticut cities to flourish as industrial centers. It also began the transition to a new role for
many of them as suburbs of New York City.
The railroads both encouraged, and were encouraged by, the growth of tourism. Extensive resorts
were developed along both the Connecticut and Long Island shores of the Sound, as coastal towns and
Long Island Sound Study Page 3
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
villages became accessible to residents of New York City. The desire to enjoy the natural beauty and
recreational assets spurred the development of summer estates for the wealthy, particularly on the
northern shore of Long Island, and summer cottages and vacation houses for the middle class.
The post-World War II era brought dramatic changes to the region. The decades immediately
following the war were characterized by rapid increases in population and in suburbanization. The
urgent need for Inexpensive land, suitable for development, resulted in the conversion of agricultural
lands and the filling of wetlands for suburban housing. As agriculture diminished, forest regrowth
occurred, particularly in Connecticut, both within and apart from residential areas.
The present distribution of human population within the Long Island Sound basin is very uneven,
reflecting the distribution of manufacturing centers as they developed in the IBOOs and early 1900s.
Of the approximately 8.4 million people living in the basin, New York City, which makes up only
about 0.4% of the land area, has about 42% of the population, Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk
Counties, with 2.1% of the land area, contribute 8.3% of the population and Connecticut, with 33%
of the basin, has 37% of the population. Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts comprise the
remaining 12.7% of the population in the drainage basin. These numbers reflect the dramatic
increase in the density of people living in the watershed with proximity to the coastline.
The human population growth rate in the Connecticut and New York State portions of the Long Island
Sound basin has declined significantly in recent decades. Having rapidly expanded by 78% between
1940 and 1970. population growth has slowed to an increase of 1 % in the decades from 1970 to 1980
and 1980 to 1990. Future population growth is expected to be about 4.1% (300,000 people) between
1990 and 2010 and 6.4% (500,000 people) over the period from 1990 to 2030.
E. Water Quality
In the two decades since passage of the Clean Water Act, water quality protection programs have
resulted in measurable improvements in water quality. Major efforts in Connecticut and New York
State to control sewage treatment plant and industrial discharges have returned degraded waters to a
viable state. More recently, efforts to control stormwater and nonpoint source pollution have
increased. Despite the significant progress made in serving many water quality problems, much work
remains before all the waters of the Sound meet the goals of the Clean Water Act to "...restore and
maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters..." and be "fishable"
and "swimmable."
Estuaries, in particular, are threatened by the sheer number of people attracted to them. Almost half
of the present population of the United States now lives in coastal areas. Along Long Island Sound,
die density of people living within the watershed increases with proximity to the coastline. More man
60 public sewage treatment plants discharge more than one billion gallons per day of treated sewage
to the Sound. Runoff from urban, suburban, and agricultural areas and atmospheric deposition all
contribute pollutants to the Sound. The concentration of people and activity places demands upon the
Sound that threaten the health of the ecosystem. Hypoxia, or low dissolved oxygen, is fueled by the
delivery of excess nitrogen to the Sound, a pollutant not recognized as requiring control prior to the
LISS. Toxic substances, often harbored in sediments from historical discharges, still continue to exert
a negative effect upon aquatic life and their suitability as human food. These and other problems
require new approaches to protect and preserve Long Island Sound.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
II. The Long Island Sound Study
A. Background
In recognition of the threats facing the nation's estuaries, Congress appropriated funds in 1985 for the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to research, monitor, and assess the water quality of
Long Island Sound. With the Clean Water Act Amendments of 1987, Section 320 of the Act
officially established a "National Estuary Program." Long Island Sound was designated an "Estuary
of National Significance" upon the request of the States of Connecticut and New York and a
Management Conference for the Long Island Sound Study was convened in March 1988. The
Management Conference is a cooperative effort involving federal, state, interstate and local agencies,
universities, environmental groups, industry and the public.
The L1SS has been an effective institutional framework for developing the Comprehensive
Conservation and Management Plan. It consists of several committees, including the Policy
Committee, Management Committee, Citizens Advisory Committee, and Technical Advisory
Committee (Figure 2). The Policy Committee approves any action that represents a new policy
initiative such as managing nitrogen loadings to Long Island Sound. The Management Committee
gives the Study overall direction and determines annually how Long Island Sound Study funds will be
spent. Day to day management of the L1SS planning and research activities is carried out
cooperatively by staff coordinators from the EPA, the CTDEP and the NYSDEC. Much of the
research, assessment work, and public outreach activities have been conducted by university and state
staff and private contractors funded by federal and state LISS fijnds. Between 1985 and 1992, the
EPA has contributed approximately $11 million, the States of Connecticut and New York have
contributed approximately $2 million, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration'
(NOAA) has contributed approximately S3 million to the Study.
B. Goals Tor Long Island Sound
When the LISS was initiated, a strategy was developed to identify and investigate the most significant
water quality problems affecting Long Island Sound; to identify feasible solutions to remedy these
problems; and to incorporate those solutions into a management plan. Based on this strategy, the
goals of the Long Island Sound Study are:
1. Protect and improve the water quality of Long Island Sound and its coves and embayments
to ensure that a healthy and diverse marine community is maintained.
2. Ensure that health risks associated with human consumption of shellfish and finfish are
minimized.
3. Ensure that opportunities for water-dependent recreational activities are maximized.
4. Ensure that social and economic benefits associated with the use of the Sound are realized
to the fullest extent possible, consistent with social and economic costs.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
Policy Committee
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5. Preserve and enhance die physical, chemical, and biological integrity of die Sound and the
interdependence of its ecosystems.
6. Establish a water quality policy that supports both the health and habitats of the living
marine resources of the Sound and the active and passive recreational and commercial
activities of people.
Achieving these goals, in some cases, will require difficult social, institutional, and political choices.
Therefore, k is necessary to move beyond technology-based controls and manage the Sound as an
ecosystem to protect its living resources and their habitats.
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Long Island Sound Study
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
C. Priority Areas of Concern
In its initial planning phase, the LISS identified three priority water quality and habitat protection
problems in the Sound.
• low dissolved oxygen (hyppxia)
• toxic substance contamination
• the impact of water quality problems and habitat degradation and loss on the health of living
resources
The LISS also recognized the need for a strong program of public involvement and education.
Therefore, efforts to develop and implement public involvement and education activities were initiated
early in the Study.
During the summer of 1988, extensive beach closings resulted from wash-ups of medically-related
floatable debris and in some cases, microbial contamination. The high level of public attention and
concern and the large economic impact generated by these problems led the LISS to adopt two
additional water quality issues for study.
• pathogenic contamination
• floatable debris
Because the problems affecting the Sound can be related to the high density of people in the region,
the LISS added the need to examine the relationship between land use and water quality to the priority
list in 1991.
The LISS has focused on hypoxia as the highest priority, concentrating staff and financial resources to
understand and address this critical, costly, and complex issue. By 1990, enough progress had been
made to proceed with early implementation, as described in the Long Island Sound Study's Status
Report and Interim Actions for Hypoxia Management. The second phase of hypoxia management is
presented here in this Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan along with a management
strategy to address the problem over the long term.
As a consequence of focusing on hypoxia, the other priority issues, also complex, have received less
attention. While significant actions are proposed to address these other issues, such as contamination
from toxic substances and pathogens, the LISS recognizes that additional work is needed to fully
address them.
A brief summary of each priority area of concern follows. Each area is covered in greater detail
within Section III, Plan of Action.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
Hypoxia: Hypoxia is the technical term for low dissolved oxygen levels in the water. Just as humans
need oxygen in air to exist, the organisms that live in Long Island Sound need oxygen in the water.
Hypoxia occurs in Long Island Sound during the late summer (usually July through September) in the
bottom layer of water. A density gradient set up by differences in temperature and salinity prevents
mixing between the surface and bottom water. Since 1985, the LISS has documented recurrent,
seasonal hypoxia in the bottom waters of western Long Island Sound.
Hypoxia can affect fish and invertebrates in a variety of ways. Depending on the severity of the
hypoxia, the responses of organisms can range from reduced presence and growth to physiological
stress and mortality. In addition, hypoxia may increase chances of mortality indirectly because of
greater vulnerability to predation. Research conducted in Long Island Sound has demonstrated some
of these effects. For example, during the summer of 1987 when anoxia (or the absence of oxygen)
occurred, 23 fish kills involving a variety of species were documented in the western and central
basins of the Sound and adjoining embayments. Both the number of species and the number of fish
caught in fish trawl surveys decreased with decreasing dissolved oxygen concentrations. During most
summers far fewer fish were caught in the western ponton of the Sound, where hypoxia is more
severe, than in the central and eastern areas. This indicates that there is either an increase in
mortality related to low dissolved oxygen concentration or that many motile organisms moved out of
hypoxic areas. Laboratory work has demonstrated high rates of mortality among several bottom-
living Long Island Sound species when exposed to severe hypoxic conditions. These effects have
important consequences for the food web and community structure within Long Island Sound. Thus,
the occurrence of hypoxia in the waters of Long Island Sound results in the loss of valuable habitat
and impacts the health of its living resources.
Toxic Substance Contamination. The contamination of sediment and water with metals, pesticides,
and other toxic substances has the potential to cause significant damage to estuarine life in Long
Island Sound, both on an individual and population level. In high concentration, some chemicals are
lethal to living organisms. In lower doses, growth or reproduction may be affected. In general the
waters of Long Island Sound were not found to be acutely toxic. Exceptions occur in local areas west
of Throgs Neck and in some harbors, such as Black Rock Harbor, that are highly contaminated.
Long Island Sound sediments generally contain higher levels of contaminants than the water, and
concentrations of some metals and organic compounds are high enough to cause toxicity to sensitive
organisms. In one study, the sediments from three of thirteen locations tested were toxic to sensitive
organisms.
Organisms that come in contact with contaminated water or sediments may take up pollutants.
Another pathway for uptake of toxic substances is through the food web. An organism that eats many
small, contaminated prey may concentrate or bioaccumulate the toxic substances. Once in the
organism, contaminants can cause a variety of responses. These range from death in severe cases to
other responses, including reduced reproductive capacity, chromosomal abnormalities, and disruption
of growth and other physiological processes. The presence of toxic substances is causing some
impairment of the living resources of the Sound and the sources of these contaminants must be
effectively managed. Bioaccumulated toxic contaminants may also hinder the use of aquatic
organisms as a food source. The States of New York and Connecticut have issued consumption
advisories for a few Long Island Sound species because of toxic contamination.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
Pathogen Contamination: Pathogens are organisms that cause diseases. There are many different
types of pathogens in Long Island Sound, some that cause diseases in living resources and others that
are responsible for human illnesses. Some pathogens occur naturally in the Sound, but others,
including many of those that cause human illness, are present because of pollution with human
wastes.
While most of the pathogens affecting the Sound's aquatic life are unlike those that affect humans,
both types impact the ability of humans to use the resources of the Sound. The presence of organisms
that cause human disease can result in closures of shellfish beds and bathing beaches. Pathogens that
directly affect fish and shellfish reduce the numbers of harvestable individuals or make them
unappealing for human consumption. While these limitations upon resource use are of concern, few
outbreaks of diseases in humans have been documented because of effective management programs.
floatable Debris: Debris floating on the water or washed up along the shoreline and beaches can
impair the use and enjoyment of Long Island Sound, potentially with severe economic consequences.
It can also impact living resources, either through entanglement or by ingestion. The most serious
occurrence of floatable debris occurred during the summer of 1988. Concern was heightened by the
presence of medical debris, primarily syringes, among the general liner, although it was not related to
hospital waste disposal. While the occurrence of floatable debris in subsequent summers was not as
severe, floatable debris remains a concern. Ingestion of debris, primarily plastics, by estuarine
animals, can result in suffocation or starvation. While the effects of floatable debris on population
levels are not known, consequences may be particularly severe for rare and endangered species, such
as sea turtles, that visit the Sound.
Living Resources and their Habitats: Seafood production, fishing, and shellfishing for recreational
and commercial purposes, bird-watching, marine mammal observation, waterfowl hunting, collections
foi educational and scientific purposes, and marine research are all dependant upon a healthy
community of marine organisms. In addition, the aesthetic value of a healthy, unimpaired ecosystem
should not be overlooked. Protection of threatened and endangered species figure prominently in
these intrinsic values. Finally, the Sound may prove to be the source of future benefits and values as
yet unknown, providing pharmaceutical, biomedical, and industrial materials and substances. The
realization of these current and prospective values depends upon the maintenance of a properly-
functioning ecosystem, as free as possible from the threats of human intrusion and pollution.
The LISS has tried to understand how each priority pollution problem - hypoxia, contamination from
pathogens and toxic substances, and floatable debris - affects aquatic life. This information can then
be used to address each problem from an ecosystem perspective. The health of organisms is also
interconnected to the quality of the habitats that they depend on for food and shelter. Protection and
restoration of habitat is paramount to a properly-functioning ecosystem.
Public Involvement and Education: Public education and involvement are crucial to the successful
implementation of virtually every pan of the CCMP and the health of Long Island Sound. The public
needs to understand what the problems are and how they can be involved in the solution.
Recognizing this, the LISS has supported an active bi-state public involvement and education program
since 1987 to provide a balanced source of research-based information on the Sound with a regional
perspective. This information was brought to schools, local government, civic associations, garden
clubs, yatch clubs, and many other groups that have an interest in the management of Long Island
Sound. With the release of the CCMP, an expansion of ongoing state, federal, and nongovernmental
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
activities in public outreach will be requited with a priority focus on communicating the CCMP
Findings and actions.
Land Use: In September 1991, the LISS Policy Committee directed the Study to address land use
issues and to develop recommendations for action. To date, the LISS has agreed that a land
use/water quality strategy is needed to help guide and manage future development and re-development
in the Long Island Sound watershed. The basic elements of such a strategy have been identified.
During the past decade, public and private investment in urban environmental infrastructure such as
sewage treatment plants and the reclamation of derelict waterfront properties on the Sound and its
tributaries has been very limited. By contrast, the development of many commercial and residential
properties near the shore has degraded or directly infringed upon environmentally-sensitive and
significant areas. These include wetlands and river or stream hanks as well as vegetated open lands
in urban and suburban areas which can serve as pollution buffers or filters. Hie many local, state,
and federal agencies making decisions that affect the Sound's water quality often do not apply
consistent water quality management guidelines, nor do they always have access to appropriate
expertise when developing plans and reviewing projects.
D. Commitment to Act
As part of the formal designation ceremony of Long Island Sound into the National Estuary Program,
a pledge was signed by elected officials and representatives of the EPA, the CTDEP, and the
NYSDEC declared that:
Long Island Sound is an important natural resource that provides incomparable beauty and significant
recreational and commercial benefits;
The Sound's living resources, water quality, and aesthetic character have suffered from rapid
development and other human uses; and
Restoration and protection of the Sound's environmental quality require focused management by a
partnership of Federal, State and local governments, affected industries, academia, and the public.
We therefore pledge to support the goals of the Long Island Sound Management Conference and we
commit to restore and protect the environmental quality cflong Island Sound through the
implementation of the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan.
Reflecting mat pledge, the CCMP contains commitments by government agencies, wherever possible,
to take action. In some cases, where current staffing and funding are inadequate, recommendations
for future action are presented. As a result, this CCMP presents what can be done now and what the
priorities are for the future.
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III. Plan of Action
The specific action plan, representing steps to be taken to solve some of Long Island Sound's
problems, is organized into the following categories:
A. Public Involvement and Education
B. Water Quality Problems
1. Hypoxia
2. Toxic Substance Contamination
3. Pathogen Contamination
4. Floatable Debris
C. Living Resource Management and Habitat Protection
D. Land Use
E. Monitoring and Reporting
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A. Public Involvement and Education
Goal
Promote an undemanding and appreciation of Long Island Sound as a regional ecosystem
and a national treasure and instill a sense of stewardship for the Sound in all parts of the
community.
Background
Public education and involvement are crucial to the implementation of virtually every part of the
CCMP. The public needs to understand what the problems are, and how they can be involved in the
solution. Recognizing this, the LISS has supported an active bi-state public involvement and
education program since 1987 to provide a balanced source of research-based information on the
Sound with a regional perspective. This information was brought to schools, local government, civic
associations, garden clubs, yatch clubs and many other groups that have an interest in the
management of Long Island Sound. The LISS also has established a Citizens Advisory Committee
whose members provide advice directly to the LISS Committees.
With the release of the CCMP, an expansion of ongoing state, federal, and nongovernmental activities
in public outreach will be required with a focus on communicating the CCMP findings and actions.
Ultimately, a public that understands the Sound's water quality and related resource problems and
possible solutions can make informed choices about its protection.
Management Approach
Public understanding and support is an indispensable foundation for successful implementation of the
CCMP. To assist this effort, the Public Education and Involvement Program witl be continued and
housed within the EPA Long Island Sound Office. Similarly, Connecticut and Mew York State will
conduct educational outreach programs to complement the regulatory programs and policies the states
will use to implement the CCMP. The regulated community (e.g., municipalities, business and
industry) will also require specific information and training to be provided by the states.
Currently, all levels of government and many non-governmental organizations and individuals are
involved in a variety of educational activities that benefit the Sound. In addition to continuing the
LISS Public Education and Involvement Program and the state educational efforts, many
recommendations in this section seek to strengthen and improve the work of these non-govemraeniaf
organizations. These organizations will continue to play a vital role in distributing Long Island Sound
information and increasing the visibility of the LISS. Building upon these efforts is an efficient way
to maximize the use of scarce resources.
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Through public meetings and other outreach programs, the public will be encouraged to comment and
provide input on the CCMP throughout the decision-making and implementation processes. The LISS
Citizens Advisory Committee, with its diverse user and interest group membership representation,
will continue to be an important communication channel for public input.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
Objective: Build community awareness and stewardship of the Long Island Sound
ecosystem, its history, and its value to the region.
Actions to achieve this objective include:
• The continuing LISS Public Involvement and Education Program and state programs
will:
continue to develop printed and other educational materials for specific
audiences;
exhibit Long Island Sound materials at regional and local fairs and events;
encourage education and information on the Sound for urban populations;
promote the importance of the Sound's resources to children in the region and
highlight their responsibility as stewards of those resources for the future; and
use public educational material of non-profit organizations.
• The States of Connecticut and New York should continue to support research conferences
and public events on the Sound.
Examples of these activities include the conference held by the CTDEP to highlight the results
of its Long Island Sound Research Grant Program, and the bi-state Long Island Sound
research conference sponsored by local universities, Sea Grant programs, and the states. Also,
the use of "Coastweeks", a three week celebration of marine and coastal environments held
nationally, to promote the protection of the Sound, should be strengthened by the States of
Connecticut and New York to emphasize the CCMP recommendations.
Objective: Promote public and governmental understanding- of Long Island Sound issues,
problems, and solutions.
Actions to achieve this objective include:
• The EPA and the States of Connecticut and New York will build upon the current
outreach and education activities performed by the LISS Public Education and
Involvement Program with a new focus on interpretation and implementation of the
CCMP.
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• The States of Connecticut and New York will incorporate Long Island Sound information
into all related programs conducted by state staff where appropriate.
• The States of Connecticut and New York will assess opportunities for training the diverse
environmental decision-making community and provide technical information and
assistance on CCMP implementation to the regulated community.
• The EPA and the States of Connecticut and New York will pursue further development
of resource centers to serve as a clearinghouses and depositories for information about
the Sound. The EPA and the states will investigate ways to improve funding for these
centers.
The Long Island Sound Resource Center at Avery Point in Groton, Connecticut was
established as a clearinghouse and depository for all information on the Sound. It has an
extensive library and can be linked electronically with other centers. Current funding,
however, is not available. The EPA Long Island Sound Office in Stamford, Connecticut and
Stony Brook, New York has a depository of all LISS related reports and public outreach
material.
Objective: Facilitate public participation in the development of public policy for Long Island
Sound and in activities relating to its clean-up and protection.
Actions to achieve this objective include:
• The LISS will provide meaningful opportunities for public comment on the CCMP. A
series of public meetings will be held around the Sound and briefings will be held for
specific user groups, local officials, and elected representatives.
• The LISS Citizens Advisory Committee will continue to provide guidance to the
Management and Policy Committees and to serve as a link between the public and LISS
management agencies.
• The EPA and the States of Connecticut and New York will continue to encourage public
participation in activities relating to the clean-up and protection of the Sound and
provide support for those activities including stormdrain stencilling and beach clean up.
• The EPA and the States of Connecticut and New York will promote citizen involvement
in educational and monitoring activities in and around the Sound and will consider
taking the following actions:
provide technical guidance to citizen monitoring groups;
develop a reward system for citizens participating in Long Island Sound
protection and restoration programs;
develop environmental habitat kits and guide maps; and
produce and distribute videos of Long Island Sound research cruises.
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Objective: Increase communication and cooperation among the diverse groups involved in
Long Island Sound education and outreach.
Actions to achieve this objective include:
• The LISS will establish a steering committee to provide advice on the implementation or
the public involvement and education strategy. The committee should be composed of
representatives from governmental agencies and municipalities, school teachers and
marine educators, media personnel, and representatives from environmental
organizations. The committee will promote coordination of public outreach efforts
among representative member groups, provide advice on programs and funding, and
assess program effectiveness.
• The EPA and the States of Connecticut and New York will help coordinate ongoing
governmental and nongovernmental public outreach efforts.
• The EPA and the States of Connecticut and New York will encourage private and
nonprofit groups to continue to develop and implement Long Island Sound educational
and outreach programs.
Objective: Develop a long-term sense of environmental stewardship and understanding of
Long Island Sound by enhancing educational opportunities at all educational
levels.
Actions to achieve this objective include:
• The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to work with appropriate school
districts in their respective states to develop Long Island Sound educational materials
and outreach programs for primary and secondary schools and to make these resources
other environmental education programs.
• The LISS will support ongoing actions assisting teachers in their efforts to integrate
Long Island Sound issues into their existing curricula.
Examples include:
the provision of educational materials prepared by the states, Sea Grant Programs, and
non-profit organizations to teachers for incorporation into their school programs.
grants from the CTDEP allowing a variety of high schools to conduct science
classroom studies on the Sound.
teacher conferences held by the Connecticut Sea Grant Program to exchange existing
curriculum ideas, and to provide materials and ideas for teachers to use to teach about
the Sound.
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• The State of Connecticut's Long Island Sound Research Grant Program, initiated in
1990, should be continued. A similar program will be considered by the State of New
York to provide resources to encourage research on Long Island Sound and its
watershed.
• The LISS will encourage natural history museums and nature centers to promote Long
Island Sound issues within their programs.
Objective: Secure funding to achieve each of these objectives.
A strong private, federal, and state partnership will be required to provide the financing necessary to
implement these public involvement and education efforts. Federal and state funds should also be
allocated when and where possible.
Actions to achieve this objective include :
• The LISS will seek to create a public involvement and education fund (or P.I.E. Fund)
that would make use of private and other funding sources to support public education
and outreach activities.
The EPA will attempt to secure seed money to help establish the fund.
The LISS will seek to identify public and private sector sponsors who will provide
matching funds.
The LISS through the steering committee will establish criteria for projects eligible to
receive funding.
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B. Water Quality Problems
B-l. Hypoxia
Goal
Increase dissolved oxygen levels in Long Island Sound to eliminate adverse impacts of
hypoxia resulting from human activities.
Background
Over the last seven years, the LISS has been investigating the most serious water quality problems
that impact Long Island Sound and ways that they might be managed. The study of depressed
dissolved oxygen levels that occur in the bottom waters of the Sound during the summer, a condition
called hypoxia, has been the focus of LISS efforts. Hypoxia is of serious concern because of its
negative effects on the aquatic life of Long Island Sound. Hypoxia can affect fish and invertebrates in
a variety of ways. Depending on the severity of the hypoxia, the responses of organisms can range
from reduced presence and growth to physiological stress and mortality. In addition, hypoxia may
indirectly increase mortality because of greater vulnerability to predation.
Long Island Sound is particularly susceptible to dissolved oxygen depletion because its waters stratify
during the summer. Warmer, less saline waters float on top of cooler, saltier waters. Mixing
between the two layers is minimal and the stratification effectively seals off the bottom waters of the
Sound precluding re-oxygenation from the atmosphere or surface layer. The dissolved oxygen
problem occurs primarily within the bottom layer both because of this physical stratification and
because organic matter sinks to the bottom where it decays, using up available oxygen.
Monitoring that began in 1986 identified the Western Narrows of the Sound as the site of the lowest
dissolved oxygen levels each summer. There, the dissolved oxygen concentration in the bottom
waters fell below 2 mg/l each year for extended periods of time, well below the level protective of
aquatic life. In 1987, the dissolved oxygen level in the Western Narrows was 0 mg/l, a condition
called anoxia, the absence of oxygen.
While the summer of 1987 was notable in terms of the dissolved oxygen minimum, the late summer
of 1989 impacted the largest area observed to date. That summer, 63% of the Sound's bottom
experienced dissolved oxygen concentrations less than 5 mg/l and 40% of the bottom area was less
than 3 mg/l (Figure 3). Although the historical database for dissolved oxygen levels in Long Island
Sound is sparse, available data suggest that minimum dissolved oxygen concentrations today are lower
than in the past and the area affected has increased in size over the years. Monitoring data collected
by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP) show dissolved oxygen
levels below 3 mg/l as early as the 1920s. However, these samples were taken only in the far
western Sound, just east of Throgs Neck. While it is possible that hypoxia in the Western Basin of
the Sound may have had earlier origins, its observation east of the Throgs Neck Bridge was not
reported in the few pre-1970s surveys that were undertaken.
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Long Island Sound
Arris ol Lot Dissolved Oxyjfn
1989
3. Minimum dissolved oxygen levels in the bottom layer of water in 1989.
These observations led LISS participants to focus on hypoxia as die most serious unaddressed problem
impacting Long Island Sound. In response, the LISS has invested most of its funding and efforts to
identify both the causes of hypoxia and ways that it can be managed.
Key Findings
The LISS has relied heavily on computer modeling of the Sound to sort out the complex interaction
of natural ecological functions and human activities. Two models, a water quality model that
approximates the biological and chemical processes of the Sound and a hydrodynamic model that
describes physical processes, are being developed. When completed, the models will be coupled into
a complex model called US 3.0, providing an effective management tool. Pending completion of the
LIS 3.0 model, a model that uses simpler hydrodynamics has been employed, called the LIS 2.0
model. The LIS 2.0 model has provided needed insight into the causes of hypoxia and has allowed
managers to test hypothetical management scenarios. The LIS 2.0 model and other studies have
identified nitrogen, a plant nutrient, as the primary cause of hypoxia in the Sound.
Nutrients, including nitrogen, are necessary for the growth and survival of plants including the algae
that grow in the Sound. Nitrogen enters the Sound from natural sources and plants that form the
base of the food web would not grow at all without it and other key ingredients, leaving the Sound's
environment barren. However, too much nitrogen allows phytoplankton, the unicellular algae mat
dominate plant life in the Sound, to grow in excess of natural productivity levels. When algae die,
they sink to the bottom and decay. Because there are more decaying algae than were naturally
produced when nitrogen inputs were smaller, a correspondingly larger amount of oxygen is used up in
the decay process.
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Table 1 . Estimates of the total nitrogen load delivered to Long Island Sound
from point sources and natural and enriched nonpoint sources in
tons per year and as a percent of the total load (in parentheses),
ca. 1989.
Tons/yr
Nonpoint
Sources
STP's & Industry
Tributaries
Coastal Runoff &
CSOs
Atmosphere
Boundaries
TOTAL
Point
25,700(28)
3,900(4)
*»
-
—
29,600(33)
Natural
~
11.600(13)
800(1)
4,600(5)
22.900(25)
39,900(44)
Enriched
-
4,900(5!
3.500I4I
2,200(2)
10,700'{12)
21.300*123)
Total
25.700(28)
20,400(22)
4.300(5)
6,800(7)
33.600(37)
90.8001100)
• Enrichment crossing the boundaries (the Battery and The Race) originates
from a combination of point and nonpoint sources.
Human activities, such as discharges from sewage treatment plants and nonpoint source runoff, are
responsible for the increased amount of nitrogen entering the Sound. Of the total annual nitrogen
load to the Sound, an estimated 56% is generated by human activities; the remainder is from natural,
or non-human, sources (Table 1). Since pre-Colonial times, the total nitrogen load to the Sound is
estimated to have more than doubled.
Of the nitrogen load attributed to human activity, the coastal point sources, mostly sewage treatment
plants, account for an estimated 50.5% of the enriched nitrogen load (Figure 4). Point sources
discharging to the tributaries account for another 7.7% of the enriched load. The combined load of
nitrogen entering the Sound through The Race and from die East River at the Battery, which
originates from both point and nonpoint sources beyond the Sound's boundaries, contributes an
estimated 21.0%, the nonpoint load from the tributaries and immediate coastal areas accounts for an
estimated 16.5%, and atmospheric deposition directly on the Sound's surface makes up another 4.3%
of die total enriched load.
The historical increase in nitrogen loading has affected dissolved oxygen concentrations in die Sound.
In terms of dissolved oxygen levels, modeling has suggested that during pre-Colonial times minimum
dissolved oxygen levels were above 5 mg/1 in die bottom waters during die critical late summer
period. By contrast, in model simulations of 1988-89 conditions, a two-week average dissolved
oxygen level in bottom waters of the Western Narrows was 1.5 mg/1. Furthermore, if nitrogen loads
are allowed to increase, die duration, extent, and severity of hypoxia will increase.
Long Island Sound Study
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NITROGEN ENRICHMENT BY SOURCE
(Tons/Year)
25700 50%
3000 8%
EiCoMtal Point
ETubulary Point
D Tributary Non point
SCo««UI
(D Boundary
10700 21%
4900 10%
S800 7% 2200 4%
Figure 4. Distribution of the human-enriched load of nitrogen among several source
categories.
Management Approach
Despite die fast-developing understanding of hypoxia in Long Island Sound, detailed modeling that
will permit comprehensive planning is not yet complete. Hence, the LISS has adopted a management
approach that adapts management actions to the level of understanding of the problem. While the
goal for nitrogen management remains constant, strategies to reach the goal must be re-evaluated as
new scientific and technical information becomes available. Management will proceed in phases, each
phase incorporating new information and applying At lessons gained from the previous one.
A. Set a Goal for Improving Dissolved Oxygen Levels
The first step in the management plan for hypoxia is to establish a goal for improving dissolved
oxygen levels. As described above, the LISS has established a goal to:
• Increase dissolved oxygen levels in Long Island Sound to eliminate adverse impacts of
hypoxia resulting from human activities.
This goal will not be achieved in the short-term; rather it represents what management efforts should
strive for. In the interim, however, steps can be taken to minimize advene effects of hypoxia on the
resources of Long Island Sound. To help establish priorities for action, interim dissolved oxygen
targets have been developed that represent the best scientific information available on oxygen levels
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believed to minimize adverse impacts on living resources of the Sound (See Box on Interim
Targets). While these interim targets are based upon scientifically-defensible data available to date,
continued study of the Sound's complex ecosystem and species response to dissolved oxygen levels
will provide a better understanding of the levels that fully protect aquatic life. As the information
base grows, the interim targets will be reviewed and revised as appropriate.
These interim targets in no way compromise the LISS ultimate goal to 'eliminate adverse impacts of
hypoxia," but, rather, represent a significant step towards achieving this goal and provide a
mechanism for measuring progress towards the goal. The interim targets will be used in conjunction
with the LIS 3.0 water quality and hydrodynamic model to evaluate management strategies for
increasing dissolved oxygen levels. Attainment of the interim targets will result in significant
increases in dissolved oxygen levels, thereby increasing the total usable habitat available to aquatic
life.
Over the long term, the goal must continue to be the elimination of adverse impacts resulting from
human activities. To assist in defining dissolved oxygen levels that are^W/y protective of aquatic life
in the Sound, the EPA is developing regional dissolved oxygen criteria for marine waters. Presently,
the state standards are 5 mg/l in New York and 5 to 6 mg/l in Connecticut depending on water
quality classifications.
B. Long-Term Strategy to Achieve the Goal
The long-term strategy is guided by the following principles: 1) prevent degradation of areas of the
Sound that currently have good water quality; 2) where there are problems, invest resources where
they will yield the greatest improvements in ecosystem health; and 3) focus on areas of agreement to
proceed with implementation. In keeping with these principles, a series of management phases have
been defined, each with a specific objective.
Phase One Objective: Ensure that the problem does not get worse by implementing a "no
net increase" policy for controlling nitrogen discharges.
Phase Two Objective: Begin the process of reducing nitrogen discharges.
Phase Three Objective: Achieve the long-term goal for dissolved oxygen through additional
nitrogen reductions from discharges to the Sound and from sources outside of the Sound, and
through alternatives to nitrogen management that improve dissolved oxygen levels.
C. Continued Planning, Monitoring, and Assessment
The identified goal and strategy are only as good as the scientific and technical information upon
which they are based. The LISS management approach requires that both the objectives and the
strategy remain flexible to incorporate new information. Hence, specific commitments to this
approach require: 1) a continuing program of monitoring and modeling as tools to improve the
understanding of the physical and biological factors contributing to hypoxia; and 2) coordination with
other planning programs and management efforts at all governmental levels.
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INTERIM TARGETS FOR DISSOLVED OXYGEN IN LONG ISLAND SOUND
One of the goals of the LISS is to improve dissolved oxygen levels in Long Island Sound to eliminate
advene biological impacts of hypoxia which have resulted from human activities. These numerical targets
identify levels to nunmtxe most adverse impacts in the short term1. The targets an provided to assist the
US5m fee ofertaDmenl of an effective byooxia They are based on
hypo w^ffects information available at present and are subject to revision. Some dissolved oxygen
tv&w*yrt\»n^ytctoevabkiapottioiuofLaaels^Soaad. Specifically, the recommended
interim in gets lor dissolved oxygen an:
• Below fee pycaocline1:
1. Fox each area1-4, with a dissolved oxygen nunimmn* of 5 ing/lam) above (1988-1989
baseline) - maintain or enhance current levels.
2. Fraeacham wim a dissolved oxygen nmumurn of 3.5 mg/1 and nbovc > acbieve a four-
day average* of 5 mgfl.
3. For each area with a dissolved oxygen minimum bekw 3.5 mgA- achieve attest a
fair-day avenge of 3.5 mg/1 to mrnimue suMethal effects while also assuring that die
dissolved oxygen conaentntton sever feUs below 1.5 mg/1 to prevent lethal effects.
• Above the pycnodine or in non-stratified waters:
L For each ana with a dissolved oxygen nr'"'"]™^ of S mg/1 sad above - maintain or
2. For each area with a dissolved oxygen minimum of 5 mg/l or below* achieve at least a
four-day Average of 5 mg/1 to protect from cabletbal effects and a nrininmm at any time
to protect egg* and larvae from acutely lethal conditions. These minima are:
a. 4,0 mg/1 in June and July to minimize effects on lobster larvae in the
Sound
b. 3.0 mg/1 in August is the Sound and during all months in emhsyments
to miqiqniift effecU on other cmsttcean larvae.
1 If other reHareh demmAnte* that higher average dissolved osygen leveb *re required, then the« twgeta
KbnidbeRviMdto reBeei tkttpouibility. The option of "doing wan* ouut be icterved.
iA PyCHOCllPC IB wK1 ^CftWlSf BElAKflC 80l BD vf wtfffFCttFUS ttt tCtDpCPBftttV ttlO ttUlfUMF OCOtfQCO UH* SUfVOC
and bottooi kyers. to late iuttuMt,ltewuen of Long bluut Sound itntiiy. forming • ^pycttoelue"
bclwemw«liner,Ieis«t1rysadacewatBnJUK>cooteT,a)tkrbattim TbepycnocKncMaveawa
baniafv pmvcia'ing MjigflniBYf sur&oc mtm ntxn atflriag wn dccpfr, liypuuo wttcn.
* Pui lianrliii terfdi. aaeh of the above eoaB b» defined for «cal eaeat («.g.t HUMC Bufa of V diuolved
AIM b defined as the tpatfat exteat within a oaatoar «u OJF mgA ineranenli).
Mnotnatf aqqfeo wmmum n (be lowot oonDenMtion of diuolwd oxygeB k u am ct uy time.
Th%«en|fe ditwrved oaygeD conoeattaiion should be calculated u owing avenge*, using true daily
Any (fiwolved oxygen observation exceeding the MlurtUon
H to be recorded u the tatuntian cooccntntkm w there it OB bJotegicil evtdcnoe of
addinonal benefit of BBpeculimtion. The USS hu decided to adopt an avenging period of bur dtyi.
jiianmtanttD reduce tfie protwbifty of prabngeifexpiuura to new mhrimum diMohrad oxygen oowfejon*.
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D. Refine Objectives and Strategies
A formal process will exist to incorporate new information and apply the lessons learned from
implementation through continuation of the LISS. As part of a long-term program for the Sound, the
LISS must monitor progress toward the goal and assess whether management efforts need to be
redirected.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
Three phases of implementation to manage hypoxia were introduced earlier as an approach to adapt
management actions to the prevailing level of understanding. This approach allows implementation to
be phased in at appropriate intervals rather than delaying all actions until final plan preparation. The
value of this approach has been demonstrated by the issuance of the Status Report and Interim Actions
for Hypoxia Management that began the implementation process and achieved positive results prior to
the completion of research and characterization studies. It should be clear that although three
implementation phases are identified, many of the specific actions have overlapping time frames for
implementation. It is not planned to have all tasks or commitments under Phase Two completed
before any of the actions or tasks of Phase Three begin. It is the intention of the LISS to implement
all feasible actions as expeditiously as possible as long as the actions are consistent with identified
management needs.
Phase One Actions
Phase One began with adoption of the "no net increase" policy for nitrogen and other actions detailed
in the Status Report and Interim Actions for Hypoxia Management issued in December, 1990, and
subsequent agreements to ensure that the load of nitrogen to Long Island Sound would not increase.
Progress towards meeting the Phase One objective has been excellent with most of the commitments
of the Status Report underway. Central to the control activities were the point source actions, which
are holding nitrogen loads from critical point source dischargers (Table 2) at 1990 levels. Other
actions underway include planning and investigation activities to improve understanding of the sources
and fate of nitrogen and to determine the suitability of alternative approaches to management.
Major accomplishments from prior agreements of the LISS include:
• Baseline 1990 loads from critical point source dischargers (Table 2) have been published and
permits are being modified to cap loads at 1990 levels. In implementing this "no net
increase" policy, the States of Connecticut and New York are committed to working with
local governments to ensure planned economic development can continue while also protecting
Long Island Sound.
• Biological nutrient removal (BNR) retrofitting was evaluated at 13 Connecticut sewage
treatment plants and $15 million of implementation funds were made available for retrofit
projects. Stamford has voluntarily implemented retrofits to remove about 50% of their
influent nitrogen and Norwalk is achieving 30-40% nitrogen removal from a retrofit project.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
Table 2. Dischargers included in the 1990 baseline nitrogen load.
Connecticut Municipal Facilities New York Municipal Facilities
Greenwich Belgrave
Stamford Glen Cove
NorwaNc Great Neck
Westport Great Neck East Shore
Fairlield HunlingtM
Bridgeport West Wards Island
Bridgeport East Bowery Bay
Stratford Hunts Point
Mirford Beaver Brook Taflman (stand
Mifford Housatonic Oystei Bay
West Haven Port Washington
New Haven East Shore King's Park
Branford SUNY. Stony Brook
Ridgefield New Rochelle
New Canaan Mamaroneck
Seymour Blind Brook
Port Chester
Port Jefferson
Newtown Creek
Red Hook
• New York City is continuing its voluntary BNR project at Tallman Island and will expand it
to full facility flow in 1994. Retrofits are being studied at Hunts Point and Red Hook in New
York City, and Blind Brook in Westchester County. Up to $3 million is available to assist
with BNR retrofits under the Innovative and Alternative Program of the New York State
Revolving Loan Program.
• Sewage treatment plants undergoing expansion or reconstruction have incorporated plans for
nitrogen removal. Sewage treatment plants that are evaluating denitrification include Wards
Island and Newtown Creek in New York City; all four treatment plants in Westchester
County; and, in Connecticut, the Seymour, Norwalk, Greenwich, New Canaan, Ridgefield,
Danbury, Montville, Naugatuck, Thomaston, Torrington, Waterbury, and Watertown sewage
treatment plants.
• The L1SS has prepared a "no net increase' strategy for controlling nitrogen from nonppint
sources. Many of be ued& arelidng worked into state nonpoLiit pollution control initiatives
including general stormwater permits in both states, a nonpoint pollutant load assessment and
management program for Westchester County, a riparian nitrogen removal study in
Connecticut, and other demonstration and research projects funded by state and federal
sources.
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• The LISS has identified high priority subregional basins where nitrogen loads from nonpoint
sources are likely to be high. These high priority basins are recommended for initial planning
attention to determine the need and approach for nitrogen control activities. High priority
basins generally correlate to high levels of development. All of the portions of Westchester,
Suffolk, and Nassau Counties and New York City that lie within the Long Island Sound
drainage area, and densely-populated portions of Fairfield and New Haven Counties are,
therefore, identified as high priority basins for nonpoint management (Figure 5).
• An alternative technologies workshop was held to explore alternative approaches to hypoxia
management. Technologies identified as having the best potential for reducing hypoxia were:
1) relocation of outfalls from selected sewage treatment plants; 2) tide gates on the East River
to alter hydrology; 3) construction of wetlands to remove nitrogen from wastewaters; and 4)
water conservation to improve sewage treatment. Other technologies that were examined
include modifying the morphology of the Long Island Sound basin to influence circulation and
mixing and aquaculture of seaweeds to remove excess nutrients. All evaluations included
recommendations for further evaluation or additional modeling to fully assess feasibility in
Long Island Sound.
• Monitoring of ambient nitrogen conditions and sources has continued including regular
monitoring of Long Island Sound and its tributaries and stepped-up monitoring of key point
source dischargers.
Phase Two Actions
Specific implementation actions center around four initiatives:
a) Implement cost-effective point source control actions that will reduce the load of
nitrogen from that source.
b) Continue to implement and develop actions to freeze and begin to reduce nitrogen
from nonpoint sources.
c) Estimate baseline nitrogen loads from the twelve management zones established
around the Sound and begin or expand monitoring to track annual loads in those zones
(Figure 6).
d) Complete the LIS 3.0 model and continue development of the New York/New Jersey
Harbor/New York Bight/Long Island Sound systemwide eutrophication model.
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Hgura 5. High priority basins for management of nonpoint source nitrogen.
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Figure 6. Management zones established for nitrogen control.
Long Island Sound Study
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
A. Point Source Actions
In the Status Report, the states committed to undertaking engineering evaluations of high priority
sewage treatment plants for potential retrofitting to remove nitrogen. These evaluations have
identified cost-effective reductions that can be achieved over the short term and, in most cases,
funding sources have been identified that will allow the sewage treatment plants to be retrofitted in the
next year or two. In addition, evaluations of plants beyond those specifically required in the Status
Report were conducted including several Suffolk and Nassau County plants, the Newtown Creek and
Red Hook plants in New York City, and several Connecticut plants planning expansions or upgrades.
Included here are short-term actions that achieve interim nitrogen load reductions while L1S 3.0
modeling and planning are completed. These load reductions may be eroded by increases in flow
resulting from growth in the service area of sewage treatment plants. However, it is anticipated that
Phase Three reduction levels will be established and additional management actions taken prior to any
increase in nitrogen load that approaches the 1990 baseline. There are other actions that are more
long-term, however. These actions include activities such as reconstruction of treatment plants to
include denitrification (e.g., Norwalk sewage treatment plant upgrade) or treatment of"centrale" (the
wastewater generated when sludge is dewatered) at the New York City sewage treatment plants. The
centrate, rich in nitrogen, was added to the wastestream when offshore sewage sludge dumping was
discontinued in June 1992 under the Ocean Dumping Ban Act. This action resulted in an increase in
point source nitrogen above the 1990 baseline load. However, side treatment of the centrate will
result in a total nitrogen load below the actual 1990 baseline.
Objective: Achieve a secondary level of treatment at all sewage treatment plants discharging
to the Sound or its tributaries and implement feasible BNR retrofit options
identified during Phase One planning to begin to reduce the load of nitrogen.
Specific actions to address this objective include:
• The State of New York will ensure that all sewage treatment plants discharging to the
Sound or its tributaries provide, at a minimum, secondary treatment.
Benefit: Poorly-treated sewage adds a carbon load to Long Island Sound that, during decay,
consumes oxygen. Secondary level treatment plants remove much of that carbon
resulting in higher oxygen levels.
All Connecticut sewage treatment plants are at a secondary level of treatment. In New York,
there are two facilities currently not at a secondary level of treatment.
• A consent order is currently being renegotiated for upgrading the Newtown Creek
sewage treatment plant which is operating at less than a full secondary level of
treatment.
• The Mamaroneck sewage treatment plant is currently a primary treatment plant but
is scheduled to complete its upgrade to full secondary treatment by the spring of 1993.
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• The municipalities in the States of Connecticut and New York will implement BNR
retrofits to reduce (he load of nitrogen to Long Island Sound on an interim basis.
Benefit: The LISS has identified nitrogen control as the key to managing hypoxia. Reductions
in nitrogen discharges will increase dissolved oxygen levels and the area of habitat
suitable for aquatic life.
Connecticut
Connecticut will: 1) temporarily retrofit key municipal sewage treatment plants to substantially
reduce their nitrogen loads; 2) continue long-term planning in the design and construction of
sewage treatment plants that assures nitrogen control technology can be added later at a
reasonable cost; and 3) reconstruct sewage treatment plants for nitrogen removal where
feasible or necessary to protect nearshore waters. Specific activities at individual sewage
treatment plants include:
• The Town of Seymour has constructed a sewage treatment plant designed to remove
nitrogen to 8-10 mg/l. The plant is fully operational at this time and will be
optimized through a special planning study to maximize nitrogen removal. Total
nitrogen removed from the pre-construction load is 36.5 tons/yr.
• The City of Norwalk has voluntarily retrofitted their sewage treatment plant and is
removing approximately 36 tons/yr of total nitrogen from the 1990 baseline load.
The city has agreed to a phased construction project to protect Norwalk Harbor that
will further reduce the total nitrogen load by achieving 5 mg/l total nitrogen in the
final effluent. This will decrease the total nitrogen load by another 114 tons/yr when
completed in about 1998.
• The state and 12 municipalities will continue the retrofit initiative started in early
1992 (Table 3). In compliance with consent orders, 13 retrofit feasibility studies have
been submitted for approval and are under review by the CTOEP. The CTDEP will
work with the municipalities to retrofit these plants and optimize their operation
during 1993.
New York
New York City
Implementation of the land-based disposal of sewage sludge required by the Ocean Dumping
Ban Act has resulted in a significant increase in nitrogen loading to New York City sewage
treatment plants along the upper East River. New York City has agreed to implement actions
to mitigate the impact of the land-based disposal plan.
• The NYCDEP has made process modifications to increase the sludge age at the
Wards Island, Bowery Bay, Red Hook, Tallman Island, and Hunts Point sewage
treatment plants.
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Table 3. Nitrogen reductions from retrofits at Connecticut sewage treatment plants to be
installed in 1993. unless otherwise noted. The load of nitrogen removed is 9
target figure based on the studies submitted by the municipalities. The
projected load reductions will be accomplished using existing sewage treatment
plants, recognizing that as flows increase over time the benefits of retrofitting
will gradually be offset. However, at no time will the aggregate load of the 16
sewage treatment plants included in the no net increase policy (Table 2) exceed
the 1990 baseline.
Town
Greenwich
Stamford
West Haven
Stratford
Milford Housatonic
Norwalk (1992)
Norwalk (1998)
Fairfield
Branford
New Haven
Milford Beaver Br.
Westport
Seymour
fifcffletteW
Total
Action
Synthetic media
Aeration/mixers
Anoxic lanes
Anoxic zones
Aeration/mixers
Aeration/mixers
Pull
Denazification
Aeration/synthetic
madia
Aerated Biofilter
Aeration/baffles
Aeration/pumps/
mixer
Cyclic/pumps
Full
Denhrification
Total Nitrogen Percent of
Removed 1990 baseline
(tons/yr) removed
25
94
122
83
71
36
114
97
51
113
25
20
37
(Nitrification planned, will investigate
888
10
28
60
42
43
13
43
42
47
17
S3
73
60
denhrificatlon
27
Cost
$325.000.
994.400.
746,000.
1,026.200.
650.000.
1,099.000.
—
2,595.500.
2.000.000.
3,735,200.
637.000.
400.000.
—•
potential)
$14.208.300.
• The NYCDEP will make process modifications to retrofit the Tollman Island, Red
Hook, and Hunts Point sewage treatment plants for BNR. These actions are expected
to result in removal of about 30 to 50% of the nitrogen load at each treatment plant.
The BNR demonstration project at Tallman Island has continued through
1992. Process modifications to retrofit the Tallman Island sewage treatment
plant will be expanded to full facility flow in 1994.
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The NYCDEP will retrofit the Hunts Point treatment plant for BNR in 1994.
The NYCDEP will retrofit the Red Hook treatment plant for BNR in 1995.
Total nitrogen removed from these two sets of actions will be 3,170 tons/yr.
The NYCDEP will take additional steps to achieve reductions in nitrogen loadings below the
1990 baseline.
• The NYCDEP will perform a pilot demonstration project of side stream treatment
of the centrate resulting from sludge dewatering to remove nitrogen. Based upon a
successful pilot project, the NYCDEP will seek budget approval to fully implement a
sludge centrate treatment facility by the year 2000 at either the Hunts Point or Wards
Island sewage treatment plant. It is estimated that 1,660 tons/yr of nitrogen will be
removed.
• The NYCDEP will conduct feasibility studies for nitrogen removal at 13 of its 14
sewage treatment plants, with actual design for Newtown Creek.
• The NYCDEP will design the Newtown Creek plant to include step denitrification,
which would remove about the same amount of nitrogen as the Tallman Island
retrofit. Nitrogen removal would begin upon completing the reconstruction of the
plant by the year 2006 and would remove approximately 1,715 tons/yr.
Westchester County
• Westchester County will demonstrate BNR retrofit technology to remove nitrogen at
its Blind Brook sewage treatment plant with support from an EPA Action Plan
Demonstration Project grant. The NYSDEC will work with Westchester County on
full scale implementation of the BNR retrofit. Total nitrogen removed could be 16
tons/yr.
• The NYSDEC will encourage Westchester County to investigate sludge rehandling
at various facilities to determine if opportunities exist for nitrogen load reduction.
Nassau County
• The NYSDEC will encourage a BNR retrofit at the Glen Cove sewage treatment
plant. Total nitrogen removed will be 60 tons/yr.
Suffolk County
• The NYSDEC will encourage a BNR retrofit at the King's Park sewage treatment
plant. Total nitrogen removed will be 10 tons/yr.
In total, New York State sewage treatment plant retrofits will result in the removal of an
estimated 6,708 tons per year of nitrogen from the wastestream (Table 4).
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Table 4. Nitrogen reductions from retrofits and other actions at New York sewage
treatment plants. AH retrofits will be completed by 1995. Installation of step
denitrification at Newtown Creek and centrate treatment will not be
implemented until after 1995,
Facility
Hunts Point
Tallman Island
Bowery Bay
Wards Island
Red Hook
Newtown Creek
Hunts Point or
Wards Island
Mamaroneck
(1993)
Blind Brook
Glen Cove
King's Park
Total
Action
BNR/Sludge Age
BNR/Sludge Age
Sludge Age
Sludge Age
BNR/Sludge Age
Step Denitrification
Centrate Treatment
Secondary
Treatment
BNR
BNR
BNR
Total Percent of
Nitrogen 1990 Baseline
Removed Removed
(tons/yr)
1,330
1,005
400
255
180
1,715
1.660
77
16
60
10
6,708
1 Not applicable because these facilities are not included
2 Designed into a $1.5 billion upgrade and expansion of
3 Part of the secondary treatment upgrade.
47
58
10
6
n/a1
n/a
n/a
20
26
37
41
n/a
in the 1990 baseline
existing facility.
Cost
$2.000.000
2,000.000
Opetational
Operational
2,000,000
...3
94.000,000
3
200.000
100.000
100,000
$98,400.000
load report.
The above commitments by the States of Connecticut and New York will ensure "no net increase"
policies established for priority point sources will be maintained and that some reductions will be
achieved over the short-term (Figure 7), A 1990 baseline load of 26,571 tons of nitrogen per year
for key coastline treatment plants has been published. The 1992-1995 load reduction includes all
activities listed on Tables 3 and 4 except step reduction at the Newtown Creek plant and centrate
treatment. The post-1995 additional reductions are those achieved from the Newtown Creek and
centrate actions listed in Table 4 plus the reduction to be achieved at the Norwalk, Connecticut,
sewage treatment plant as identified above. While these reductions are significant steps towards
improving the dissolved oxygen condition of Long Island Sound, removing an estimated 14% of the
reported 1992 nitrogen load by 1995 and about 25% in the post-1995 period (nearly 18% below the
1990 baseline), they will not achieve the interim dissolved oxygen target conditions identified earlier.
Also, estimates did not include a growth factor because growth over the next few years is expected to
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Point Source Nitrogen Loads
(Tons/yr)
1990
baseline
load
1992
1992-1995
Post 1995
Figure 7. Nitrogen loads upon implementation of Phase Two point source retrofit actions and
assuming no growth as compared to the 1990 baseline load for priority treatment plants (Table
2).
be minimal and not likely to increase sewage treatment plant discharges. Nevertheless, to ensure
growth does not negate die benefits of nitrogen reductions achieved over the short term, planning and
Phase Three implementation must occur expeditiously.
• The State of Connecticut will freeze nitrogen discharges and, if appropriate, explore
opportunities to reduce nitrogen discharges at three industrial facilities with significant
nitrogen discharges.
Benefit: These three facilities are the largest industrial sources of nitrogen in the state.
Continuing management attention to control their nitrogen loads will ensure that their
contribution to hypoxia does not grow.
The State of Connecticut will freeze the nitrogen discharges of the three industrial facilities
with significant discharges of nitrogen to the Sound or its near-coastal tributaries: American
Cyanamid, Upjohn-Fine and Pfizer.
A list of short-term sewage treatment infrastructure needs for the States of Connecticut and New York
is provided in Appendix B,
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B. Nonpoinl Source Actions
Nonpoint loads of nitrogen will continue to receive management attention through existing regulatory
and nonregulatory structures in the States of Connecticut and New York. The diffuse nature of
nonpoint sources makes it difficult to quantify and monitor the nitrogen load and, hence, the value of
nonpoint best management practices is not easily quantified. Despite the uncertainty, the states and
the EPA have committed to take several actions specific to control of nitrogen from nonpoint sources.
Related needs to establish a baseline and continue monitoring also are presented in the next section.
Although the intent of these actions and program enhancements is to at least freeze the nonpoint
source load of nitrogen, the inability to accurately monitor precludes documentation of benefits. Cost
estimates will be generated when more detailed nonpoint source planning is completed.
Objective: Implement strategies and actions aimed toward achieving no net increase of
nitrogen toads from nonpoint sources and to begin reducing them.
Benefit: Nonpoint source loads of nitrogen will continue to increase where development takes
place if effective management measures are not taken. Several existing programs
address nonpoint source management and provide a regulatory structure in which to
incorporate LISS recommendations for nitrogen control. Preventing nonpoint
increases is the Phase Two objective, but management activities will not be limited to
a freeze if practical and affordable actions can be implemented that would result in
reducing nitrogen loads from nonpoint sources. Reduced nitrogen loads will result in
improved dissolved oxygen and habitat conditions in Long Island Sound.
Specific commitments to address this objective include:
• The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to use their existing authority to
manage nonpoint source pollution and appropriate federal grants such as Clean Water
Act Sections 319,
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
The State of New York will inventory areas with the potential for wetlands restoration or
enhancement and, for those areas that are in proximity to higher nitrogen loadings or
can provide critical habitat, assign a high priority for restoration. New York State will
also commit to seek funding to restore or enhance tidal wetlands.
The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to implement general stormwater
permit programs to control the discharge of stormwater from industrial, construction,
and municipal activities, in accordance with the EPA's national program regulations.
These permits will regulate discharges from construction activity greater than five acres
and from eleven industrial categories. In addition:
The State of New York will determine if the general permit adequately regulates
nitrogen from activities subject to national stormwater regulations.
The State of New York will investigate the need to regulate communities with
populations less than 100,000 which border Long Island Sound for general
stormwater management in order to ensure control of nitrogen discharges.
In cooperation with the State of New York, Westchester County is developing a nonpoint
source management plan that will include implementing best management practices for
nonpoint source nitrogen control, monitoring their effectiveness, and establishing a
Westchester County management zone (or bubble) for assessing compliance with the
nitrogen load freeze. The study, expected to be completed in 1995, is funded at
$500,000. The LISS will explore extending the bubble concept to other management
zones throughout Connecticut and New York State portions of the Long Island Sound
drainage.
Point and nonpoint nitrogen load estimates will be made in the City of Stamford
to assess feasibility of a point/nonpoinl source "trading" program. A cost-
effective mix of management options will be proposed that may be used to help
decide how nitrogen reduction targets can be met once they are established.
The State of New York will explore the expansion of current requirements for federally-
Ucensed or permitted projects to obtain a water quality certification to protect water
quality from sources of pollution to include all projects adjacent to wetlands and other
sensitive areas or those that exceed a minimum size (e.g., greater than one acre).
The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to implement their existing
permitting programs, such as the inland and tidal wetlands programs, to address
nonpoint nutrient control with respect to Long Island Sound management needs, as
appropriate.
New York State will pursue the expansion of the State Building Code to include
provisions for erosion and sediment control and stormwater practices for all construction
activities in order to prevent increases in nonpoint nitrogen runoff.
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The States of Connecticut and New York will implement the requirements of the
reauthorized Clean Air Act to achieve additional nitrogen emission controls. Major
actions include reduction of nitrous oxide emissions through adoption of statewide
enhanced vehicle inspection and maintenance programs and stricter emission controls for
stationary sources such as power plants. Programs should be fully implemented by the
end of 1995.
The State of Connecticut will continue to provide technical assistance to coastal
municipalities to address impacts of hypoxia in their municipal regulations and plans of
development, as required by state law.
The States of Connecticut and New York will advocate use of the June nitrate test
on agricultural lands to ensure that fertilizer applications !o crops do not exceed
crop needs •
Through Clean Water Act Section 319 grants, the CTDEP is investigating two on-
site septic system denitrification processes that will be evaluated for more
widespread use.
The LISS will evaluate Maryland's "Critical Areas" regulations and the reported
nutrient reduction benefits and make recommendations on the potential value of a
similar program for Long Island Sound.
C. Monitoring and Assessment
To ensure management actions are achieving the level of nitrogen control estimated to be required by
LISS projections, a system of accounting or field monitoring must be developed. The LISS proposes
to develop baseline loads by management zone and an approach to measuring changes to those loads
over time. This need is partially addressed by ongoing monitoring at point source dischargers and
major tributaries to die Sound,
For planning purposes, twelve zones were established where management actions will be grouped,
allowing a more comprehensive, regional approach to planning and management (Figure 6). In Phase
Two planning, baseline loads for each of these zones will be established and future assessments of
load changes will be based on these geographic units. Furthermore, the management zones will be
used as geographic load units upon which LIS 3.0 model simulations will be built.
Objective: Develop an approach; 1) to estimate baseline nitrogen toads by management zone
and measure changes in those loads over time with respect to present and future
nitrogen load targets established by the LISS; and 2) to monitor Long bland
Sound dissolved oxygen and nutrient levels and the living resources of the Sound
to quantify improvements.
Benefit: Without a mechanism to measure the changes in nitrogen loads and improvements in
Long Island Sound water quality, the effectiveness of management actions or need to
adjust management approaches cannot be evaluated. Quantitative monitoring
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approaches will assure that progress toward the goals of the LISS is made as well as
provide scientific understanding of the system that will help guide management
activities.
Specific commitments to monitoring and assessment include:
• A monitoring workshop will be held in early 1993. The workshop will integrate findings
of the LISS and develop a comprehensive, Sound-wide monitoring plan. The plan will
identify how to monitor nitrogen loads to establish a baseline.
• The States of Connecticut and New York, the NYCDEP, and the EPA will continue long-
term dissolved oxygen and nutrient monitoring of Long Island Sound, its major
tributaries, and key sewage treatment plants.
• As part of a combined National Estuary Program Action Plan Demonstration Project and
a CTDEP Long Island Sound Research Fund project, the EPA and the State of
Connecticut will complete a demonstration project designed to evaluate and quantify the
benefits of a riparian zone in the denitrification process.
• The State of Connecticut, through its Long Island Sound Research Program, has
solicited proposals to identify the role of riverine transport in attenuating the load of
nitrogen delivered to Long Island Sound in the Housatonic or Naugatuck Rivers. If an
acceptable proposal is identified, it will be a priority for funding in 1993.
• The State of Connecticut, through its Long Island Sound Research Program, will
continue to fund atmospheric deposition monitoring of nitrogen at two coastal locations
through May, 1993.
• The State of Connecticut, as part of the ongoing CTDEP Marine Fisheries Program, will
continue to monitor finfish and crustaceans of Long Island Sound with emphasis on
determining population response to low dissolved oxygen.
• The EPA Office of Research and Development will continue to develop regional dissolved
oxygen criteria for marine and estuarine waters.
• The NYSDEC will complete its initial study in March 1993, funded by the LISS, on the
effects of hypoxia on Long Island Sound lobsters.
D. Assessment and Planning to Support Phase Three Actions
The LIS 3.0 model is not yet available for management planning but is viewed by the LISS as a key
to several unresolved management decisions. Using the management zones described earlier, the
model will be run to define a base condition and a pre-Colonial condition. These simulations will be
used to confirm and refine the preliminary findings of the LIS 2.0 modeling results. The LIS 3.0
model will then be used to test alternative nitrogen reduction scenarios for each management zone
(Figure 6} and to select the Phase Three nitrogen plan. In addition, the LIS 3.0 model, coupled with
the planned regional or systemwide eutrophication model, will be used to explore the potential
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
benefits of load reduction actions in the New York-New Jersey Harbor and of impacts of alternative
technologies such as tide gates, relocation of sewer outfalls, and constructed wetlands.
Objective: Continue to construct detailed nitrogen reduction plans upon completion of the
LIS 3.0 and systemwide eutrophication models.
Specific commitments to further assessment, planning, and management are:
• The LISS will continue to fund and complete the LIS 3.0 model in 1994 and run
management scenarios to define management zone nitrogen load impacts and to
determine the benefits of feasible load reductions within each zone.
• The LISS will begin to study the historical loads of nitrogen and the role of
meteorological events in episodic hypoxia of extreme duration, areal extent, or severity
(minimum levels of dissolved oxygen). This effort will be coordinated with the New York
- New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program (HO1) evaluation of historic Harbor Survey water
quality data as related to past water quality improvement projects.
It is anticipated that the LIS 3.0 model will be available for developing management plans
during the summer of 1994. The schedule for completing the model is:
July 1993 Hydrodynamic model completed.
November 1993 LIS 3.0 Calibration runs for 1988-89.
January 1994 Completion of LIS 3.0 Calibration Report.
February 1994 Completion of regional runs for 11 management zones.
April 1994 LISS reviews regional runs and develops management scenarios.
June 1994 Management scenario projection runs completed.
The LISS will seek every opportunity to shorten this schedule.
Phase Three Actions
The Phase Two actions will result in significant reductions in the load of nitrogen and improve
dissolved oxygen levels. However, additional steps must be taken to achieve the interim targets for
dissolved oxygen and to ultimately meet the long-term goal of eliminating any adverse impacts of
hypoxia. Under the phased approach, the states and the EPA are making a long-term commitment to
implement additional nitrogen controls and to take other actions aimed at achieving the long-term
goal.
Phase Three actions will be developed using the LIS 3.0 model to test nitrogen reduction scenarios
that achieve dissolved oxygen targets for Long Island Sound as described under Phase Two. Steps to
be taken as part of Phase Three are:
1) For each management zone, estimate the reduction in die nitrogen load required to
achieve dissolved oxygen targets using the LIS 3.0 model.
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Evaluate the options for reducing the nitrogen load within each zone through a
wasteload allocation process. Reductions are likely to be achieved through a
combination of point and nonpoint source actions, but the mix of actions within each
management zone will vary, depending on the basin characteristics and management
opportunities. In these evaluations growth will be accounted for and options for
management will be consistent with LISS land use recommendations.
3) Select the most cost-effective mix of options that achieves the necessary reduction.
4) Based on the wasteload allocation analysis, develop preliminary management plans
including a schedule to begin facilities planning at appropriate sewage treatment
plants.
5) Further evaluate the innovative, alternative technologies identified in Phase One as
potential parts of the solution using the systemwide model being developed in
cooperation with the HEP.
6) Develop and implement final nitrogen control plans that represent feasible, cost-
effective actions as identified by the research and modeling efforts sponsored by the
LISS during the past few years.
The LISS recognizes that implementation of potential Phase Three nitrogen actions may require a
significant financial investment. The LISS has estimated total maximum costs for a high level of
nitrogen removal from point sources in the Sound are $8.1 billion, $6.4 billion for New York and
$1.7 billion for Connecticut. These actions will substantially increase the amount of viable habitat for
the Sound's living resources. The fisheries of the western Sound may become more productive and
fish may not avoid this area during the summer.
Objective: Achieve the long-term goal through additional nitrogen reductions from
discharges to the Sound and from sources outside of the Sound, or through
alternatives to nitrogen management that improve dissolved oxygen levels.
Specific commitments for Phase Three include:
• Based on the results of the LIS 3.0 model, target nitrogen reductions will be developed in
1994 by the LISS for each management zone and the States of Connecticut and New
York will evaluate options for achieving those target reductions.
• The States of Connecticut and New York will identify the most cost-effective options for
achieving the nitrogen targets within each management zone and begin to analyze
feasibility of implementation.
• Based on this preliminary selection of options, the CTDEP and the NYSDEC will
establish a schedule to begin facility planning at appropriate sewage treatment plants and
identify existing capital needs, including future capacity needs, and associated costs as
part of the planning process.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
Upon completion of the systemwide eutrophication model in 1996, the benefits of
alternative technologies will be explored by the LISS. Creative solutions for hypoxia
management will be encouraged.
Upon completion of the modeling and nitrogen control planning analyses, a final
wasteload allocation for nitrogen will be developed to meet the adopted dissolved oxygen
management goal, final control options selected, and an implementation schedule with
target dates and enforceable limits will be established.
Research
Two areas that warrant additional research have been identified by the LISS.
Recommendation: Study the role of tidal wetlands and inland wetlands in natural nitrogen generation
and removal.
Recommendation: Better quantify the relative portions of natural versus enriched nitrogen, including
groundwater load quantification.
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B-2. Toxic Substance Contamination
Goal
Protect and restore Long Island Sound from the adverse effects of toxic substance
contamination by reducing toxic inputs, cleaning up contaminated sites, and effectively
managing risk to human users.
Background
Toxic contaminants include both naturally-occurring and man-made substances that can cause adverse
ecosystem or human health risks when exceeding certain concentrations. In Long Island Sound, toxic
substances can be found dissolved in the water, attached to sediment particles, or in the tissues of
plants and animals. Once released into the environment, many toxic substances persist for a long
time. They may recycle from the sediments through the food chain and back into the sediments
several times before they are buried in sediments or, in the case of organic compounds, are broken
down over many years into less harmful substances.
The LISS has evaluated the available information on the inputs, fate, and effects of toxic substances in
the Long Island Sound ecosystem. There are data gaps in the information available on the geographic
distribution and the relative concentrations of organic contaminants and dissolved metal concentrations
in water, sediment, and fish tissue. However, based on the available information that was compiled
and interpreted, there is evidence that toxic substances are of concern in Long Island Sound.
Key Findings
Monitoring and Assessment: Comprehensive characterization of toxic contamination problems in
Long Island Sound suffers from a weak database. Similarly, although strict regulatory programs for
point source dischargers in both states have greatly reduced the load of toxic contaminants reaching
the Sound, the lack of comprehensive, coordinated monitoring prevents conclusive trend analysis.
There is a need to establish monitoring goals and approaches and implement a monitoring plan that
will allow managers to identify toxic contamination problems, their causes, and trends. That
information is needed to develop management plans to identify and control sources, identify, and
clean up priority sites, and minimize risks to both the living organisms of the Sound and to human
consumers of seafood products from the Sound. More than any other factor, data inadequacy has
precluded firm identification of problems and prevented die formulation of site-specific strategies to
address the few problems identified.
Sources: The largest sources of heavy metals are the major rivers to the Sound (Connecticut,
Housatonic, Quinnipiac, and Thames), which dominate die total load because of their large discharge
volumes. The Connecticut River, whose ambient water concentrations generally do not exceed
surface water criteria and do meet all designated uses, is die largest single source based on its
discharge volume. Since heavy metals occur naturally, it is not clear how much of die riverine load
is related to human activity.
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Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan
Sewage treatment plants in Connecticut and New York State are the second largest source of
pollutants and are estimated to contribute substantial loads of heavy metals and organic contaminants.
Those estimates need further evaluation and verification. Similarly, documentation is needed to verify
that urban runoff and stormwater discharges are the third most significant source of contaminants.
Direct industrial discharges are a relatively minor source of toxic substances Sound-wide, based on
discharge monitoring data, although they can be significant locally (the large number of facilities
clustered along the Quinnipiac and Naugatuck Rivers, for example). Atmospheric deposition is likely
to contribute substantial amounts of contaminants based on studies performed elsewhere, but these
loads are not well-documented regionally. Other sources include spills, landfill leachate, and boating
operations; these may contribute a wide range of contaminants but are not quantified.
Sediments: The most comprehensive database on toxic contaminants in Long Island Sound exists for
concentrations in sediments. A dozen urbanized harbors, rivers, and embayments have sediments
highly contaminated both with metals and organic compounds. Metals found in elevated
concentrations include lead, cadmium, copper, nickel, mercury, zinc, and chromium. Organic
compounds found in elevated concentrations include PCBs, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons
(PAHs), DDT, and chlordane. Contaminant concentrations in sediments for a broad spectrum of
metals and organics were greater in western Long Island Sound than in sediments collected further
east. These conditions possibly originate from past or active sewage treatment plant and industrial
dischargers, urban runoff, and atmospheric deposition. Western Long Island Sound also is an area
where sediment particles tend to settle to the bottom, concentrating the toxic substances IT. localized
There are few guidelines or criteria for assessing the effects of elevated concentrations of toxic
contaminants in sediments on organisms. The EPA is presently developing national criteria for
sediments in marine waters. Criteria for dredged material disposal have been established by the New
England River Basins Commission, but are now under revision. Guidelines for metals and many
organic compounds in sediments have been developed by the NYSDEC Divisions of Fish and Wildlife
and Marine Resources. All of these represent best judgement assessments and have been used, as
applicable, for an assessment of Long Island Sound sediments.
Concentrations of metals in offshore, western Long Island Sound sediments (Figure 8) exceeded the
"lowest effect level" guidelines of the NYSDEC; 'severe effect level" guidelines were exceeded for
copper and chromium (Table 5). These guidelines were derived from a literature review of sediment
contaminant concentrations that elicited a toxic or biological response in test organisms. The range of
literature values were categorized on a substance-by-substance basis according to the lowest
concentration found to elicit a toxic response, or the 'lowest effect level," and levels that, while not
the lowest observed in the literature, were found to consistently elicit a toxic response, i.e., "severe
effect level.* In the Long Island Sound data, copper in particular appeared to be a problem since it
exceeded concentrations that can exert toxic effects on benthic species. Generally, in offshore
sediments, metal concentrations to the eastern Sound were below guideline values, except for arsenic
and chromium which exceeded the NYSDEC "lowest effect level" guidelines. In Central Long Island
Sound the average sediment concentrations of chromium, copper, mercury, lead, and nickel exceeded
the "lowest effect level" guidelines.
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Table 5. Average total metals levels Img/kg, dry basis) in sediments from three
areas of Long Island Sound (see Figure 6 for areas) and their
relationship to criteria and nationally and locally "high"
concentrations.
Metal
Arsenic
Star
ddnrium
Chromium
Copper
Mercury
Nickel
Lead
Zinc
Area
WLIS
9.0
3.0
1.4
138
121
0.7
25
89
198
CLIS
5.6
0.6
0.4
79
67
0.21
16
31
99
EUS
6.2
0.39
0.16
37
9.5
0.1
8
13
35
NYS DEC
Low Effect
Level
6
-
0.6
26
16
0.2
16
31
120
Guidelines
Severe
Effect
Level
33
-
10
110
110
2
75
250
820
Hudson River
WLIS Western Long Island Sound
CLIS Central Long Island Sound
EUS Eastern Long Island Sound
L
18. Three areas of Long Island Sound used to geographically aggregate sediment
heavy metals data for analysis.
Long Island Sound Study
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A special study of Black Rock Harbor in Bridgeport, Connecticut, was conducted to identify sources
of toxicity. The sediments in Black Rock Harbor, particularly within the inner harbor, were highly
toxic to amphipods (a sensitive test organism and an important source of food for many birds, fish,
and larger invertebrate species). Concentrations of metals and organic compounds, including PCBs,
were extremely elevated at this location.
Water Column/Sublethal Effects: Reliable, comprehensive data are scarce for concentrations of
contaminants dissolved in the water column of Long Island Sound. The data for trace organic
compounds are insufficient to permit any interpretation or conclusions. The most useful and accurate
set of data is for heavy metals from three western Long Island Sound locations collected in 1991 as
part of the HEP. None of the metals from the survey exceeded Connecticut or New York State
standards at these locations. However, the HEP identified the possible need to reduce copper and
mercury levels in the upper East River. Efforts to reduce these substances are underway that will
result in long-term benefits for the western Sound as well.
Toxicity associated with water column quality was not generally observed in the available test data.
However, sublethal toxic effects on the pathology and reproductive success of winter flounder and
hard clams have been measured at several locations. Flounder from New Haven Harbor had the
highest incidence of biochemical and pathological abnormalities of the sites tested. Clams from
Bridgeport Harbor and Norwalk Harbor also exhibited higher levels of abnormal response than those
from other sites tested.
Human Health Risk: The States of Connecticut and New York have issued consumption advisories
for selected fish taken from Long Island Sound. The toxic substances of greatest concern in these
advisories are PCBs, which are toxic compounds found in the insulating oils of transformers,
capacitors, and other electrical equipment. PCBs have been found in high concentrations in fish
tissues, bottom sediments, and some active sources such as combined sewer overflows in the Black
Rock Harbor area. Sediment "hot spots" have been identified in Bridgeport, Milford, Stamford, New
Haven, and Black Rock Harbors based on available data. Consumption advisories based on PCB
levels have been issued for striped bass, bluefish, eels, and lobster hepatopancreas (more commonly
known as the tomalley) taken from the Sound.
Management Approach
A better understanding is needed on the extent of toxic contamination as it impacts water quality,
sediment quality, and living resources, including those consumed by humans. Meanwhile, existing
programs and authorities (both regulatory and voluntary) will be used to minimize the discharge of
toxic substances to Long Island Sound.
For point sources, the discharge permitting program and toxicity testing have been successful in
reducing the load of toxic substances and must continue. Opportunities for additional reductions, in
particular pollution prevention activities, must be aggressively pursued. Such measures might include
wastewater minimization, recycling of wastewater, and the use of alternative processes and chemicals.
Furthermore, substances for which virtual elimination in discharges should be the goat must be
identified and assigned priorities for management.
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At present, the HEP is developing total maximum daily loads (TMDLs)Avaste load allocations
(WLAs)/load allocations (LAs) for toxic metals in the Harbor. The EPA and the States of New York
and New Jersey have agreed that the states will modify discharge permits to include water quality-
based effluent limits for copper, mercury, and six other toxic metals, as necessary. By controlling
sources to the East River, water quality in western Long Island Sound will benefit. The CTDEP is
using a wasteload allocation approach to regulate dischargers along the Quinnipiac and Naugatuck
Rivers. Reductions of heavy metals discharged to those rivers will benefit water quality in Long
Island Sound as well.
New opportunities for managing other sources of toxic pollution will result from programs that
control combined sewer overflows and stormwater discharges, as well as programs for oil bulk
storage and spill prevention and remediation of inactive hazardous waste sites. Integrated pest
management and agricultural best management practice programs must continue to be supported.
Special focus of these programs must be on the priority problem areas that have been identified in the
Sound. Action in a number of specific areas is needed to address these known problem areas or to
initiate further reductions in toxic inputs. Based on the findings of the LJSS review of toxic
contamination, recommendations center around six priority areas of management:
1) Monitoring and Assessment
2) Source Control and Pollution Prevention
3) Sediment Contamination
4) Health Risk Management
5) Information Management
6) Research
Although many other recommendations were considered, priority attention is directed towards these
known problem areas. As the data base grows, the states and the EPA wiJI need to periodically
reassess management activities to address newly-identified problems and direct management towards
those identified needs.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
Monitoring and Assessment
Characterization of toxic contamination problems in Long Island Sound was hampered by a lack of
data and coordination among monitoring and assessment studies.
Objective: Develop a detailed monitoring and assessment plan that will address identified
information needs. Specific needs include:
a) use of appropriate analytical techniques to assure data comparability among sites
and time;
b) analysis of organic compound distribution and impact;
c) expansion of tissue monitoring to complete spatial coverage for key plant and
animal species;
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d) bioeffects testing; and
e) identification of atmospheric depositional loads.
Benefit: Policy makers need to base management decisions on the best technical information
available because source control and remediation actions are very costly. Developing
a monitoring and assessment program that has diagnostic value, one that is affordable
and can be sustained, and one that produces data that are transformed into usable
information, will provide the level of detail needed for management and policy
options.
To begin to address monitoring needs for toxic contamination, the following actions wOl be taken:
• A monitoring workshop will be held in early 1993. This workshop will integrate findings
of the LISS and develop a comprehensive, Sound-wide monitoring plan that will include
toxic substances.
• Monitoring initiatives will be coordinated with the EPA Regional - Environmental
Monitoring Assessment Program (R-EMAP) to further the understanding of sediment
toxidty and benthic community structure gradients in western Long Island Sound.
Source Control and Pollution Prevention
Both the States of Connecticut and New York have delegated authority from the EPA to manage their
own Pollution Discharge Elimination Systems (SPDES in New York, NPDES in Connecticut). Also,
both states have established policies on pollution prevention to highlight die importance and benefits
of controlling pollution before it enters the wastestream and potentially impacts the environment. The
NYSDEC's policy on pollution prevention is to reduce the generation and discharge of pollutants to
all environmental media consistent with sound facility management and economic practices. In many
circumstances, pollution prevention and waste reduction programs will be more effectively carried out
and achieve more environmental protection if review of pollution sources is coordinated with respect
to their effects on all environmental media. In Connecticut, pollution prevention has been established
as public policy by statute. It is a priority of the CTDEP to expand arid accentuate the use of
pollution prevention in all agency programs. Consistent with this policy, the CTDEP has begun a
program to: 1) institutionalize multi-media pollution prevention in regulatory programs; 2) eliminate
barriers to pollution-prevention initiatives; and 3) identify targets for an outreach program.
As required through Section 3040) of the Clean Water Act, for waters mat are impaired by toxic
contaminants, defensible TMDLs must be developed. Since Long Island Sound is not on the 304(1)
list, the legal requirement does not apply. However, strategies to control toxic contaminant loads to
the Sound should include a similar approach once more reliable water column data are generated.
Objective: Prevent toxic contaminants from being released into the environment by
improving source controls where necessary or by implementing pollution-
prevention actions.
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Benefit: Preventing toxic contaminants from entering Long Island Sound is the most effective
method of averting future degradation and, in many instances, may be the most
economical means of managing toxic contaminants.
To further emphasize source control and pollution prevention as effective means of controlling toxic
contamination of Long Island Sound, the following actions will be taken:
• The LISS will encourage adequate funding to continue and expand pollution-prevention
site visit programs targeting industrial dischargers to the Sound and its tributaries.
• As part of the New York - New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program, the States of New York
and New Jersey will modify permits to include water quality-based effluent limits for
copper, mercury, and six other toxic metals, as necessary.
• The States of Connecticut and New York, the EPA, and the Army Corps of Engineers
will continue to revise the interim plan for the disposal of dredged material in Long
Bslanti Sound.
• The States of Connecticut and New York and the EPA will continue their pretreatment
programs to ensure that toxic discharges to sewage treatment plants are controlled.
• The States of Connecticut and New York, through their Pollution Discharge Elimination
System Programs, will continue to ensure that facilities comply with their permit limits.
• The States of Connecticut and New York and the EPA will apply pollution prevention
techniques, as appropriate, to indirect discharges of toxic substances by emphasizing
wastewater minimization, recycling of wastewater, and alternative processes and
chemicals to reduce toxicity and toxic loads and to minimize effects on all environmental
media.
• The LISS will explore financial incentives for remediation of toxic contamination.
• The LISS will support education on the environmental impacts of using home, garden,
and commercial hazardous chemicals and pesticides, and will continue to provide
guidance on how to minimize use of these chemicals and properly dispose of them
through household hazardous waste collections.
Sediment Contamination
Existing data clearly identified sediment contamination with heavy metals, PCBs, and pesticides.
Objective: Conduct further assessments of toxic contaminant distribution in sediments of
western Long Island Sound and embavments identified as having elevated toxic
contaminant burdens. Based on these assessments, determine the feasibility, cost,
and value of remediating these contaminated sediments.
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Benefit: Assessments of areas suspected of having highly-contaminated sediments is
incomplete. Many areas in the Sound, especially the harbors and embayments, are
not well documented as to the level of contamination and should be further
characterized for both toxic contaminant levels and ambient toxicity to estuarine
organisms. Improving the sediment substrate will be beneficial not only to benthic
organisms, but also to fish and other animals that feed on the benthos. These actions
would significantly improve and expand habitat for shellfish, finfish, and other marine
life, reduce threats to human health, and restore human uses of some of the more
highly-contaminated harbors.
To initiate the necessary evaluations and to begin to assign priorities to locations where sediment
remediation may be feasible, the following actions will be taken:
• The LISS will identify areas where characterization of conditions is adequate and where
additional assessment is needed. Review of the NOAA1991 sediment chemistry and
toxicity survey results of harbors and embayments, when available in the Spring 1993,
will supplement the available data.
• The LISS will identify the need for further assessments to identify toxic contaminant
distribution in sediments in areas with limited or no data. If additional assessment is
required, cost estimates will be included with study recommendations.
• The LISS wilt develop criteria for determining the feasibility and value of conducting
remediation activities at each location having adequate characterization data and for
assigning priorities for action based on the evaluation. Priority attention will be given to
Black Rock Harbor and Glen Cove Creek, as well as nearshore inactive hazardous waste
sites and landfills. The results of the NOAA survey will be reviewed to assess whether
other sites should be included.
• The LISS, in cooperation with appropriate state and federal authorities, will determine
the feasibility of developing remediation plans and strategies to dean up priority sites.
Cost, overall benefit, and sources of funding will be considered.
• In areas identified as having elevated levels of sediment contamination, the LISS will
conduct further assessments of the distribution of these toxic contaminants.
Health Risk Management
Continuing health risk advisories, most often related to PCB contamination of seafood products,
preclude full utilization of Long Island Sound's resources. While it is expected that ruff
implementation of programs to minimize toxic discharges will result in lower health risks, it is
important to minimize human exposure to toxic substances through effective risk communication in
the interim. Several recommendations are offered, emphasizing PCB impacts as a primary cause of
seafood advisories in Long Island Sound.
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Objective: Develop a mechanism to promote common approaches for releasing and
publicizing advisories on Long Island Sound seafood species.
Benefit: Improved communication of consumer advisories should reduce public health risk.
To achieve this objective, the following actions will be taken:
• The LISS will advocate coordination between the States of Connecticut and New York to
review health risk and advisory recommendations and formulate plans to ensure
consistency.
• The LISS will seek funding to identify sources and sites of PCB loadings to the Long
Island Sound ecosystem from in-Sound and New York • New Jersey Harbor Estuary
sources. The focus will be on reducing and eliminating PCB loadings on a priority basis,
concentrating on areas of known contamination such as Black Rock Harbor.
• The LISS will develop strategies for controlling loadings of contaminants for which
seafood consumption advisories have been issued.
• The LISS will develop a strategy for identifying toxic substances of human health risk
concern in Long Island Sound seafood species and tolerance levels for those substances.
Information Management
A full review of data and programs was not feasible because of cost and staffing constraints of the
LISS.
Objective: Develop an approach to achieve full utilization of existing information, including
data from regulatory programs, and to organize and maintain new data.
Benefit: Continued review of data produced by management activities at state and federal
levels and by ongoing and expanded monitoring will help identify toxic contamination
problems that may require detailed examination. The EPA's Ocean Data Evaluation
System (ODES) is supported at the national level by several EPA programs including
the National Estuary Program. ODES is suitable to meet data management needs for
both the LISS and the HEP.
Based on this need, the following actions will be taken:
• The LISS will continue to review and evaluate data on toxic contaminant sources and
ambient environmental quality data as they become available and to nuke
recommendations for management actions.
• Reports and data on toxic contaminants and their impacts produced by current programs
and authorities (both regulatory and voluntary) that manage toxic contaminant
discharges to Long Island Sound will be used for assessment and planning by the LISS.
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• Coordination of data reporting through the use of the EPA's ODES or through federal
or state Geographic Information Systems will improve the utility and accessibility of data
on toxic contaminants for evaluating problems and developing management strategies.
Research
Environmental contamination by toxic contaminants presents extremely complex biogeochemical,
physical, and kinetic interactions among different contaminants and media (sediment, water, and
biota). The factors must be understood if effective management is to be accomplished. Based on
these needs, the following recommendations are made:
Recommendation: The relationship between organism body burdens and their toxic effects needs to
be investigated as an important mechani&m of toxic impact.
Recommendation: Trophic level transfer and bioaccumulation effects of contaminants up the food
chain need to be quantified to better manage both the aquatic community and human health risks.
Recommendation: While toxicity testing of sediment and water is an efficient way to of identify
toxidry problems, the relationship between toxicity and specific causative agents needs to be
determined.
Recommendation: The L1SS should evaluate the use of an ecological risk assessment approach,
partially applied demonstrated in the LISS Black Rock Harbor Action Plan Demonstration Project, for
more widespread use to identify toxicity and its sources in embayments and harbors of Long Island
Sound.
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B-3. Pathogen Contamination
Goals
Increase the acreage of Long Island Sound waters certified or approved for shellfish
harvesting while adequately protecting public health.
Eliminate public bathing beach closures while adequately protecting public health.
B&ck&round
Pathogens are disease-causing microorganisms such as bacteria or viruses. They can cause human
illnesses such as gastroenteritis, salmonellosis, hepatitis A, and cholera. Typical sources of pathogens
to Long bland Sound are inadequately-treated human sewage and wild and domestic animal wastes.
Exposure to pathogens can occur either by direct contact or ingeslion of contaminated waters by
bathers or by eating raw or partially-cooked shellfish harvested from contaminated waters.
Elevated levels of human pathogens in marine waters seem to be related to higher levels of coastal
development. Densely-populated areas are more likely to contribute pathogens to surface waters
along with fecal wastes. Large populations of coastal wildlife, especially waterfowl, may be
contributing substantial loads of pathogens in some areas as well. Inshore coves, bays, and harbors
are much more heavily impacted than more open or offshore waters because of limited flushing and
tidal action.
To protect public health, bathing beaches and shellfish grounds suspected of being contaminated are
closed or restricted. Closures minimize human exposure to pathogens and the potential for
individuals to become ill. They can, however, have a severe impact on businesses that depend on
recreation and tourism and on the viability of the shellfishing industry. The ultimate solution is to
reduce human exposure to pathogens by eliminating the causes of the problem.
The potential presence of human pathogens has historically been monitored by measuring bacterial
"indicator" organisms. Indicator organisms are not harmful to humans but are easier to measure and
are assumed to have the same origin and fate as human and non-human enteric pathogenic organisms.
While mere is considerable debate over their accuracy in identifying public health risk, bacterial
indicators are widely-used to manage bathing and shellfishing waters and seem to be effective.
National efforts to develop new methods for better defining pathogenic contamination are progressing,
but require further development.
Total coliforn) bacteria was the first indicator widely used to monitor surface waters. However, this
group contains organisms of non-fecal origin and therefore, was replaced or supplemented by
monitoring a subset of the group, fecal coliforms. Fecal conforms usually are associated with fecal
material and are thus more likely to identify the presence of pathogens. Enterococcus bacteria are
another indicator used to regulate bathing beaches in some areas.
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Sources of Pathogens
Pathogens can originate from the introduction of inadequately-treated human sewage and from wild
and domestic animal wastes carried by stormwater runoff. Inadequately-treated sewage can be
discharged from sewage treatment plants with capacity limitations, plant design flaws, inadequate
maintenance or system operation, combined sewer systems, or disrepaired sewage conduits. Other
potential sources of pathogens include ineffective septic systems, illegal connections to storm drain
systems, and sanitary waste discharges from boats.
Pathogen contamination may result from the inflow (illegal hookups) and infiltration of excess water
(the entrance of groundwater through leaks) into the sanitary sewer system pipes that may cause
overflows at pump-out stations or manholes during rainfall or electrical failures. Older sewer
systems, such as those in New York City and in New Haven and Bridgeport, Connecticut, have
combined stormwater and sanitary systems. These systems overflow during rainfall events,
discharging untreated sewage along with stormwater; these incidents are called combined sewer
overflows (CSOs).
Pathogens from nonpoint sources are generally carried over the surface of the land by rain and snow
runoff. The primary origin of indicator organisms in nonpoint source runoff is fecal waste from
waterfowl, wildlife, and domestic animals. The concentrations of pathogens and indicator organisms
in runoff is dependent upon the amount and intensity of rainfall, the time between storms, and land
use. The microbiological character of runoff from any given storm and any given area is Hksly to be
unique.
Key Findings
Bathing Beaches
Beaches in Long Island Sound were closed for a total.of 1440 beach days over the five-year period
between 1986 and 1990. (Each beach has 106 beach days per year, which corresponds to the beach
season form Memorial Day to Labor Day.) In 1990 alone, beaches were closed for a total of 406
beach days. AH of the closures occurred at beaches in enclosed embayments, rather than at beaches
directly on the Sound. Because flushing and circulation is reduced in embayments, beaches located
there are more vulnerable to violations of water quality standards than beaches on the open Sound.
Beaches where standards were exceeded were generally near heavily-populated areas of western Long
Island Sound.
During the 1986 to 1990 period, beaches were closed because of elevated coliform levels observed
during routine sampling events, elevated levels expected after rainfall events, or because of operation
and maintenance problems at sewage treatment plants that resulted in the release of inadequately-
treated sewage. In New York, rainfall-associated events were the primary cause of beach closures,
resulting in a total of 451 lost beach days. In Connecticut, sewage treatment plant malfunctions were
the primary cause, resulting in a total of 196 lost beach days.
During the 1986 to 1990 period, ten beaches were subject to chronic closings (defined as being closed
for at least three days per year for at least three of the five years). Over the five year period, the 10
beaches were closed from 5% to 31 % of their total beach days. The chronically-closed beaches, in
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order of severity, were Scudder Park, Gold Star Battalion, Mamaroneck Area, Hunttngton Beach
Community, Hempstead Harbor Area, Centerport Yacht Club, and Mamaroneck Beach Cabana and
Yacht Club in New York, and the beaches in the Norwalk and Milford areas of Connecticut.
Shellfish Beds
In 1990, of the 488,070 acres of potential shellfish beds ("potential shellfish beds" include the entire
bottom of Long Island Sound and its embayments) in New York waters, 76,678 acres (16%) were
classified as restricted/prohibited. In Connecticut, of the 392,419 acres of potential shellfish beds,
82,408 acres (21%) were classified as restricted/prohibited. However, the impact of these restrictions
on the shellfish harvest is greater than the number of impacted acres alone suggests because the
restricted areas are among the most productive and accessible beds and occur close to shore or in
embayments. These same areas are usually close to sources of pathogens, such as sewage treatment
plants, septic systems, marinas, and stormwater discharges. As a result, of the 66,000 acres of
productive shellfish beds in New York, 48,500 acres (73%) were classified as restricted/prohibited.
In Connecticut, of the 52,500 acres of productive shellfish beds, 18,375 acres (35%) were classified
as restricted/prohibited. The loss rate of potential shellfish acreage has slowed considerably
throughout the Sound in recent years. This is partly because few shellfishing areas are still open in
embayments susceptible to pathogen contamination-
One way to minimize the loss of productive shellfish beds is through a relay or transplant program.
In Connecticut, approximately 85% to 90% of the harvest from approved waters was relayed or
transplanted from restricted/prohibited areas by the shellfish industry. These programs led to an
increase from 36,368 acres under cultivation in 1972 to 44,493 acres in 1990. Over the same period,
the harvest value of oysters and hard clams increased from $3.7 to $26.1 million. The relay
operations are more costly than direct harvesting, representing one impact of shellfish bed closures.
Harvest values, have not. been adjusted for inflation.
In New York, the primary shellfish resource harvested is hard clams. Hard clam harvests increased
from 23,974 bushels in 1972 with a value of $283,097, to 97,110 bushels in 1987 with a value of
$7,289,097. The harvest has since decreased to 66,971 bushels in 1991, with a value of $4,776,313.
Again, harvest values have not been adjusted for inflation. However, the importance of Long Island
Sound hard clams in relation to the total harvest from New York waters soared from 3% in 1972 to
42% in 1987. A slight drop was seen in 1991, when the Sound accounted for 36% of the New York
harvest. Two townships, Huntington and Oyster Bay, provide exceptional hard clam harvests and
merit special efforts to protect against further degradation or even to improve conditions, where
possible.
Management Approach
The sources of pathogens causing closures of bathing beaches or the restriction of shellfish harvesting
vary from site to site due to the localized nature of pathogen contamination. Therefore, management
actions must be directed towards: (1) control of major sources of pathogens, such as combined sewer
overflows and stormwater discharges that have been identified as contributing to the problem Sound-
wide; and (2) developing and implementing site-specific management plans for each harbor and
embayment or discrete shellfish area. Consistent with that approach, strategies to meet the goals for
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controlling pathogen contamination were developed. Other management needs and actions were
identified to address vessel discharges, monitoring, research, assessment, and education.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
Combined Sewer Overflows
Combined sewers have been identified as a major source of pathogens to Long Island Sound. Actions
directed towards managing this source are likely to yield significant benefits in terms of reducing
bathing beach and shellfish bed closures.
Objective: Control CSOs as a major source of pathogens by ensuring abatement plans In
both Connecticut and New York State are implemented.
Benefit: Combined sewer corrections will reduce the pathogen indicator load to the East River
and Long Island Sound and potentially allow increased use of shellfish resources and
bathing beaches.
Specific commitments towards better control of combined sewer overflows are:
• The States of Connecticut and New York will assess CSO implementation programs and
update overall management plans to assure implementation addresses bathing beach and
shellfish closures and is consistent with water quality standards.
• New York City will implement a $1.5 billion CSO abatement program to control the
discharge of pathogens and other pollutants. As part of the program, consistent with the
terms of a consent order with the NYSDEC, New York City will develop comprehensive
plans to abate CSOs that degrade its waters, including Newtown Creek, Flushing Bay,
and the East River.
• The CTDEP will continue to implement its long-term CSO abatement strategy to manage
or eliminate all combined sewer areas remaining in the Long bland Sound region. This
strategy includes continued enforcement of administrative orders with Norwalk, New
Haven, Bridgeport, and municipalities with CSOs along major tributaries (Norwich,
Jewett City, Derby, and Shelton.)
Point Sources
Failure of sewage treatment systems, Hlegal hook-ups to storm sewers and failure to notify
appropriate agencies of emergency conditions often lead to bathing beach or shellfish bed closures.
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Objective: Minimize malfunctions of treatment systems, dry weather overflows, and illegal
hook-ups to storm sewers through aggressive management programs; in cases of
raw sanitary waste discharge, ensure prompt notification and response and take
prompt enforcement action.
Benefit: These actions will provide a disincentive to sewage treatment plants that allow
operations and maintenance to deteriorate. A reduction in plant malfunctions may
prevent some beach and shellfish closures.
Specific commitments towards addressing these needs include:
• The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to identify and take priority
enforcement action to control dry weather overflows from sanitary sewers and illegal
connections of sewage lines to storm sewers.
•• The States of New York and Connecticut will continue to identify and take priority
enforcement actions to control wet weather overflows from sanitary sewers caused by
excessive infiltration and inflow.
• The States of Connecticut and New York and the EPA will implement a beach and
shellfish closure action plan to take immediate corrective action and priority enforcement
action addressing improperly-treated municipal discharges. Emphasis will be placed on
cases where the closure of beaches or shellfish beds from overflows could have been
prevented by proper operation and maintenance.
Nonpoint Sources
Nonpoint sources of pathogens present a challenge to managers because of their diffuse nature and the
uncertainty about the relationship between indicator organisms and non-human sources. Nevertheless,
nonpoint sources are major contributors of pathogens and deserve priority management attention.
Objective: Evaluate the tools and best management practices available for controlling
nonpoint sources of pathogens and begin implementation through existing
management programs.
Benefit: Better nonpoint source control will decrease the amount of stormwater running into
surface waters, or control stormwater discharges through outfalls, thereby reducing
the introduction of pathogen indicators from wildlife and domestic animals.
Specific commitments to better control nonpoint sources of pathogens include:
• The State of New York State pursue the expansion of the State Building Code to include
provisions for stormwater management practices.
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The State of New York, with the support of the EPA, will initiate a pilot program to
control stormwater discharges causing bathing beach impairments and shellfish bed
closures through enforceable instruments (i.e., permits or consent agreements). Both
New York and Connecticut will evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot program for more
widespread implementation.
New York State has developed a strategy having the following major components:
Perform surveys to identify stormwater discharges of pathogens;
Issue stormwater permits or other enforceable instruments for stormwater sources
contributing to violations of water quality standards; and
Develop and implement stormwater management plans to abate sources of pollution.
The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to implement their nonpoint
source management programs supported with funding from Section 319 of the federal
Clean Water Act.
The States of Connecticut and New York are developing their coastal nonpoint source
control programs as required by Section 6217 of the Coastal Zone Management Act to
address nonpoint source pathogen loading from the Long Island Sound coastal zone.
The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to implement general stormwater
permit programs to control the discharge of stormwater from industrial, construction,
and municipal activities, in accordance with EPA's national program regulations.
The State of Connecticut will continue to provide technical assistance to coastal
municipalities to address impacts of pathogens in their municipal regulations and plans
of development, as required by state law.
The State of New York wilt explore the expansion of current requirements for federally-
licensed or permitted projects to obtain a water quality certification to protect water
quality from sources of pollution to include all projects adjacent to wetlands and other
sensitive areas or those that exceed a minimum size (e.g., greater than one acre).
Vessel Sewage Discharges
Vessel sewage discharges into the Sound's harbors and embaymems and the siting of boat docking
facilities and temporary live-aboard anchorage areas have a negative impact on the use of productive
shellfish areas and, possibly, bathing beaches.
Objective: Designate appropriate harbors and embayments of the Sound as "No Discharge
Areas1* for vessel sewage.
Benefits: Better control of this source may allow the use of currently-restricted shellfish
harvesting areas by decreasing the safety closure areas around boat docking facilities.
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Location of anchorage areas away from productive shellfish areas will allow greater
utilization of these resources.
Specific commitments to better manage vessel sewage discharges include:
• The States of Connecticut and New York have determined which shellfish growing areas
and bathing beaches would benefit from a vessel "No Discharge Area" designation for
specific embayments and harbors.
A number of sites have been identified that will potentially benefit from the designation.
In Connecticut: Greenwich, Stamford, Norwalk, Westport, Fairfield, Bridgeport,
Stratford, Milford, New Haven, West Haven, Branford, Madison, Clinton,
Westbrook, Groton, and the Connecticut River from its mouth to Windsor.
In New York: Lloyd Harbor, Huntington, Port Jefferson, and Oyster Bay.
* The States of Connecticut and New York will apply to the EPA for official "No
Discharge Area" designation of specific embayments and harbors after ensuring the
sufficient availability of pump-out stations and treatment facilities. The EPA will review
applications in a timely manner and designate vessel No Discharge Areas as warranted.
The EPA will review in a timely manner the requests that have been received from New York
for the designation of vessel "No Discharge Areas" for Lloyd Harbor, and Huntington
Harbor.
• The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to consider the impacts of vessel
discharges through appropriate resource management and regulatory programs and will
limit or condition the siting or operation of boating facilities as necessary to minimize
such impacts.
• The State of Connecticut, through a 319 grant, will ensure completion of a marina and
mooring area water quality assessment guidance document. Connecticut has also
completed a marinas "Best Management Practices" project report for nonpoint sources of
pollution, which may be used to develop requirements for use of certain best
management practices at marinas. New York State will review these documents for
potential incorporation into state management programs.
• The State of Connecticut will complete regulations to require pump-out facilities as
required by, and in accordance with, state law.
• The State of New York will evaluate availability of pump-out facilities and develop a
strategy to increase these facilities. New York will evaluate availability of treatment
capacity for pump-out wastes and secure commitments from municipalities to accept
these wastes.
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Individual On-SUe Systems/Discharges
Nearly half of the homes and businesses in the Long Island Sound watershed have septic tank waste
disposal systems. When properly maintained, septic systems are an excellent waste management
alternative. However, when not properly sited or maintained, they can be a source of pathogens.
Objective: Focus management of on-site systems where they have been identified as a source
of pathogens contributing to water quality problems.
Benefits: Failing septic systems can contribute pathogenic organisms to surface waters.
Management of problem systems will reduce the contamination of bathing beaches and
shellfish areas impacted by pathogen indicators from septic systems.
Specific commitments to identify and remediate on-site systems include:
• The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to coordinate management actions
with local governments when on-site septk systems are found to be failing and impacting
shellfish growing areas and bathing beaches.
• The Slate of New York will evaluate existing septic system controls, as administered, to
determine if they are sufficient to protect coastal ecosystems and will recommend the
appropriate changes to local governments. The evaluation will include system
monitoring, required maintenance and repair, and replacement of failing systems.
Education
Education of the general public, local municipal officials, boaters, and other groups about pathogen
issues will help ensure that risk of contamination and exposure are reduced and will facilitate
management actions.
Objective: Provide educational opportunities for the general public, local municipal officials,
and specific user groups to team about the sources of pathogenic contamination
and best management practices effective hi controlling pathogens.
Benefits: An educated public will understand the issues of pathogen contamination which will
enhance further outreach activities. By educating the public, ongoing management
strategies will be more effectively communicated and understood.
The specific commitment towards improving educational opportunities is:
• The L1SS win develop and implement a public education plan targeting specific
audiences In cooperation with federal, state, and local public outreach experts and
environmental education organizations.
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Monitoring and Assessment
Understanding of the pathogen problem must increase if management of the risks it poses is to
improve. Added emphasis on monitoring and assessment are key components of improved
understanding of pathogen problems in the Sound. Site-specific management plans for harbors and
embayments with shellfish growing areas and bathing beaches need to be developed.
Objective: Enhance monitoring, assessment, and research of pathogen contamination to
ensure proper management of bathing areas and shellfish harvesting areas.
Benefit: An assessment and further understanding of the relative contributions of pathogen
sources and interactions of pathogens to Long Island Sound will help managers to
better decide what approaches will be most effective in controlling this priority
problem.
Specific commitments to improve understanding and management of pathogen problems include:
• The States of Connecticut and New York will evaluate existing monitoring programs and,
as necessary, make recommendations for enhancement. The LJSS monitoring workshop
planned for 1993 will be used as a forum for the evaluation.
• The LISS will review existing data and reports and the recommendations of the
monitoring workshop to identify shellfishing or bathing areas in need of further
assessment.
• The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to perform bacterial surveys of
harbors and embayments to identify contaminated shellfish areas and potential sources of
pathogens as required by the National Shellfish Sanitation Program.
The National Shellfish Sanitation Program requires pollution source inventories for all
Approved/Certified shellfish areas. Additional and more intensive surveys are necessary.
• The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to utilize seasonal or conditional
certification of shellfish harvest areas, as may be warranted by water quality variations,
under guidelines provided by the National Shellfish Sanitation Program.
• The State of New York will develop and conduct a dry and wet weather sampling
program, on a pilot basis, for specific drainage basins to determine the effect and
contribution of rainfall versus other sources on indicator bacteria loading. Both states
will evaluate the results of the sampling program and consider expansion of the sampling
program.
• The LISS will conduct a workshop in 1993 to determine appropriate and consistent
methods for bathing beach monitoring and laboratory analysis and work to adopt, if
feasible, common methods.
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The State of Connecticut will continue to meet annual!}' with health directors of coastal
municipalities to refine monitoring and bathing beach closure protocols and share
information.
The State of New York will assess the impacts of identified point and nonpoint sources
and assign priorities to areas where benefits of management actions are most likely to be
realized. Priority criteria will include viability of the resource, feasibility, and cost-
effectiveness of management.
Pilot efforts are underway in New York to assess the site-specific effects of stormwater on
shellfish growing areas. New York State has already identified high priority sites for
remediation. The New York sites include: Centerport Harbor, Mill Neck Creek, Setauket
Harbor, Mount Sinai Harbor, and Dosoris Pond.
Toe LISS will support efforts such as the National Indicator Study, to develop a better
understanding of the relationship between pathogen indicators and the risk to public
health.
Along with supporting the National Indicator Study, the states and the EPA will investigate
funding for a regional epidemiological survey to determine the relationship between waters of
varying indicator quality and public health.
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B-4. Floatable Debris
Goal
Eliminate the adverse impacts of floatable debris on the environmental quality, use. and
enjoyment of Long Island Sound.
Background
The term floatable debris is used fo describe any buoyant debris and trash floating on coastal waters
and bays. It consists of a wide variety of materials in numerous shapes and sizes. Most commonly,
floatable debris consists of waste material and litter from the products used on a daily basis -
cigarette filters, plastic juice containers, paper, plastic wrapping, styrofoam cups - products that are
used and then discarded carelessly or improperly.
Floatable debris can have deleterious effects on both marine organisms and the economy. Examples
of negative impacts of floatable debris on marine organisms include entanglement of birds in fishing
line or "six-pack" beverage rings and the ingestion of plastics mistaken for food by fish, turtles or
other aquatic life. Debiis floating on Long Island Sound or stranded on beaches and shorelines is also
aesthetically repugnant. It is symptomatic of more basic problems in infrastructure and in personal
behavior. The result may be severe economic consequences for tourism, fishing, boating, and other
recreational businesses that depend on the public's appreciation of Long Island Sound's waters and
beaches and their trust in their environmental quality.
Key Findings
The LISS has concluded that floatable debris in Long Island Sound, while much less concentrated
than in New York Harbor, is present in great enough quantities to be of concern. Debris in the
Sound is characterized by relatively small sized plastic and paper materials. The debris is usually
common trash such as food wrappers, plastic bags, straws, coffee stirrers, styrofoam pieces, and
plastic beverage containers. Sewage-related items are less common but still significant. Medically-
related wastes such as syringes and needle caps are present but in very small quantities that are not
indicative of hospital or related health facility illegal dumping.
Floatable debris is delivered to the Sound through stormwater discharges and combined sewer
overflows, from New York Harbor and (he tributaries to the Sound, and from being directly deposited
by shoreline visitors and boaters. The relative contribution of each source is difficult to quantify, but
storm sewers and CSOs are probably the most significant. This conclusion is based on the
observation that the debris consists of items found in common street litter. This is further
documented by an extensive floatable debris study conducted by the NYCDEP. Their findings
indicate that more than 82% of the floatable debris found in the waters of New York Harbor
originates from CSOs and stormwater sewers. Common street litter comprises most of the debris
delivered via the storm sewers or from CSOs. A much smaller but often offensive fraction of the
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debris is material improperly flushed down the toilet. It is then washed into coastal waters during
CSO events.
The presence of floatable debris is greatest in the areas of highest population. As a result, there are
pockets of high concentrations in the harbors and embayments and a general gradient of increasing
debris from east to west in the open waters. Floatable debris often accumulates into "surface slicks,"
rather titan being evenly distributed. The slicks are concentrations of naturally-occurring material,
such as detached seaweed and marsh grass, along with floatable debris. The tendency to condense
into slicks, rather than disperse, concentrates the impact of floatable debris into localized areas and
can exacerbate the effect of beach and shoreline wash-ups.
A large variety of animal life found in or near Long Island Sound is vulnerable to plastic debris,
including several rare and endangered species. Many marine organisms can become entangled in the
debris, or confuse plastic hems for food. Ingested plastics can cause internal injuries or intestinal
blockage that will eventually lead to starvation and death.
Management Approach
Actions to reduce the amount of floatable debris focus on: (1) directly managing the major sources,
such as combined sewer overflows and stormwater, to reduce the delivery of debris to the Sound; (2)
minimizing the impact of floatable debris that has entered the Sound by supporting clean-up activities;
and (3) addressing the root cause of the floatable debris problem - littering and improper disposal -
by supporting source reduction activities and educating the public about their role in solving the
problem. Because the creation of litter, is to a large extent, a behavioral problem, public education
will be an essential component to control floatable debris in Long Island Sound.
Major efforts are underway to control floatable debris from storniwatet and combined sewer overflow
discharges. The States of Connecticut and New York will implement these programs according to
established schedules. In the meantime, a number of best management practices will be pursued.
Street sweeping and cleaning efforts are effective and should be increased whenever possible. Some
CSOs may be amenable to having a boom (a net to contain floatable debris) around the outfall. The
debris can then be collected by skimmer vessels or other innovative collection technologies.
Stormwater systems can be modified by installing trash hoods in their catch basins.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
Regional Coordination
Objective: Ensure regional coordination to implement the floatable debris recommendations
oftheLISS.
Benefit: Technical and management transfer is the first step in developing an integrated,
region-wide control strategy. A forum to discuss (regionally and nationally) tried or
implemented management approaches as well as current technological innovations will
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help managers determine the most efficient and cost-effective plans of action for
floatable debris abatement.
To begin this process, the following step will be taken:
• A representative from the CTDEP will be appointed as a member of the New York - New
Jersey Harbor Estuary Program/New York Bight Restoration Plan Floatable Debris
Work Group to integrate regional floatable debris control programs and to share
floatable abatement technology.
CSOs and Stormwater
Surveys of floatable debris in Long Island Sound found that the majority of items were typical of
common street litter. CSOs and Stormwater discharges are major sources of street litter to the Sound.
Objective: Control floatable debris from CSOs and Stormwater sewers.
Benefits: New York City has the only combined system in New York that discharges to Long
Island Sound. The CSO abatement program includes plans for the areas of Newtown
Creek, the East River, and Flushing Bay in the western Sound, all of which will result
in significant floatable debris abatement and improved water quality.
All of the CSOs in Connecticut are in the Long Island Sound watershed. The
development and implementation of measures to reduce pollutant loadings as well as
engineering designs to minimize floatable debris release from CSOs will result in
significant benefits to the Sound.
Stormwater discharges are also significant sources of floatable debris to the Sound. In
areas with separate sanitary and Stormwater sewers, rainfall results in the transport of
street litter directly into the Sound or its tributaries. New York State will initiate its
statewide Stormwater permitting efforts by focusing on the Long Island Sound
watershed. The NYSDEC has developed Technical and Operational Guidance for
Stormwater Management, and Erosion and Sediment Control for New Development, to
assist the program. The State of Connecticut Stormwater permitting program will
have regional benefits for Long Island Sound.
Specific commitments to abate floatable debris from these sources include:
• Consistent with the terms of the June 26,1992 consent agreement with the NYSDEC, the
NYCDEP will implement a comprehensive CSO abatement program. The NYCDEP will
evaluate abatement alternatives such as street cleaning, catch basin maintenance and
replacement, booming and skimming, and public education.
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The plan includes:
short term measures to abate floatable debris discharges from over 50% of the City's
CSO drainage area by early 1994.
enforceable end dates (ranging from the year 2001 to 2006) for completing
construction of retention tanks to eliminate all CSO-related contraventions of water
quality standards for dissolved oxygen and coliform, and all use impairments.
enforceable initiation of construction dates for floatable debris capture facilities at
remaining CSOs to abate the remaining floatable debris.
The i7n}fcr will continue to implement Its long-term CSO abatement strategy to manage
or eliminate all combined sewer areas remaining in (he Long Island Sound region. This
strategy includes continued enforcement of administrative orders with Norwalk, New
Haven, Bridgeport, and municipalities with CSOs along major tributaries (Norwich,
Jewett City, Derby, and Shelton).
The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to work with New York City and
the City of Stamford to control the discharge of stormwater from those municipalities to
meet the EPA's national stormwater management regulations.
The States of Connecticut and New York will continue to implement general stormwater
permit programs to control the discharge of storm water from industrial, construction,
and municipal activities in accordance with the EPA's national program regulations.
The States of Connecticut and New York have each issued two general permits, one for
construction activities and one for all industrial activities identified by federal stormwater
regulations. Discharges that are already permitted within other programs are excluded.
Permits will require stormwater discharges associated with industrial activity to:
Develop and implement comprehensive stormwater pollution prevention plans and
controls that minimize the potential of polluted runoff from the activity during storm
events.
Monitor runoff according to the type of activity and the type of pollutants that might
be potentially discharged.
Permits for discharges from new construction (greater man 5 acres) will require that:
the applicant develop and submit a plan that addresses pollution occurring during and
after construction and by the use of the site after construction is completed.
The New York Sea Grant Extension Program, Connecticut Sea Grant Marine Advisory
Program, and the L3SS will continue to coordinate volunteers to paint stencils carrying
the message "Dont Pollute - Drains to U Sound1 onto stormdrains.
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Clean-up Activities
The introduction of floatable debris to the Sound will be reduced with the implementation of CSO and
stormwater controls. However, cleanup activities have an important role in reducing the street litter
that can be delivered via these sources and in minimizing the overall impact of floatable debris that
has entered the Sound.
Objective: Increase clean-up efforts, particularly prior to and during the beach season,
along Long Island Sound and in municipalities that have CSOs or storm sewers
discharging into Long Island Sound or its tributaries.
Benefit: Because the creation of litter is, in large part, a behavioral problem, public education
is essential to controlling floatable debris in the Sound. The introduction of floatable
debris to the Sound will be reduced with the implementation of the source controls.
However, cleanup activities still have an important role in minimizing the overall
impact of floatable debris.
Specific actions include:
• Continue to implement anti-litler campaigns, such as the Clean Streets/Clean Beaches and
Pack It In/Pack It Out programs.
Clean Streets/dean Beaches is a coalition of public and private groups in the States of New
York and New Jersey that was organized in April 1992. These groups emphasize that litter
thrown onto the street washes into storm sewers during heavy rains, and ultimately enters our
waters through CSO& and stormwater sewer outfalls.
The State of Connecticut has implemented a Pack It In/Pack It Out policy for solid waste
management at some parks and other public use areas. At many areas that typically generate
a low volume of trash, the removal of receptacles was followed by the placement of signs
asking people to take their garbage with them. Many receptacle-free areas are reported to
remain cleaner than those with over-flowing containers.
• Educate the public about the problems associated with disposal of medically-related
syringes, tampon applicators, and condoms in toilets. These articles will find their way
into combined sewers vi« toilets.
• The LISS will expand efforts to support the National Beach Clean-up Program.
The volunteer beach clean-up program will continue to be coordinated in New York State by
the NYSDEC and in Connecticut by die Connecticut Sea Grant Program. The EPA will
expand its involvement through the Long Island Sound Office.
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C. Living Resource Management and Habitat
Protection
Goals
• Assure a healthy ecosystem with balanced and diverse populations of indigenous plants and
animals.
• Increase the abundance and distribution ofharvestable species.
• Assure that edible species are suitable far unrestricted human consumption,
Background
The coastal lands and waters of Long Island Sound contain a diverse array of estuarine and coastal
species and habitats. The Sound has been historically renowned for its rich fisheries and
shellfisberies, an abundance of waterfowl, and varied flora and fauna. Immediately-recognizable
living resources are those that are harvested for human use including oysters, clams, bluefish,
flounder, fluke, striped bass, weakfish, lobster, waterfowl, and forbearing animals. Many other
plants and animals are present in the Sound that are not used by humans. Nevertheless, they are
integral components of the Long Island Sound ecosystem. The well-being of both harvested and non-
harvested species and the complex ecosystem they comprise depends upon the maintenance of suitable
water quality and protection of habitats.
While the emphasis of previous sections of this plan has been on water quality, Long Island Sound's
living resources and weir habitats are also affected by .other human activities. Historic development
activities have caused the direct loss and degradation of many critical and productive coastal habitats
such as beaches, dunes, tidal wetlands, and intertidal flats. Other activities, such as construction of
dams, have eliminated access to spawning areas by anadromous finfish, Overharvesting of living
resources is a problem that dates back to Colonial times. In response, catch limits for many finfish
species were necessary and have been established as well as restrictions on the taking of migratory
birds. Nuisance species, whose populations may be enhanced due to human activities, and
introductions of exotic species, have also impacted the Sound's native flora and fauna through
competition or predation.
If a properly-functioning ecosystem is to be maintained, and the full range of current and prospective
values both in human and ecological terms is to be realized, Long Island Sound must remain as free
as possible from threats of human intrusion and pollution.
Key Findings
Water quality has many consequences for the health of the Sound's living resources. Specific water
quality ramifications of hypoxia, toxic contaminants, floatable debris, and pathogens on the living
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resources are described in detail in the documents that support this plan, and are summarized in
Section II-C. Impacts of hypoxia have included reduced presence of fmfish and shellfish, slow
growth, physiological stress, and mortality. The occurrence of hypoxia in the waters of Long Island
Sound results in the loss of valuable habitat and impacts the health of its living resources. Similarly,
presence of toxic contaminants can have both lethal and sublethal effects on living resources. Because
toxic contaminants can accumulate in tissues, the link between contaminated areas and biological
impacts can be complex. Other impacts which more directly affect humans include the presence of
toxic substances in tissues of living resources that result in consumption advisories. Pathogen
contamination also directly affects human use of living resources, particularly shellfish, which may
accumulate human pathogens from contaminated waters. Finally, the presence of some types of litter
that can entangle aquatic and coastal organisms or that might be accidentally ingested can cause death
or injury to those animals.
In addition to the requirement of suitable water quality, living resources are dependent upon habitat
quality and quantity. The quantity of key habitats such as beaches, dunes, bluffs, intertidal flats, tidal
wetlands, and general benthic substrates has been significantly reduced or modified during this
century. Approximately 25 to 35% of the Sound's vegetated tidal wetlands, for example, have been
destroyed by filling and dredging actions within the past century. Species such as the piping plover,
least tern, seabeach panic grass, and prickly pear cactus are rare as a result of alteration and loss of
beach and dune habitat, and critical nursery and spawning areas for finfish and crustaceans have been
lost from alterations of aquatic habitat.
Passage of tidal wetland regulations in the States of Connecticut and New York has virtually arrested
the loss of tidal wetlands. The broad-based coastal and marine resource management programs
adopted by the states have been instrumental in reducing losses of many other aquatic resources.
Proposed activities in coastal waters such as marinas, docks, and utility crossings are evaluated on a
case-by-case basis through permit programs to assure that impacts on living resources are minimal.
Dredging, for example, is usually restricted to certain times of the year to reduce or avoid the impacts
of increased sedimentation on migratory finfish, larval finfish and shellfish, and other aquatic life. In
addition, there are ongoing efforts to restore lost or degraded habitats.
Despite the strong protection afforded aquatic resources by these programs, historic activities and
point and nonpoint sources of pollution are causing habitat impacts. Stormwater discharges that dilute
tidewaters and reduce tidal flows are contributing to the degradation of tidal wetlands and
embayments. Introductions of exotic species may also cause habitat alterations and the decline of
native species.
la addition to die protection of species' habitats, the management of harvest is essential to protect
species such as winter flounder, lobster, black duck, and diamond-backed terrapins. The
implementation of a restricted harvest of striped bass since 1984 in the Sound and elsewhere along die
East Coast has resulted in a significant increase in mat species. In response to diminishing
populations of bluefish, recent restrictions have also been imposed on their harvest. Given the
diversity of living resources in and around Long Island Sound, management of harvests will continue
to evolve as resources needs and problems demand.
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Management Approach
Three basic elements to the management of living resources are water quality, habitat, and harvest
management. The LISS has directed research towards water quality impacts on the health of the
aquatic organisms. Habitat and living resources management has been, and will continue to be,
addressed by numerous state and federal agency programs. However, as part of the LISS approach to
managing living resources and their habitats, a general strategy has been developed to guide specific
management activities. Specifically:
Assuring a healthy ecosystem with balanced and diverse populations of indigenous plants and animals
can be accomplished by:
• achieving environmental conditions that allow effective reproduction, growth,
movement, and feeding, as necessary, of all Long Island Sound organisms;
• maintaining a wide diversity of habitat types throughout the region, consistent with
historic conditions; and
• increasing the abundance of species listed by the states and/or federal government as
endangered, threatened, or of other special concern.
Increasing the abundance and distribution of harvestable species can be accomplished by:
• assuring that environmental conditions do not impede the reproductive success (i.e.,
through juvenile life stages) of resource species that reproduce in Long Island Sound;
• identifying and maintaining existing breeding and nursery habitats for resource species
in the Sound and increasing the availability and productivity of such areas in the
future;
• attaining environmental conditions that support full utilization of the Sound as a
migratory passageway and a feeding, growing, and resting area for the principal
reproducing, migratory, or seasonally-resident resource species; and
• encouraging management practices intended to conserve harvested resources.
Assuring that edible species are suitable for unrestricted human consumption can be accomplished by:
• assuring that toxic contaminants from sources in Long Island Sound or its drainage
basin are not the cause of health risks resulting in consumption advisories or
commercial or recreational fishery restrictions; and
• preventing further closures of shellfish harvest areas due to pathogen contamination
and reducing the duration or frequency of closures.
The actions that address the remediation of pollution-induced effects to the Sound's living resources
are highlighted in other sections of this management plan. Two other issues, habitat conservation and
living resources management, must also be addressed to fully meet the goals for the Sound's living
resources. In mis section, objectives for habitat and species management are identified. Many of the
objectives will need to be adapted to specific areas adjacent to or within the Sound. This can be
done, in part, through the development of habitat management strategies for specific complexes or
regions within the Sound or along its coast.
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The States of Connecticut and New York, as well as federal agencies, have a long history of
management and protection of coastal land and aquatic resources associated with the Sound.
Examples include a variety of permit programs, living resource management programs for finfish,
shellfish and wildlife, natural heritage programs, open space plans, and acquisition programs and
coastal management programs. These programs provide the framework for the protection,
management, and enhancement of coastal habitats; and the states will be responsible for implementing
the actions listed below.
The LISS supports and encourages habitat and resource management actions and projects currently
being planned or implemented by the States of Connecticut and New York, federal agencies, and
private institutions, consistent with the objectives listed below. Many of these projects can serve as
models for future actions to improve the living resources of Long Island Sound. The objectives listed
below are intended to support and encourage the efforts ongoing in these other institutions as well as
to identify necessary new activities. These objectives may be considered for action by the LISS or,
alternatively, the LISS may simply advocate and encourage such activities by other entities.
In addition to water quality management objectives, the LISS has identified nine habitat and living
resource management objectives where ongoing efforts need to be supported and new activities
identified. These objectives are categorized into six areas: water quality management, habitat
management, species management, public access, education and monitoring, assessment, and
research.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
Water Quality Management
Water quality management actions specific to the key water quality problems of hypoxia, toxic
contaminants, floatable debris, and pathogens were detailed in prior sections of the plan and will not
be repeated here. However, their relationship to sound management of the living resources of Long
Island Sound cannot be overlooked.
Habitat Management
Objective: Implement a habitat protection, conservation, and restoration program (or
improve upon existing ones) that will include land acquisition, easements, land
use regulation, habitat restoration efforts, and pollution abatement.
There are many ongoing activities and recommendations that are relevant to this objective including:
Identify and protect rare and environmentally-sensitive habitats, including, but not limited to
wetlands, dunes, bluffs, submerged aquatic vegetation beds, and undeveloped/uninhabited
islands on which birds breed.
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Limit access to rare and environmentally sensitive habitats to prevent their degradation or
destruction and develop buffer zones around habitats to prevent direct and indirect
disturbances to rare and sensitive living resources.
Protect and, where possible, restore and enhance degraded habitats, including dunes, tidal and
inland wetlands, submerged aquatic vegetation, and coastal woodlands.
Examples of existing wetland restoration projects include: Premium River, Alley Pond
Park, Pelham Bay park, Guion Creek, and Eastchester Bay in New York State and
Ash Creek, Great Creek, Caroline Creek, Branford River, Great Harbor Wildlife
Management Area, Long Cove, Hammock River, Mumford Cove and Barn Island
Wildlife Management Area in Connecticut.
Examples of potential sites for future tidal wetland restoration projects include;
Mattituck Creek, Wading River, Sunken Meadow Creek, Crab Meadow, Oak Neck
Creek, Frost Creek, and East Creek in New York State and Wilcox Cove, Oyster
River, Connecticut River wetlands, Hammonasset State Park wetlands, Sluice Creek,
Quinnipiac River marshes, Fletchers Creek, Housatonic River wetlands, and Pine
Creek in Connecticut.
Control point and nonpoint source pollution which cause habitat degradation, e.g., nutriei::
enrichment causing declines in submerged aquatic vegetation and stormwater causing wetland
degradation as a result of dilution and sedimentation.
Protect rare and environmentally-sensitive habitats important for populations of living
resources, including but not limited to wetlands, dunes, submerged aquatic vegetation bed
areas, and colonial seabird habitat areas through acquisition by easement, fee simple or other
means.
Priority tidal wetland acquisition sites' have been identified in New York State and
include Porpoise Channel, Alley Creek, Long Creek/Mattituck Creek, Premium
River, and Cedar Beach Creek. Additional Priority sites are identified in New York's
Open Space Conservation Land and include a portion of Oyster Bay Harbor, the
Underbill parcel in Oyster Bay, and the Bronx River Trailway.
Connecticut should continue to encourage and assist the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service in their program to expand the Stewart McKinney Wildlife Refuge System and
incorporate significant coastal lands and islands of Long Island Sound.
Develop and periodically update a list of priority habitat and sensitive areas for protection.
Develop economic incentives for those who enhance habitat for living resources.
Encourage landowners to engage in landscape practices less harmful to living resources and
their habitats. This can include planting or retention of native vegetation and reducing
reliance on commercial fertilizers and pesticides.
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Specific actions to meet this objective are:
• The States of Connecticut and New York will explore methods or using antidegradation
policies to preserve significant aquatic habitats of Long Island Sound.
• The NYSDEC will identify projects in the Long Island Sound watershed which will
benefit natural resources and improve water quality under the Intel-modal Surface
Transportation and Efficiency Act (ISTEA) program. Wetlands restoration, stormwater
runoff control, and public access will be the top priorities. The NYSDEC will submit
recommendations to the Transportation Enhancement Committees and participate in
their deliberations. Success of these projects will depend upon support from local
government and environmental and planning groups.
• The States of Connecticut and New York will pursue the use of the Land and Water
Conservation Fund to restore and acquire valuable Long Island Sound habitats.
• The State of New York will seek to implement those provisions of the New York State
Open Space Conservation Plan that will protect significant habitats and ecologically
important areas along Long Island Sound.
• The State of New York and the EPA will continue to protect the remaining tidal and
freshwater wetland bases, restore the functions and values of existing wetlands, and
encourage the creation of a "net gain" in the quality and quantity of wetlands in coastal
areas of New York.
• The State of Connecticut will continue to implement its existing wetlands restoration and
regulatory programs to maintain its "no-net-loss" standard and continue to encourage a
"net gain" in quality and function of wetlands in coastal areas.
Components of this action include:
Development of a long-term tidal wetland restoration strategy for Connecticut that
identifies restoration priorities, funding opportunities, and implementation strategies.
Continuance of cooperative restoration projects with the Mosquito Control Section of
the Connecticut Department of Health Services and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
Reduction of nonpoint source impacts caused by stormwater discharges.
Use of ISTEA funds to reverse direct and indirect impacts caused by transportation
facilities.
Implementation of a tidal wetland compensation policy to offset unavoidable tidal
wetland losses induced by public projects affording demonstrable public benefits.
Compensation, i.e., creation or restoration of tidal wetlands, may be required in
conjunction with approval of regulated activity or as a separate activity to create
"credits" for use in conjunction with future activities (i.e., "banking"). Compensation
must generally be undertaken and determined to be functioning prior to initiation of
the activity causing the resource loss.
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Objective: Develop habitat management strategies for specific complexes or regions within
Long Island Sound.
Actions towards this objective are:
• The New York State Department of State (NYSDOS) in cooperation with the NYSDEC
will revise the fisting of Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitats on the North
Shore of Long Island.
• The USS, through New York State, will, on a pilot basis, develop a site-specific
management strategy for the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor complex in New York and
a site in Connecticut.
• The CTDEP will identify complexes of statewide importance to complement Che
complexes of regional and national importance already identified by the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service.
Objective: Develop regional Coastal Management Programs in New York State specific to
Long Island Sound and consider expanding existing boundaries to include
sensitive habitats.
An action to meet this objective is:
• The NYSDOS will continue to develop a regional Coastal Management Plan for Long
Island Sound in parallel with the completion of this management plan.
Species Management
Objective: Encourage the development of species or species group management plans for the
living resources of Long Island Sound. These plans should incorporate strategies
developed by state as well as interjurisdictional management institutions.
Examples of the activities that should be in these plans include:
For general aquatic life protection:
Identity seasonal restrictions for dredging that minimize adverse effects on aquatic organisms,
especially finfish and shellfish, and their habitats.
Establish limits on the entraiiunent and impingement of eggs, larvae, and other life stages of
aquatic organisms at industrial facilities.
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For harvested species:
Develop technically-justified strategies for reducing fishing mortality or delaying age at entry
to fisheries in which mortality rates exceed acceptable levels. Such fishery management plans
must be implemented for fluke, weakfish, bluefish, and winter flounder, among others.
Develop methods to reduce the incidental take of non-target and undersized species in
commercial activities.
Develop artificial reefs in appropriate areas to increase the quantity of productive fishing
opportunities. Plans have been developed by the NYSDEC to build four such reefs in New
York State waters of Long Island Sound.
Remove or bypass obstructions to anadromous finfish migration through the construction of
fish ways or fish lifts. Several such projects are already underway in some Connecticut rivers.
Encourage waterfowl habitat management activities such as those conducted under the North
American Waterfowl Management Plan.
Restore and enhance, where appropriate, populations of declining species.
For rare and sensitive species:
Identify and periodically revise a list of rare and sensitive species associated with the coastal
lands and waters of Long Island Sound.
Develop specific management and recovery plans for rare and sensitive species or species
groups such as colonial waterbirds, marine mammals, and sea turtles and implement such
plans where already developed.
For exotic species:
Prohibit the introduction of known or potentially-undesirable exotic species into the Sound and
its watershed.
Develop control programs for nuisance species, as appropriate, such as Norway rats
associated with colonial waterbird colonies, Asiatic bittersweet, common reed, black locust,
bush honeysuckle, and mute swans.
Public Access
Objective: Increase public access to the Sound for enjoyment, use, and observation of living
resources and their habitats.
The New York State Open Space Conservation Plan has recognized the North Shore of Long Island as
a major natural corridor with significant, corridor-wide needs for development of waterway access.
Consistent with that plan, New York State's Marine Fishing Access Plan has identified a severe
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deficiency of public access areas, boat launch ramps, and other facilities in New York City,
Westchester County, and the mid-North Shore of Long Island.
Connecticut will continue to increase access to the shoreline using the water dependency requirements
of the Coastal Management Act for shoreline development projects. Connecticut will also continue to
identify priority areas for increased public access including hunting, fishing, boat launching,
education, and nature observation. Existing land acquisition and management programs will be used
to secure increased access in Connecticut.
Education
Objective: Develop an outreach program to inform and educate the public about the Sound's
living resourcs and involve them in implementing the objectives outlined above.
Outreach programs will be instrumental in reducing public impact on important habitats in or adjacent
to Long bland Sound. This outreach program must include a method of involving interested
members of the public in monitoring the living resources of the Sound.
Monitoring, Assessment, and Research
Objective: Develop an informational data base for the purpose of management and
monitoring that incorporates resource and habitat information and sources of
Impacts.
The following action will assist in accomplishing this objective:
• The LISS will initiate the development of a Geographic Information System. This
computer mapping system will include priority data sets such as habitat distribution,
sediment distribution, fishing areas, access points, and open space.
Objective: Conduct Sound-wide and site-specific research and monitoring activities.
To ensure that water quality, habitat, and species management actions are resulting in die expected
benefits for living resources, continued monitoring and evaluation is critical. An example of a Sound-
wide activity is Connecticut's Marine Resource Survey. Examples of site-specific activities include
New York State's Lobster Mortality Project, Connecticut's survey of commercial shellfish distribution
and reproductive success, and New York City's Harbor Survey Program.
Objective: Develop a research agenda that identifies information gaps and outlines priorities
for research on firing resources.
Continuing research needs for the living resources and their habitats are expansive and cannot be
listed within this plan. The LISS should develop and promote research programs for the Sound.
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D. Land Use
Goal
Foster responsible land uses and planning compatible with the other goals of the Long Island
Sound Study by prowling and encouraging implementation of recommendations that address
development patterns in Long Island Sound and its watershed.
Background
The L1SS initially focused on understanding water quality conditions in the Sound and identifying the
sources of pollutants causing impairments. As management goals were identified, it became obvious
that addressing them adequately would require that the scope of the Study be expanded to include land
use issues. In recognition of this, the Policy Committee asked the LISS to determine how best to
approach Long Island Sound land use issues and to prepare implementation recommendations. In
response, the LISS began a land use evaluation initiative in February 1992. To date, the LISS has
developed a number of preliminary findings and recommendations and is preparing a land use report.
Because this effort was only recently begun, much work remains to be done.
Key Findings
The LISS agreed that a Long Island Sound land use/water quality strategy is needed to help guide
and manage future development and re-development of Connecticut and New York State portions of
the Long Island Sound watershed. As a result of discussions and research over the past year, the
basic elements of the strategy have been identified. To restore degraded waters and preserve clean
waters in the Sound and its tributaries, federal, state, and local policies should encourage urban and
suburban re-development. Specifically, public and private investment in urban environmental
infrastructure, such as sewage treatment plants and the reclamation of derelict waterfront properties
on the Sound and its tributaries, should take priority over developing new lands.
Many urban waterfront sites may be contaminated with toxic substances. As a result, developers and
their financial backers shy away from these sites because of die potentially high costs of remediation
and liability. This has the effect of encouraging new development in suburban and rural areas on
"safe" undeveloped lands. Setting clean-up standards, subsidizing some clean ups, and limiting open-
ended liability for urban land redevelopers are important for enhancing water quality. For example,
the State of Connecticut is implementing a pilot Urban Sites Remediation Program to identify and
evaluate contaminated urban industrial sites deemed vital to the economic development needs of the
state. This program is designed to expedite the cleanup and subsequent redevelopment of urban sites
where existing infrastructure exists rather than developing remaining parcels of land. The first site,
located in Norwich, has been selected. Up to two additional sites will be selected hi calendar year
1993. These sites will be assessed to determine the extent and degree of contamination and to
identify cleanup measures mat will facilitate the sale and reuse of the property. The possibility exists
that the program may be expanded in the future to enable the CTDEP to proceed with implementation
of remedial actions. Connecticut will aggressively implement the pilot program to demonstrate its
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effectiveness for further consideration. Concurrently, state and municipal governments should
carefully plan for such re-development to ensure that adequate sewage and wastewater treatment
capacity exists to meet water quality standards.
Similarly, water quality goals must be supported by government policies that strongly discourage the
development of environmentally-sensitive and significant areas such as wetlands and river or stream
banks also called "riparian zones." While existing state and federal wetland regulations protect
wetlands for a variety of values, they do not fully recognize their potential nutrient and pollution
removal functions. At present, myriad local, state, and federal agencies make decisions that directly
and indirectly affect Long Island Sound water quality. Because of the ways programs developed over
time, these agencies often do not apply consistent water quality management guidelines, if they
consider water quality at all, nor do they all have access to expert technical assistance when
developing plans and reviewing projects.
Coordinated guidance should be provided to ensure that Long Island Sound water quality priorities are
addressed and duplication of effort and conflicts are minimized. In addition, regulatory protection for
environmentally-significant areas alone will not ensure long term preservation of these sites. Land
acquisition, or purchase or transfer of development rights may be necessary in some cases to maintain
the remaining natural areas and their important water quality and habitat values. In order to
encourage Connecticut and New York State residents to commit public or private funds for sucii
purposes, increased public access to the Sound should also be secured through acquisition or through
the coastal development review and approval process in each state.
Management Approach
The LISS needs to develop a simple land use/water quality strategy, complete its land use report,
and recommend additional work needed to address land use issues in the future.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
To date, little information has been collected and analyzed on the subject of land use in the Long
Island Sound watershed. Before specific commitments and recommendations can be made by LISS,
the assessment of land use information that has been initiated to date must be completed and
reviewed. This requires the following actions:
• The LISS will complete a draft land use report by May 1993.
• The LISS will prepare a concise draft land use/water quality strategy and
recommendations for future work by September 1993.
• The LISS will report by November 1,1993 to the LISS Policy Committee what actions
should be taken to address land use issues in the Long Island Sound watershed.
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Research Recommendations
The LISS discussions and the draft land use report have generated suggestions for additional
assessment and research that should be considered for funding and staff support in 1993 and beyond.
The ability to carry out any of these projects will require the availability of staff and funding for
which there are currently no commitments.
Short Term
Recommendation: Investigate how the public and private sectors can effectively guide new
development towards redevelopment of urban areas and suburban areas.
Recommendation: Determine how best to identify and preserve freshwater or brackish wetlands,
river and stream banks, and open lands in urban and suburban areas near the Sound and its tributaries
that contribute to the maintenance of water quality in those waters.
Recommendation: Determine whether existing state and local open space or other land acquisition
programs clearly support Long Island Sound water quality and habitat objectives. As pan of this
analysis, identify opportunities for private groups to buy land for the purpose of water quality and
habitat protection.
Recommendation: Develop proposals to establish and institutionalize at the state level, water quality
training programs for local land use regulatory officials. Proposals must identify potential funding
sources.
Long Term
Recommendation: Through Section 6217 of the Coastal Zone Management Act, determine what
existing legislation and regulations governing federal, state, and local infrastructure and land use
regulatory programs need to be amended to ensure consistent and thorough consideration of water
quality impacts in the Sound and its tributaries.
Recommendation: Continue to review the capability of existing sewage treatment plants to meet
water quality standards in the Sound and its tributaries for the foreseeable future. Investigate how
implementation of water conservation measures would affect sewage treatment plant capacity along
with projected population growth and the anticipated separation of combined stormwater and sanitary
sewer systems.
Recommendation: Investigate the type of sewage treatment the states should recommend or require
given Long Island Sound water quality and habitat protection objectives. Reassess existing septic
system siting and sewering policies at the federal, state, and local level.
Recommendation: Identify land use, land cover, and information management systems needed by
local and state governments to meet water quality and habitat objectives of the LISS. Recommend
mat information and management systems used in each state are comparable and usable by local
governments.
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E. Monitoring and Reporting
Goal
Design and implement a long-term monitoring strategy that wilt assess the progress of CCMP
implementation.
Background
To assess the success of management actions, the LISS will design a long-term monitoring strategy to
track implementation of actions to restore the Sound and measure the effectiveness of those actions.
The strategy will have two parts:
• Administrative monitoring (or tracking) of program implementation; and
• Ambient and source monitoring of Long Island Sound and its watershed to assess
effectiveness of program implementation in meeting environmental goals. Data
management of collected monitoring information is an integral component of the
long-term monitoring strategy.
Management Approach
Administrative Monitoring
The LISS has been an effective institutional framework for developing the CCMP. Continuation of
the LISS will also be die most effective framework for overseeing implementation of the CCMP. The
LISS has been extended to oversee the implementation of the CCMP, report on progress made, and
reevaluate efforts to improve effectiveness. Extending the LISS into implementation reflects the
reality that a cooperative long-term commitment is the only option lor protecting and improving the
quality of Long bland Sound.
Another aspect of administrative monitoring is the need to coordinate programs so that they do not
conflict with die CCMP. Section 320(b)(7) of the Clean Water Act charges the LISS with developing
a strategy to ensure that federal financial assistance programs and development projects are consistent
with and further the purposes and objectives of the CCMP. The LISS strategy is to integrate the
process into the existing federal consistency reviews performed by the Coastal Zone Management
Programs of the States of Connecticut and New York. This offers many advantages:
• The federal consistency reviews performed by die states have the force of law; projects mat
are inconsistent can be prohibited from proceeding.
• They include activities requiring a federal permit or license, thereby expanding the scope of
the review.
• Duplication of efforts will be avoided.
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The states will incorporate the enforceable elements of the CCMP within their Coastal Zone
Management Programs, thereby improving coordination between water quality and coastal
zone management programs.
Hie State of Connecticut's program already has Long Island Sound as its primary focus. The
State of New York is currently developing region specific Coastal Zone Management Plans,
starting with the Long Island Sound region, to replace its statewide plan.
Ambient and Source Monitoring
The open waters of Long Island Sound are routinely monitored, albeit not comprehensively nor in a
coordinated manner, by many local, state, and federal agencies as well as volunteer and grass roots
organizations. Over the years (even decades) ambient monitoring programs have been developed by
numerous agencies to preserve and protect the many beneficial and valuable aspects of the Sound.
These programs focus on three areas:
• monitoring to protect the public health (bathing beach and shellfish certification programs);
• compliance monitoring (point source surveillance); and
• routine environmental monitoring (e.g. NOAA Status and Trends Program and the EPA
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program to address Long-term trends).
Monitoring programs typically have sampling objectives directed by specific mandates, authorities, or
activities. Systemwide assessments are complicated by differences among the programs. These
differences may include methods of collection, target species, locations, migratory collection seasons,
level of detail in developing quality assurance - quality control (QA/QC) project plans, analytical
methods, analytical detection limits, calibrations, sampling and storage requirements, duration and
mechanism of storage, reporting of data, data presentation, data management, and statistical data
reduction. A lack of coordination can lead to duplicative studies within the same study basin.
Recognizing the importance of compiling monitoring information into one document, the NYSDEC
has prepared a program inventory of all routine environmental monitoring activities presently being
conducted in die Sound. This inventory includes administrative and sampling information as well as a
summary of each program's monitoring objectives, current assessments, and program contacts. The
report also lists the monitoring needs and recommendations that have been developed by the LISS for
each problem area. Translating those needs into a comprehensive monitoring program for Long
Island Sound will require coordination with existing monitoring programs in the Sound. Other
regional efforts, such as the HEP must also be taken into account.
The LISS monitoring strategy must also consider data management. Because the New York - New
Jersey Harbor and Long Island Sound are geographically interconnected, management of data relevant
to the Harbor/Sound system-wide analyses must also be integrated. The LISS and the HEP have
assessed the following data management needs:
• Provide for storage, retrieval, editing, and QA/QC of LISS, HEP, and other relevant
environmental data, including physical, chemical, and biological components.
• Fully integrate LISS and HEP data relevant to systemwide analyses.
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• Provide access to these data to the EPA, the states, other agencies, and investigators.
• Provide full description of data sets including QA/QC documentation.
• Provide appropriate tools to users including data entry package, statistical package,
Geographic Information System (CIS) interface, STORET interface.
• Provide real-time data access and analysts.
ID general terms, monitoring of Long Island Sound will be important in:
• Establishing baselines and trends of environmental quality;
• Conducting special studies to address gaps in information needed for management
recommendations and policy decisions; and
• Assessing the effectiveness of management actions.
SPECIFIC ACTIONS AND COMMITMENTS OF THE CCMP
• The current structure of the LISS will be modified as needed to oversee Implementation
of the CCMP.
• The EPA Long Island Sound Office, with locations in Stamford, Connecticut and at the
Slate University of New York at Stony Brook, will provide support to the LISS and will
report annually on the program's progress.
• The States of Connecticut and New York will incorporate appropriate CCMP actions into
their Coastal Zone Management Programs. This will ensure that subject federal actions,
including many federally-funded or permitted projects, are consistent with those actions
of the CCMP.
• A workshop will be held in 1993 to develop a monitoring program for Long Island
Sound. This workshop will build upon existing monitoring programs to design a
program that meets the monitoring needs identified by the LISS.
The goal of the workshop is to develop a monitoring program that has diagnostic value, one
that is affordable and can be sustained, and one that produces data that are transformed into
information that is actually used.
• The LISS and the HEP have entered into a cooperative agreement to use the EPA Ocean
Data Evaluation System for their data management needs.
ODES is supported at the national level by several EPA Programs including the National
Estuary Program. ODES wDl be able to meet the data management needs for both programs.
• The LISS and the HEP will share a data manager to assist in both efforts.
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IV. Costs/Funding
A. Capital Needs
Introduction
This section characterizes the Long Island Sound water pollution control financial need for capital
improvements. The objective is to develop a means to finance the necessary improvements to clean
up Long Island Sound and, in particular, to manage the hypoxia problem that impacts substantial
areas of the Sound. However, the financial plan must be considered in tight of other identified
wastewater needs in the States of Connecticut and New York and must consider the ability of local
and state governments to pay for the Long Island Sound requirements in addition to existing
requirements. The financial mechanism to accomplish these funding needs is also discussed.
Inventory of Needs
State Water Quality Needs
Prior to the LISS , both stales had identified significant municipal water pollution control needs. In
1989, New York's State Revolving Fund (NYSRF) was developed to finance, by the year 2000
approximately $4 billion of the $11.7 billion of the statewide categorical need. It did not include any
additional LISS needs. In Connecticut, the Governor presented a water pollution control needs
assessment study to the state legislature in 1986. The study documented the need to fund projects in
four major categories to comply with federal mandates. The four categories were: 1) combined sewer
overflow projects; 2) treatment plant projects; 3) small community projects; and 4) interceptor
projects. The total program estimates at the time were $1.077 billion. These needs were the basis
for the states' SRF capitalization requirements and annual funding programs.
Since the NYSRF's enactment, new requirements and eligibilities in the area of stormwater control,
control of sludge use and disposal, nonpomt source pollution control, and groundwater protection
have raised the funding requirement to $18.1 billion. In Connecticut, inflation, new unmet needs.
and revised cost estimates have added $700 million Co the original cost estimates, exclusive of any
additional LISS needs. While these state-identified, base needs are not Long Island Sound specific,
many of the projects will benefit the Sound. For example, CSO abatement efforts in New York City
and in Connecticut and secondary treatment at New York City's Newtown Creek sewage treatment
plant are included in the base needs. These facilities and improvements are part of the states ongoing
effort to resolve water pollution control problems.
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Long Island Sound Needs
The LISS has identified steps to help alleviate long-term problems in the Sound. Of immediate
concern are actions to prevent deterioration of environmental conditions in the Sound, In New York
State, New York City and the Counties of Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk have committed or will
be encouraged by New York State to commit their share of $98 million needed to reduce nitrogen
loading to the Sound under Phase H of the hypoxia management plan. In Connecticut, the state has
committed $14 million in capital expenditures to 12 municipalities to reduce the nitrogen loading to
the Sound.
There are various other environmental infrastructure projects related to Long Island Sound which are
•ready to proceed" should funding he made available. The States of Connecticut and New York
developed project lists which would provide economic stimulation should that become a priority for
new administrations (Appendix B).
An aspect of LISS implementation relates to site-specific control measures such as stormwater
management. The capital requirements of these measures have not been priced but will be addressed
as part of the continuing planning effort.
The LISS has estimated the long-term investments that may be required to control nitrogen loads to
Long Island Sound. There are 45 sewage treatment plants that directly discharge effluent into Long
Island Sound. Twenty-one in western Long Island Sound have been identified fbi priority
management action. They will require a more precise and comprehensive cost analysis to ascertain
the exact means and cost to remove nitrogen. In addition, there are costs associated with nonpoint
source controls and other non-conventional water pollution control costs not yet firmly established.
Thus far, total maximum estimated costs for a high level nitrogen control in Long Island Sound is
$8.1 billion; $6.4 billion in New York and $1.7 billion in Connecticut.
These costs must be evaluated with the other wastewater pollution control measures described earlier
to develop a comprehensive financing plan for wastewater pollution abatement in the states. With the
existing base needs and the additional Long Island Sound capital requirements, the total New York
State wastewater need is estimated to be approximately $25 billion. The additional Long Island
Sound requirements are projected to cost $1.7 billion in Connecticut alone, nearly doubling the 1992
total program costs. Connecticut races a potential total program cost of $3.5 billion.
Current Financing Mechanism - Stale Revolving Fund
The 1987 Amendments to the Clean Water Act phased out grant financing for construction of
sewerage projects and replaced them with a revolving loan mechanism dedicated to wastewater facility
construction. Under this new revolving fond, the capitalization grants contributed by (he federal
government are matched by a 20% contribution from the states. These capitalization grants allow the
States of Connecticut and New York to subsidize a percentage of the interest cost. All of (he principal
and the remainder of the interest expenses must be financed by the municipalities to pay for the
identified needs. In order to qualify for federal capitalization funds, Connecticut and New York State
enacted highly-leveraged State Revolving Fund (SRF) programs.
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New York State established its SRF in the custody of the Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC).
This public corporation benefits local governments in New York State by offering below-market
interest rate loans to municipalities to finance wastewater improvements. Currently, the interest rate.
is set at up to one-half of the market rate to be repaid in twenty years. Lower rates of interest,
including zero interest loans, are available for communities that can demonstrate an inability to pay
the standard subsidized rate. The State of Connecticut operates its SRF directly through the CTDEP.
Two percent loans in combination with grants ranging from 20% to 50% provide financing of 100%
of total eligible project costs.
Both Connecticut and New York State leverage the federal and state capitalization funds in the bond
market to increase the pace and number of projects which can be funded. This is essential because
the states' needs are so large that it is crucial to build as many projects as quickly as possible to
maximize value of the equity in the SRF. In addition, the leveraging protects the basic capitalization
of die fund through investments on behalf of participating municipalities. This insures a continuous
dedicated fund for environmental protection through sewage treatment plant investment.
The SRFs in Connecticut and New York State are now generally understood by the municipal
borrowers and highly regarded by the investment markets. The strong market grade for the funds is
testimony to the sound structure and the leadership of the SRFs. Through November of 1992, New
York State has issued $1.2 billion in loans to New York communities. In Connecticut, visibility of
the SRF is evident in funding levels authorized above planned levels, as well as the high level of
acceptance by state legislators and municipalities alike. The program is flexible in the sense that,
given the legislative will and support, it could integrate the concepts of affordability, user impact, and
financial hardship to minimize financial impact.
Funding State Wastewater Programs
The magnitude of capital needs increases has limited the ability of the states and local governments to
respond in a timely way to critical environmental priorities. The additional LISS needs compound an
already difficult financing problem. Some needs may have to be forestalled for lack of funds.
Additionally, regular federal capitalization grants are uncertain because of the national budgetary
process. In addition, the Clean Water Act was to be reauthorized in last year's Congressional session
but was not. The resultant uncertainties hurt regular program planning that is critical to the pace of
investment.
New York State is currently on a course to finance and build $4.0 billion dollars of environmental
improvements through the NYSRF by the year 2000. This was over a third of the wastewater
improvements at the time the NYSRF was established. It is not enough because current needs have
more than doubled and are now estimated to be $25 billion. In Connecticut, original funding
projections called for an annual state commitment of $40 million for 20 years, as a complement to the
estimated annual federal contribution of up to $25 million that was to be phased out by 1994. This
investment pace would have met the total program costs of $1.077 billion as identified by the
Governor at the time the CTSRF was enacted. At original funding levels and no new resources, full
program funding of the now required $3.5 billion need in Connecticut is not possible within a
reasonable timeframe.
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The states need to ascertain the capitalization requirements that would be required if their
environmental protection goals are to be fulfilled over the next 20 years. The evaluation assumed that
there would be a 5 percent inflation rate over the 20-year period. In addition, the states' existing
SRF programs as current!}' operating were used as the basis for financial modeling. The capital
program in New York State is intended to resolve an identified $25 billion need. In Connecticut the
need is $3.5 billion. The additional Long Island Sound needs are included in these overall estimates.
If these capital plans are financed through the SRFs and the existing federal statutory cost-sharing
formulas remain in effect, die federal contribution to the annual SRF capitalization funding in New
York should be approximately $623 million and New York State's share should be approximately
$128 million. In Connecticut, based upon the state's current grant/loan program, the state's share of
the capitalization requirement should approximately be $47 million and the federal share
approximately $70 million. These funding requirements cannot be satisfied with the current budget
appropriatioa to the EPA for SRF capitalization using the existing allocation formula to the states.
Under these circumstances, approximately $1.5 billion (leveraged dollars) annually in new
construction financing will be required in New York State in addition to the funds that are released
each year because of the revolving nature of the SRF. This means that at the beginning of the 20
year period a $1.5 billion dollar program will need to be financed and will grow to $3.5 billion by
the end of the 20-year period, a result of 5% inflation. In Connecticut, the capital outlays start at
approximately $170 million annually and grow to nearly $280 million at the eod of the 20-year
period.
Even with the fund adequately capitalized, there is a question of local affordability. This is a function
of a municipality's willingness and ability to pay for a proposed wastewater facility improvement.
Technically, a municipality's cunent economic position can be measured by evaluating historical,
current, and projected expenditures and revenues. Business and residential economic positions, as
measured by such things as income and full vahje assessments and fry comparing these attributes with
other similar communities, can help objectively determine ability to pay. Willingness to pay for
improvements is a more subjective task. However, it is an area where state governments can help
local municipalities through technical assistance. Organizing historical financial information,
establishing clear state priorities, assisting localities in developing their own capital plans, and gaining
access to bond markets is critical to overcoming the willingness to pay for capital improvements.
This task is made more daunting because the wastewater projects overlap municipal jurisdiction^
boundaries. Nonetheless, it can be accomplished if adequate resources were made available.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Long Island Sound is a national resource; its clean-up, therefore, must reflect a partnership effort
among federal, state, and local governments if it is to be equitable and successful. Long Island Sound
financing has been made more complicated by the existing traditional water pollution control needs
and these additional needs which may emerge from the LJSS. It is dear mat such needs, especially
those relating to Long Island Sound, have increased the size of the states' wastewater programs to
levels never envisioned in 1986 and wOl increase the cost to the states beyond their ability to pay for
them. Even if the states dramatically increase their commitment to pay for a higher proportion of
these improvements, the capital needs cannot be met by the stales alone.
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Both states have used the federal SRF capitalization grants to enact sophisticated, publicly-accepted
financing vehicles that are institutionally capable of addressing the needs of Long Island Sound. To
address the funding problem, a broad-based funding option is needed. Special fees and taxes at the
level recommended in the LISS report entitled, Options for Financing Nitrogen Control in Long
Island Sound and the Potential Impact of Those Options on the State and Selected Communities, will
be insufficient to meet the total potential capital needs. Furthermore, to maintain and avail continued
local support, additional technical help is required to assess the ability and willingness of local
government to pay for environmental protection improvements.
However, innovative and alternative financing approaches should be considered given the magnitude
of the capital ntcds. While not directly linked to discussions of the Clean Water Act reauthorization,
interest has been shown in alternative funding mechanisms.
To constructively address these issues, the conclusions and recommendations are as follows:
• The states have concluded that SRFs are the preferred method to finance the clean up of Long
Island Sound. Any funding proposal that includes wastewater investment should be provided
through these institutions.
• To continue the clean up efforts, the LISS has concluded that the Clean Water Act needs to be
reauthorized and that capitalization grants must continue.
• New York State will need approximately $623 and $128 million of federal and state funds,
respectively, per year for twenty years to meet its anticipated needs.
• Connecticut will need approximately $70 and $47 million of federal and state funds,
respectively, per year for twenty years to meet its anticipated needs.
• Based upon the results of reauthorization of the Clean Water Act and agreement on Long
Island Sound clean up, the LISS will formulate a detailed financial plan which will address the
total costs for implementation with a specific focus upon local governmental units and their
ability to pay for the required improvements.
• The states agree that they must work with and provide technical assistance to help local
governments develop capital plans.
• The EPA and the States of Connecticut and New York will seek to identify opportunities to
support projects remediating adverse environmental consequences of violations.
• The Suites of Connecticut and New York will advocate passage of federal legislation which
provides special funding to the state for implementation of National Estuary Program CCMPs
and continued planning needs.
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B. Continuation of the LISS Management Conference
Core Needs to Coordinate Implementation and Report on Progress
Three areas stand out as critical to supporting the LISS in continuing the coordination necessary to
oversee implementation of the CCMP.
• EPA Long Island Sound Office
• Public Participation Program
• Program coordination within the States of Connecticut and New York
The EPA Long bland Sound Office
The office, established by the Long Island Sound Improvement Act of 1990, will assist and support
the LISS in implementing the CCMP. EPA Regions I and H are staffing the office with * director
and providing for associated travel and support expenses estimated at approximately $75,000/year.
To serve the bi-state community, the office has two locations, Stamford, Connecticut and Stony
Brook, New York. Space and basic services are being provided for the office, at no charge tv Ite
federal government or the LISS, by the City of Stamford and by the State University of New Yoik at
Stony Brook. The additional operational costs of the office, such as secretarial support, office
supplies, equipment, telephone service, and equipment maintenance have been supported by a special
federal appropriation and are estimated to cost approximately $SO,000/year.
The Public Participation Program
The LISS public participation program costs approximately $200,QOO/year to support. En the past
year, staff have been stationed within the EPA Long.Island Sound Office to support educational and
outreach activities of the LISS.
State Program Coordinators
Each year the LISS has funded program coordinator positions within the NYSDEC and the CTDEP at
a total cost of approximately $125,000. Each coordinator provides foil time staff support to the LISS
and is the primary conduit for broader state program information and involvement in the LISS.
Additional Planning Needs to Enhance the CCMP
The CCMP has identified a number of high priority planning activities to enhance implementation.
These activities, rather than forestalling clean-up actions, are intrinsic to improving the effectiveness
of those actions over the long term. By applying the knowledge gained from continued planning to
restoration efforts, the LISS will ultimately improve the effectiveness of actions in achieving
environmental results.
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Key continued planning actions include:
• Completing the US 3.0 computer model of Long Island Sound and supporting any modeling
enhancements as appropriate;
• Monitoring the health of Long Island Sound and the sources of pollutants;
• Completing a detailed financial plan for Phase Three hypoxia management recommendations,
including cost estimates for actions and the ability of municipalities to finance them; and
• Additional planning and research needs identified in the CCMP.
Sources of Funding
The National Estuary Program provides funding to support efforts of Management Conferences to
coordinate the implementation of CCMPs and to report on progress. The National Estuary Program
allocation for the LISS is expected to be in the range of $300,000 per year.
The Lor.g Island Sound Office, as authorized by the Long Island Sound Improvement Act of 1990 is
authorized to conduct or commission studies necessary to strengthen CCMP implementation. In
1992, $750,000 was appropriated. Funds were used to establish the Long Island Sound Office,
support LIS 3.0 model development, and support public outreach activities. For 1993, $150,000 has
been appropriated.
Throughout the LISS, the States of Connecticut and New York have provided support by making
program staff available to assist in developing and implementing the CCMP. This support is expected
to continue.
During the past three years, the State of Connecticut has funded through general obligation bond
funds Long Island Sound-related research and education through Connecticut secondary schools,
colleges, and universities. This program has committed approximately $1 million per year on
research topics ranging from water quality and sediment transport to living resource population
dynamics. In 1992, Connecticut established a Long Island Sound motor vehicle registration plate with
funds dedicated to public access improvements, estuarine and aquatic habitat restoration and
preservation, education, public outreach, and research for Long Island Sound. Both programs are
guided by advisory committees. In future years, Connecticut will continue to evaluate and
recommend, as appropriate, the planning and research needs identified in the LISS for inclusion in
calls for proposals and in funding future research.
The NYSDEC will seek to identify a source of New York State funding to support a portion of the
continuing planning needs of the LISS.
An example of continuing planning process actions funded by municipalities is the monitoring of the
East River and western Sound conducted by the City of New York as part of its New York Harbor
Monitoring Program. This monitoring contributes valuable data on Long Island Sound. Other local
governments have also contributed data useful in assessing the Long Island Sound ecosystem.
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Recommendations
Federal, state, and local governments must continue to support the LISS by making resources
available to:
• coordinate implementation and report on progress; and
* enhance the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan through continued planning.
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V. Process for Public Review and Comment
The Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) for Long Island Sound is being
issued in draft form to give the public a chance to comment on both the general direction and specific
actions of the plan before it is finalized. To encourage an open dialogue, the LISS will take the
following steps:
• The Sea Grant public participation staff of the LISS can be contacted for information and
materials on the CCMP at the following addresses:
Joseph Blumberg (203)977-1543 KimZimmer (516)632-9216
LISS Public Participation Program LISS Public Participation Program
EPA Long Island Sound Office EPA Long Island Sound Office
Stamford Government Center Marine Sciences Research Center
888 Washington Blvd. State University of New York
Stamford, CT 06904-2152 Stony Brook, NY 11794-5000
• Copies of this report are available upon request from the Sea Grant public participation
program. Copies will also be made available at local libraries for public review. A brief
summary outlining the major points of the CCMP is also available.
• Copies of the individual supporting documents upon which the CCMP is based are listed in
Appendix A. A limited number of these reports are also available from the Sea Grant public
participation program. Full sets of these support documents are also available for review at
the following state agencies: the CTDEP Marine Fisheries office in Old Lyme, CT, telephone
#203-434-6043; the CTDEP Office of Long Island Sound Programs, Hartford, CT, tel. #203-
566-7404; the CTDEP Bureau of Water Management in Hartford, CT, tel. #203-566-6690;
the CTDEP Long Island Sound Resource Center at Avery Point (Groton), CT, tel. #203-445-
3473; the NYSDEC Bureau of Marine Habitat Protection in Stony Brook, NY, tel. #516-689-
3653, the NYSDEC Office of Marine Habitat Protection in Long Island City, NY, tel. #718-
482-6460; the NYSDEC Division of Water office in Tarrytown, NY, tel. #914-332-1835, and
the NYSDEC Office of Water Quality Management in Albany, NY, tel. #518-457-3656.
• A series of public meetings will be held in Connecticut and New York to promote discussion
of the CCMP. Long Island Sound Study staff will be available at the meeting to present the
CCMP and to solicit comments on it. The Public Participation Program can be contacted at
the numbers listed for the meeting dates and locations.
• Written comments on the plan are also encouraged and should be sent to the Sea Grant public
participation program on or before April 16, 1993.
• A Public Responsiveness Document will be prepared by the LISS that summarizes and
responds to each of the comments received.
• The final CCMP will be presented to the Governors of New York and Connecticut and the
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency for approval by the summer of 1993.
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Upon completion of the public review and comment period, the CCMP will be revised
accordingly and submitted to the Governors of New York and Connecticut and the EPA
Administrator for signature. With their endorsement, the CCMP will be considered finalized.
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Appendix A. Bibliography of CCMP Supporting Documents
Long Island Sound Study
Hypoxia and Nutrient Enrichment
Assessment of Conditions and Management Recommendations
Toxic Substance Contamination
Assessment of Conditions and Management Recommendations
Pathogen Contamination
Assessment of Conditions and Management Recommendations
Floatable Debris
Assessment of Conditions and Management Recommendations
Assessment of Living Marine Resources
Public Involvement and Education
Environmental Monitoring of Long Island Sound - Program Inventory
Discussion of Existing Management Programs for Long Island Sound and Its Resources
Federal Consistency Review
A comprehensive listing of all technical reports supported by the Long Island Sound Study is available
from the LISS Public Participation Program.
Joseph Blumberg (203)977-1543 KimZimmer (516)632-9216
LISS Public Participation Program LISS Public Participation Program
EPA Long Island Sound Office EPA Long Island Sound Office
Stamford Government Center Marine Sciences Research Center
888 Washington Blvd. State University of New York
Stamford, CT 06904-2152 Stony Brook, NY 11794-5000
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Appendix B. Connecticut and New York State Initial Infrastructure Project List
CONNECTICUT
Connecticut Potential Needs:
Amonia
Bramford
Bridgeport East
Bridgeport West
Derby
Fairffeld
Greenwich
Groton City
Groton Town
MUford Beaver
MBford Housatonic
Montvflle
New Canaan
New Haven
New London
North Haven
Norwalk
Norwich
Seymour
Shekon
Stanford
Stratford
West Haven
Westport
Cheshire
Danbury
Merlden
Naugatuck
New MBford
South in gton
Thomaston
Torrington
Wallingford
Waterbury
Watertown
East Hampton
East Hartford
East Windsor
Enfold
Glastonbury
Hartford
Mattabassett
Middletown
Portland
Rocky HOI
Damnification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denftrffication
DenKrHication
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
OenKrifteafion
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
DenKrificatkm
Denitrification
Denitrificalion
Denitrification
DenKrification
Denitrification
DenKrification
Denitrification
DenKrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denftrificailon
Denitrification
•>AMi*MiSMM*8«kM
Dennrmcation
Denrtrrfication
Denitrification
DenKrification
DenKrification
DenKrification
Denitrification
9 13.602.000
$ 16,908,000
$ 63.590.000
$152,778,000
$ 12.292.000
$ 27.633.000
$ 45.000,000
$ 12.489.000
$ 17.615.000
$ 12.400.000
$ 25.200.000
$ 11.314.000
$ 11.485.000
$109.414.000
$ 31,048.000
$ 3.600.000
$ 66.817.000
$ 26.415,000
$ 12.800,000
$ 21.966,000
$ 83,000,000
$ 44.200.000
$ 67.750.000
$ 17,100,000
$ 27,200.000
$ 82,700.000
$ 33.682,000
$ 32.200.000
$ 6.000.000
$ 24,697,000
$ 10,350,000
$ 23,000,000
$ 27,147.000
$ 46.000.000
$ 5,750,000
$ 14,694.000
$ 46,246,000
$ 8.285.000
$ 30,040,000
$ 12.826.000
$140,574,000
$ 53.258.000
$ 22,086,000
$ 6.703,000
$ 29,955.000
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South Windsor
Suffield
Windsor
Windsor Locks
Devitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
Denitrification
$ 14,287,000
$ 7.704.000
$ 6.873,000
$ 9.642,000
Connecticut Existing Needs:
Jewett City
Middletown
Middletown
Middletown
Waterbury
W. Hartford-MDC
Norwich
Norwich
Hartford-MDC
Bridgeport
Bridgeport
Bridgeport
New Haven
New Haven
New Haven
Norwalk
Middletown
Middletown
New Haven-MDC
Hartford-MDC
Hartford -MDC
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
CSO Correction
$ 750.000
$ 2.452.000
$ 5.030,000
$ 22.575,000
$ 203,000
$ 22.282.000
$ 450.000
$ 89,864.000
$ 91.000.000
$ 2,855,000
$ 34.650.000
966.150.000
$ 15.628,000
$122.000,000
$ 2.094.000
$ 1.000.000
$ 9,000,000
$ 12.000.000
$ 12.750,000
$ 23.000,000
$ 25.000,000
Connecticut Total Estimated Need
$2.188.848,000
NEW YORK STATE
New York'State Existing and Potential Needs:
New York Citv
Hunts Point
Tallmans Island
Wards Island
Westchester County
New Rochelle S.D.
Hind Brook S.D.
Nassau County
Glen Cove
Belgrave WPCD
Great Neck S.D.
Village of Great Neck S.D.
Port Washington
BNR Retrofit
BNR Retrofit
Centrate Treatment
STP Expansion
BNR Retrofit
Denitrification
STP Improvements
Denitrification
S.S. Rehab.
Denitrification
$ 1.000.000
$ 1.000.000
$ 94,000,000
$ 16.500,000
$ 200.000
$ 14,000,000
$ 2.000.000
* 12,300.000
$ 2.000.000
$ 16.400.000
Long Island Sound Study
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Great Neck (v)
Oyster Bay S.D.
Suffolk County
Port Jefferson (v)
Northport (v)
Suffolk Co. S.D. #21
Suffolk Co. S.D. #6
STP Improvements
Nitrogen Removal
STP Improvements
STP Upgrade
Nitrogen Removal
STP Rehabilitation
9 440,000
9 5.000,000
9 5,026,000
$ 1.150,000
$ 5.000,000
$ 800,000
New York State Total Estimated Need
$176.816.000
Connecticut ft New York State Total Estimated Need 92.365,664.000
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Appendix C. Glossary of Terms
Aerobic: Presence of free oxygen (oxygen gas.)
Algae: Simple rootless plants that grow in sunlit waters in relative proportion to the amounts of
nutrients available. Most forms can provide food and habitat. They can affect water quality
adversely, however, by lowering the dissolved oxygen in the water when they decompose.
Algal Blooms: Sudden spurts of algal growth, which can affect water quality adversely. Often,
excessive blooms indicate nutrient enrichment. Some species cause potentially hazardous changes in
local water chemistry.
Alternative Technologies: Technological improvements utilizing physical or biochemical means of
increasing dissolved oxygen in addition or in lieu of nitrogen source controls.
Ambient: Referring to average concentrations of substances in the surrounding media (water, air, or
sediment).
Anadromous: Fish that spend their adult life in the sea but swim upriver to freshwater spawning
grounds to reproduce.
Anaerobic: Absence of free oxygen (oxygen gas).
Anoxia: An environment with very little or no free oxygen. Oxygen may be available in association
with other elements, e.g., nitrate.
Aquifer: An underground geological formation, or group of formations, containing usable amounts
of groundwater that can supply wells and springs.
Atmospheric Deposition: Emissions of sulfur and nitrogen compounds and other substances
including heavy metals and toxic organic compounds that are sometimes transformed by complex
chemical processes in the atmosphere, and deposited often far from the original sources, and then
deposited on earth in either a wet or dry form. The wet forms, popularly called "acid rain," can fall
as rain, snow, or fog. The dry forms are acidic gases or particulates.
Bacteria: (Singular: bacterium) Microscopic organisms that are an important, natural component of
the environment, many forms are instrumental in the breakdown of organic matter, releasing
nutrients to the environment where they can be used by primary producers. They can also aid in
pollution control by consuming or breaking down organic matter in sewage or by similarly acting on
oil spills or other water or soil pollutants. Disease-causing bacteria in soil, water, or air can also
cause health problems for humans, animals, and plants.
Benthic Organism: A form of aquatic plant or animal life that is found on or near the bottom of a
stream, lake, or ocean.
Benthic community structure gradient: The relative presence or absence of benthic organisms
found in bottom habitats in response to different concentrations of contaminants or variable substrates.
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Benthos: All marine organisms (plant and animal) living on or in the bottom of the sea.
Best Management Practice (BMP): A method of preventing or reducing the pollution resulting from
an activity. The term originated from rule and regulation in Section 208 of the federal Clean Water
Act.
Bioaccumulation: The uptake of substances (e.g., metals) leading to elevated concentrations of those
substances within plant or animal tissue.
Bioaccumulatlve: Substances that increase in concentration in living organisms (that we very slowly
metabolized or excreted) as they breathe contaminated air, drink contaminated water, or eat
contaminated food. (See: Biological Magnification.)
Btoassay: Using living organisms to measure the effect of a substance, factor, or condition by
comparing before-and-after data. Often used to test toxicity of sediments and water that may be
contaminated with toxic substances.
Bfoooncentratkm: Concentration of contaminants by an aquatic organism through its digestive tract
or gill tissues.
BioefTecfs testing: A test that elicits a biological effect response or effect of a living organism.
Biological Nutrient Removal (BNR): A wastewater treatment process in which biological
organisms, primarily bacteria, are used to remove nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus from
wasiewater. The basic principle of BNR is to have alternating anoxic (no or little oxygen) and
aerobic (oxygenated) zones or tanks within the treatment process. Nitrification occurs in Out aerobic
zones, and denitrification occurs in the anoxic zones. Nitrogen is removed in the denitrification
process where it is released to the atmosphere as a harmless gas.
BNR retrofit: Institution of minor mechanical and operational changes at a wastewater treatment
plan for the purpose of removing nitrogen.
Biomonitoring: (1) The use of living organisms to test ambient environmental conditions, often to
check the impact of effluents on receiving waters. (2) Analysis of blood, urine, tissues, etc., to
measure chemical exposure in humans.
Biota: Plants and animals inhabiting a given region.
Static Community: A naturally-occurring assemblage of plants and animals that live in the same
environment and are mutually sustaining and interdependent.
Bivalve: A mollusc with two shells hinged together (e.g., clam, oyster).
Bloom: A proliferation of algae and/or higher aquatic plants in a body of water; often related to
nutrient pollution. (See Algal Bloom)
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Boundaries: The eastern and western outlets of Long Island Sound: specifically, The Race where
Long Island Sound meets Block Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean in the east and the Battery at die
interface between the East River and New York Harbor in the west.
Brackish: A mixture of fresh and salt water. Specifically, estuarine waters where the ocean-derived
salt content ranges from 0.5 ppt to 30 ppt.
Cadmium: A heavy metal that may be toxic in the environment at or above certain concentrations.
Cadmium is used in a number of ways; among them, the most important use being for anti-corrosion
protective electroplating of iron and steel. Today, the only continued use of cadmium is in batteries.
Cadmium exhibits several toxic effects. Classified as a teratogen, carcinogen, and a probable
mutagen, it has been implicated as the cause of severe deleterious effects on fish and wildlife.
Carcinogen: Any substance that can cause or contribute to the development of cancer.
Ccntrate: Liquid, nitrogen-rich product of sludge de-watering.
Cholera: An infection of the small intestine caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholera. Cholera results
in profuse diarrhea that in severe untreated cases can lead to rapid dehydration and death. Infection is
always a result of swallowing food or water that has been contaminated with the vibrio.
Chlordane: A chlorinated organic insecticide having both stomach poison and fumigant properties.
Like DDT, it has a high degree of persistence in the environment and a tendency to be concentrated
in the food chain. The EPA completely banned the use of chlordane in 1988.
Chlorinated Hydrocarbons: These include a class of persistent, broad-spectrum insecticides that
linger in the environment and accumulate in the food chain. Among them are DDT, aldrin, dieldrin,
heptachlor, chlordane, lindane, endrin, mirex, hexachloride, and toxaphene. Other examples include
TCE, used as an industrial solvent.
Chlorination: The application of chlorine to drinking water, sewage, or industrial waste to disinfect
or to oxidize undesirable compounds.
Chromium: A trace element essential to humans; at high levels of exposure it is known to be toxic
to humans. Chromium produces inflammation of the skin and, if inhaled, damages the nose. People
exposed to chromium fumes have a greater risk of developing lung cancer.
Chronic Effects: Lethal response or debilitating damage to an organism(s) resulting from prolonged
exposure to a toxicant(s). Exposure time may be several days, weeks, months, or even years.
Coastal Runoff: Stormwater and the materials it carries contributed to die Sound from coastal lands
surrounding the Sound.
Coastal Zone: Lands and waters adjacent to the coast that exert an influence on the uses of die sea
and its ecology, or, inversely, whose uses and ecology are affected by the sea. Legally the definition
varies from state to state.
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Conform Bacteria: Widely distributed microorganisms found in the intestinal tract of humans and
other animals and in soils. Their presence in water indicates fecal pollution and potentially dangerous
contamination by disease-causing microorganisms.
Combined Sewers Overflows: Discharges from a sewer system that carries both sewage and
stonnwater runoff. Normally, its entire flow goes to a wastewater treatment plant but, during a
heavy storm, the storm water volume may be so great as to cause overflows. When mis happens,
untreated mixtures of stonnwater and sewage may flow into receiving waters. Stonnwater runoff
may also carry toxic chemicals from industrial areas or sheets into the sewer system.
CT Public Act 91-170: An act requiring that coastal towns in Connecticut address priority problems
identified by LISS through zoning changes and other local actions. The State of Connecticut will
provide technical assistance to these communities.
Contaminant: Any physical, chemical, biological, or radiological substance or matter that has an
adverse affect on habitats or organisms.
Conventional Pollutants: Statutorily listed pollutants which are understood well by scientists. These
may be in the form of organic waste, sediment, acid, bacteria and viruses, nutrients, oil and grotse,
or heat.
Copper: A metal that has many industrial uses. Uses include plumbing, electrical products, metal
plating, brass, pesticides, fungicides, paint and wood preservatives. Sewage sludge is enriched in
copper.
Criteria: Acceptable limits in various media (e.g., water, sediments) for pollutants derived by the
EPA. When issued by the EPA, the criteria provide guidance to the states on how to establish their
standards.
Crustacea: A class of arthropods with jointed appendages and segmented exoskeletons of chhin.
This class includes barnacles, crabs, shrimps, and lobsters.
Cumulative Impacts: Combined effects resulting from more man one action.
DDT: The first chlorinated hydrocarbon insecticide (chemical name:
Dichloro-Diphsdyl-Trichloromethane). It has a half-life of IS years and can collect in fatty tissues of
certain animals. EPA banned registration and interstate sale of DDT for virtually all but emergency
uses in die United States in 1972 because of its persistence in the environment and accumulation in
the food chain.
Decomposition: The breakdown of matter by bacteria and fungi. It changes the chemical makeup
and physical appearance of materials being broken down and may cause changes in the environment
as well.
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Denitrification: A biochemical process in which specific bacteria extract oxygen bound up in
molecules of nitrate, resulting in the release of harmless nitrogen gas into the atmosphere. This
process occurs naturally in saltmarshes and wetlands and can be established in wastewater treatment
plants to remove nitrogen from wastewater.
Designated Uses: Those water uses identified in state water quality standards that must be achieved
and maintained as required under the Clean Water Act. Uses can include cold water fisheries, public
water supply, agriculture, etc.
Direct Discharger: A municipal or industrial facility that introduces pollution through a defined
conveyance or system; a point source.
Dissolved Oxygen (DO): The oxygen freely available in water. Dissolved oxygen is vital to fish and
other aquatic life. Traditionally, die level of dissolved oxygen has been accepted as the single most
important indicator of a water body's ability to support desirable aquatic life. Secondary and
advanced waste treatment are generally designed to protect DO in waste-receiving waters.
Diversity (Species): A statistical measurement that generally combines a measure of the total number
of species in a given environment with the number of individuals of each species. Species diversity is
high when there are many species with a similar number of individuals; low when there are fewer
species and when one or two species dominate.
Dominant Species: A species or group of species that, because of their abundance, size, or control,
strongly affect a community.
Drainage Basin: The land area drained by a river or stream and its tributaries.
Dredging: Mechanical removal of sediment from the bottom of waterbodies. This disturbs the
ecosystem and causes silting that can have adverse impacts on aquatic life.
Dredged Material: (See: Dredged Sediments.)
Dredged Sediments: Bottom sediments associated with the estuarine water of the Sound which
removed, usually for navigational purposes, by mechanical means such as a bucket or hydraulic
dredge. The disposal of dredged sediments may occur on either the up;land or in the water of the
Sound. State and federal permits programs only allow sediments to be disposed in the Sound at
designated sites and only in a manner mat will not cause adverse effects on organisms, materials that
are not classified as sediment such as medical waste, hazardous material, and construction debris are
not allowed to be disposed at these sites.
Dredging window: (See: Seasonal Restriction.)
Dry weather overflows: Illegal discharges of untreated wastewater from combined sewer overflows
and stormdrains unrelated to rainfall events. During rainstorms such discharges are referred to as
"wet weather flows."
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Dunes: Wind-blown (aeolian) deposits of sand generally located landward of the beach. In Long
Island Sound, dunes are typically narrow ridges of low elevation Cess than 10 feet in height.)
Ecological Impact: The effect that a human or natural activity has on living organisms and their
non-living (abiotic) environment.
Ecosystem: The interacting system of a biological community and its non-Jiving environmental
surroundings.
Effluent: Wastewater - treated or untreated - that flows out of a treatment plant, sewer, cr
industrial outfall. Generally refers to wastes discharged into surface waters.
Effluent Limitation: Restrictions established by a state or the EPA on quantities, rates, and
concentrations of pollutants in wastewater discharges.
Emission: Pollution discharged into the atmosphere from smokestacks, other vents, and surface areas
of commercial or industrial facilities,* from residential chimneys; and from motor vehicle, locomotive,
or aircraft exhausts.
Enforcement: EPA, state, or local legal actions to obtain compliance with environmental laws, rules,
regulations, or agreements and/or obtain penalties or criminal sanctions for violations. Enforcement
procedures may vary, depending on the specific requirements of different environmental laws and
related implementing regulatory requirements.
Enrichment: The addition of nutrients (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorus, carbon compounds) from sewage
effluent, runoff, or atmospheric deposition to surface water. This process greatly increases the
growth potential for algae and aquatic plants.
Environmental: The sum of all external conditions affecting the life, development, and survival of
an organism.
EPA: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, established in 1970 by Presidential Executive
Order, bringing together parts of various government agencies involved with the control of pollution.
EPA Ocean Data Evaluation System (ODES): A data management and retrieval system developed,
used and supported by EPA. Environmental data collected by the National Estuary Programs and the
301(h) ocean discharge program are required to be submitted in ODES format.
Epidemiology: The branch of medicine that studies epidemics and epidemic diseases.
Estuary: A semi-enclosed coastal body of water where fresh water and saltwater mix. These areas
may include bays, mouths of rivers, salt marshes, and lagoons. These brackish water ecosystems
shelter and feed marine life, birds, and wildlife. (See Wetlands)
Facilities Plan: The conceptual design of a treatment system (e.g., for a wastewater treatment plant).
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Fecal Coliform Bacteria: Specific coliform bacteria associated with the digestive track of warm-
blooded animals. (Also, see Coliform)
Fertilizer: Materials such as nitrogen and phosphorous that provide nutrients for cultured plants.
Commercially sold fertilizers may contain other chemicals or may be in the form of processed sewage
sludge.
Finfish: Term used to distinguish fish (with fins) from shellfish.
Food Chain: Chain of organisms, existing in any natural community, through which energy is
transferred, each link in the chain feeds on and obtains energy from the one preceding it and in turn
is eaten by and provides energy for, the one following it. At the beginning of the chain are green
plant. (See: Food Web.)
Food Web: The interrelated food relationships in an ecosystem including its production,
consumption, and decomposition, and the energy relationships among the organisms involved in the
cycle. (See: Food Chain.)
Freshwater: Water that generally contains less than 1,000 milligrams-per-liter of dissolved solids.
Gastroenteritis: Inflammation of the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestine caused by any of
a variety of viruses, bacteria, and other small organisms that have contaminated food or water
supplies.
General Permit: A permit applicable to a class or category of dischargers.
Geographic Information System (CIS): A computerized database of land use, land cover and many
other types of information that can be statistically analyzed and graphically displayed using maps.
Groundwater: The supply of freshwater found beneath the Earth's surface (usually in aquifers)
which is often used for supplying wells and springs. Because groundwater is a major source of
drinking water, there is growing concern over areas where leaching agricultural or industrial
pollutants or substances from leaking underground storage tanks are contaminating groundwater.
Habitat: The place where a population (e.g., human, animal, plant, microorganism) lives and its
surroundings, both living and non-living.
Heavy Metals: (See: Metals.)
Hepatitis A: A type of chronic hepatitis in which there is intense and progressive inflammation and
destruction of cells surrounding certain structures within the liver.
Hepatopanoreas: Lobster liver, commonly referred to as "tomalley."
Hydrocarbons (HC): Chemical compounds that consist of carbon and hydrogen.
Hydrodynamic: Concerning the forces, energy and pressure of water in motion.
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Hypoxia: Low concentrations (e.g., less than 3 ppm) of dissolved oxygen in water.
Indicator: In biology, an organism, species, or community whose characteristics define the presence
of specific environmental conditions.
Indigenous: Having originated in or living naturally in a particular region or environment; native.
Indirect Discharge: Introduction of pollutants from commercial and industrial facilities into a sewage
treatment plant.
Influent: Water, wastewater, or other liquid flowing into a reservoir, basin, or treatment plant.
Integrated Pest Management (IPM): Application of biological pest (and physical) controls; an
alternative to synthetic chemical pesticides.
Intrinsic: Inherent; of or relating to the fundamental nature of a thing.
Land Use: Refers to the ways in which a community or area makes use of its natural resources.
Larvae: The newly hatched, earliest stage of any species, such as lobsters, that undergoes
metamorphosis, differing noticeably in form and appearance from the adult.
Leachate: A liquid containing the soluble constituents of materials which have been "leached" by
water or other liquids percolating through the soil where the materials are located.
Lead: A heavy metal that is hazardous to health if breathed or swallowed. Its use in gasolines,
paints, and plumbing compounds have been sharply restricted or eliminated by federal laws and
regulations
Limiting Nutrient: A nutrient (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorus) that limits the growth of a population
(e.g., plants) or determines the carrying capacity of me environment by its scarcity.
Management Conference: The membership of the committees established to run and advise the
Long Island Sound Study. See Appendix C for a description of the committees and their functions.
Marine Sanitation Device (MSD): Any equipment installed on board a vessel to receive, retain,
treat, or discharge sewage and any process to treat such sewage
Metals: Metallic elements that can cause harm to living organisms and can accumulate in the food
chain. Often divided into common metals (e.g., zinc, iron, copper) and trace metals (e.g.,
chromium, cadmium, arsenic). Elements of primary concern in the environment are the heavy
metals.
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Mercury: A heavy metal that can accumulate in the environment and is highly toxic if breathed or
swallowed. Industrial uses of mercury include manufacture of thermometers, mirrors,
pharmaceutical, mercury vacuum pumps, agricultural fungicides and germicides. Mercury can enter
the environment via combustion of fossil fuels since mercury is a trace element in both coal and tar.
Mercury is a significant element in terms of its potential toxicity.
Million Gallons Per Day (MGD): A measure of water flow, usually at a wastewater treatment plant.
Microorganism: Unicellular living organisms so small that individually they can usually only be seen
through a microscope, some of which cause diseases (e.g., bacteria, viruses).
Mitigate: To make less serious or severe.
Modeling: An investigative technique using a mathematical or physical representation of a system or
theory, usually on a computer, that accounts for all or some of its known properties. Models are
often used to test the effect of changes of system components on the overall performance of the
system.
Monitoring: Periodic or continuous surveillance or testing to determine the level of compliance with
statutory requirements and/or pollutant levels in various media or in humans, animals, and other
living things.
Motile: Moving or capable of moving spontaneously.
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES): A provision of the Clean Water Act
that prohibits discharge of pollutants into waters of the United States unless a special permit is issued
by EPA, a state, or (where delegated) a tribal government on an Indian reservation.
National Status and Trends Program (NS&T): NOAA's NS&T Program involves a series of
activities undertaken to quantify the current status and long-term, temporal and spatial trends of key
contaminant concentrations and biological indicators of effects in the nation's coastal and estuarine
environments.
Nickel: An element that is considered relatively non-toxic to man. The concentrations tolerated by
most marine organisms appear to be high. The sources of nickel include stainless steel, nickel-
plating, storage batteries, spark plugs, and electrical contacts.
Nitrate: A compound containing nitrogen and oxygen (NO,) that can exist in the atmosphere or as a
dissolved gas in water and that can have harmful effects on humans and animals. For example, high
concentrations of nitrates in drinking water can cause severe illness in infants.
Nitrification: The biochemical process in which specific bacteria convert ammonia and organic
nitrogen to nitrate. In wastewater treatment plants, ammonia and organic nitrogen come from human
wastes and dead plant and animal matter. The nitrifying bacteria are cultured for use at the plants to
convert ammonia to nitrite and nitrate. Nitrification occurs naturally in ecosystems such as saltmarsh
and wetlands and can be established in wastewater treatment plants to remove ammonia and nitrogen
from wastewater.
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Nitrogen: Nitrogen is an element that is present as organic nitrogen or in inorganic forms of
ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. The inorganic forms are preferentially used by phytoptankton to
support their growth. Organic nitrogen is bound with organic material and is not available for plant
growth until released in a usable inorganic form by decay processes.
Nonpoint Source: Pollution sources that are diffuse or are not introduced into a receiving stream
from a specific outlet. The pollutants are generally carried off the land by stormwater runoff.
Commonly used categories for non-point sources are: agriculture, forestry, urban, mining,
construction, dams and channels and land disposal.
Nutrient: Any substance assimilated by living things that promotes growth. The term is generally
applied to nitrogen and phosphorus, but is also applied to other essential and trace elements including
carbon and silica.
Oil Spill: An accidental or intentional discharge of oil that reaches bodies of water; can be controlled
by chemical dispersion, combustion, mechanical containment, and/or adsorption.
Organic: (1) Referring to or derived from living organisms. (2) In chemistry, any compound
containing carbon.
Organic Chemicals/Compounds: Animal or plant-produced substances containing mainly carbon,
hydrogen, and oxygen.
Organic Matter: Carbonaceous waste contained in plant or animal matter and originating from
domestic or industrial sources.
Organism: Any living thing.
Outfall; The place where an effluent is discharged into receiving waters.
Oxygen Demand: Consumption of oxygen by bacteria to oxidize organic matter.
PAHs: Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) comprise a group of petroleum derived
hydrocarbon compounds that are found in the water and fish tissue of aquatic organisms in Long
Island Sound and elsewhere. PAHs have a tendency to bioaccumulate and many are known or
suspected carcinogens. Loadings to the Sound result from oil spills and other uncontrolled discharges
of petroleum products.
Pathogenic: Capable of causing disease.
Pathogens: Microorganisms that can cause disease in humans, animals, or plants. They may be
bacteria, viruses, or parasites and are found in sewage, in runoff from animal farms or rural areas
populated with domestic and/or wild animals, and in water used for swimming. Fish and shellfish
contaminated by pathogens, or Che contaminated water itself, can cause serious illnesses.
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PCBs: A group of toxic, persistent chemicals (polychlorinated biphenyls) used in transformers and
capacitators for insulating purposes and in gas pipeline systems as a lubricant. Further sale or new
use was banned by law in 1979.
Permit: An authorization, license, or equivalent control document issued by EPA or an approved
state agency to implement the requirements of an environmental regulation, e.g., a permit to
discharge from a wastewater treatment plant or to operate a facility that may generate harmful
emissions.
Persistence: Refers to the length of time a compound, once introduced into the environment, stays
there. A compound may persist for less than a second or indefinitely.
Phytoplankton: That portion of the plankton community comprised of tiny unicellular plants, (e.g.,
algae, diatoms, dinoflagellates).
Point Source: A stationary location or fixed facility from which pollutants are discharged or emitted.
Also, any single identifiable source of pollution, e.g., a pipe, ditch, ship, ore pit, factory smokestack.
Pollutant: Generally, any substance introduced into the environment that adversely affects the health
of plants and animals, or the usefulness of a resource.
Pollution: Generally, the presence of matter or energy whose nature, location, or quantity produces
undesired environmental effects. Under the Clean Water Act, for example, the term is defined as the
man-made or man-induced alteration of the physical, biological, and radiological integrity of water.
Pretreatment: Processes used to reduce, eliminate, or alter the nature of wastewater pollutants from
non-domestic sources before they are discharged into publicly owned treatment works.
Primary Waste Treatment: First steps in wastewater treatment; screens and sedimentation tanks are
used to remove most materials that float or will settle. Primary treatment results in the removal of
about 30 percent of carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand from domestic sewage.
Priority Pollutant: A pollutant that is listed by the EPA as a pollutant of concern.
Productivity: Process by which plants remove dissolved carbon dioxide and micronutrients from the
water and, using solar energy, convert them to complex organic compounds of high potential energy.
Publicly Owned Treatment Works: (POTW) A waste-treatment works owned by a state, unit of
local government, or Indian tribe, usually designed to treat sewage and other domestic wastewaters.
Qualitative: Pertaining to the non-numerical assessment of a parameter.
Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QAQC): A system of procedures, checks, audits, and
corrective actions to ensure that research design and performance, environmental monitoring and
sampling, and other technical and reporting activities are of the highest achievable quality.
Quantitative: Pertaining to the numerical assessment of a parameter.
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Receiving Waters: A river, lake, ocean, stream, or other watercourse into which wastewater or
treated effluent is discharged.
Residual: Amount of a pollutant remaining in the environment after a natural or technological
process has taken place, e.g., the sludge remaining after initial wastewater treatment, or particulates
remaining in air after the air passes through a scrubbing or other pollutant removal process.
Restoration: The act of returning something such as habitat or water quality to its condition prior to
human disturbance. Measures taken to return a site to natural conditions.
Resuspension: Lifting of in-place bottom sediments into the water column by waves, bottom
currents, or other mechanical disturbance.
Riparian Zone: Areas adjacent to rivers and streams.
Runoff: That part of precipitation, snow melt, or irrigation water that runs off the land into strains
or other surface-water. It can carry pollutants from the air and land into the receiving waters.
Salinity: The amount of solid material contained in seawater once the organic matter has been
completely oxidized; reported in grams of material to kilogram of seawater (i.e., pan per thousand or
ppt). The salt or chlorine content of the water can be used to determine the salinity. More simply,
the amount of salt in water.
Sanitary Sewers: Underground pipes that carry only domestic or industrial waste, not storm water.
Secondary Treatment: The second step in most sewage treatment plants in which bacteria consume
the organic parts of the waste. It is accomplished by bringing together waste, bacteria, and oxygen in
trickling filters or in the activated sludge process. This treatment removes floating and settleable
solids and about 90 percent of the oxygen-demanding substances and suspended solids. Disinfection
is the final stage of secondary treatment. (See: Primary, Tertiary Treatment).
Sediments: Paniculate organic and inorganic matter that accumulates in a loose unconsolidated form.
h may be chemically precipitated from solution, secreted by organisms, or transported by air, ice,
wind or water and deposited. Resuspension of sediments may destroy fish-breeding areas and other
habitats and cloud the water so that needed sunlight might not reach aquatic plants. Careless farming,
mining, and building activities will expose soils, allowing them to be washed off the land after
rainfalls and contribute to sediments.
Septic Tank: An underground storage and treatment tank for wastes from homes having no sewer
line to a treatment plant. The waste goes directly from the home to the tank, where die organic waste
is decomposed by bacteria and the sludge settles to die bottom. The effluent flows out of the tank
into die ground through drains; the sludge is pumped out periodically.
Sewage: The waste and wastewater produced by residential and commercial establishments and
discharged into sewers.
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Sewage Sludge: Sludge produced at a sewage treatment plant, the disposal of which is regulated
under the Clean Water Act.
Sewer: A channel or conduit that carries wastewater and stormwater runoff from the source to a
treatment plant or receiving stream. Sanitary sewers carry household, industrial, and commercial
waste. Storm sewers carry runoff from rain or snow. Combined sewers are used for both
purposes.
Shellfish: An invertebrate having a rigid outer covering, such as a shell or exoskeleton; includes
clams and lobsters; term is the counterpart of finfish.
Side treatment: Treatment of wastewater or its by-products physically separate from secondary
treatment plant processes.
Sludge: A semi-solid residue from any of a number of air or water treatment processes. Sludge can
be a hazardous waste.
Species: A reproductively isolated aggregate of interbreeding populations of organisms.
Sprawl: Unplanned or poorly-planned development of open land.
Standards: Prescriptive norms that govern action and actual limits on the amount of pollutants or
emissions produced. The EPA, under most of its responsibilities, establishes minimum standards.
States can issue stricter standards if they choose.
Storm Sewer: A system of pipes (separate from sanitary sewers) that carry only water runoff from
building and land surfaces.
Stormwater: Runoff caused by rain or snow storms.
Stream: A body of water, including brooks and creeks, that moves in a definite channel in the
ground driven by hydraulic gradient.
Submerged Aquatic Vegetation (SAV): Vascular plants that live and grow completely underwater
or just up to the water surface. Includes eelgrass, widgeon grass, tapegrass or wild celery and
pondweeds.
Surface Water: All water naturally open to the atmosphere (rivers, lakes, reservoirs, streams,
impoundments, seas, estuaries, etc.); also refers to springs, wells, or other collectors that are directly
influenced by surface water.
Systemwide Eutrophication Model (SWEM): A coarse grid hydrodynamic - water quality model
proposed for the NY-NI Harbor - Long Island Sound - NY Bight complexes.
Technology-Based Standards: Effluent limitations applicable to direct and indirect sources that are
developed on a category-by-category basis using statutory factors, not including water-quality effects.
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Threshold: A point or level beyond which certain effects would occur.
Total Maximum Daily Load: The maximum amount of a substance, such as metals or nutrients, that
can be discharged in a day by a permitted wastewater treatment plant or industry.
Toxic: Harmful to living organisms.
Toxicant: A poisonous agent that kills or injures animal or plant life.
Toxicity: The degree of danger posed by a substance to animal or plant life.
Toxk Pollutants: Materials contaminating die environment that cause death, disease, and/or birth
defects in organisms that ingest or absorb them. The quantities and length of exposure necessary to
cause these effects can vary widely.
Trash hoods: Apparatus inside a catch basin of a storm sewer which traps large objects fi.e.
floatable debris).
Trawling: Commercial fishing method that utilizes a net towed behind a boat.
Tributary: A stream, creek, or river that flows into a larger stream, creek, or river.
Trophic level: A successive stage of nourishment as represented by links in the food chain. Primary
producers (phytoplankton) constitutes the first trophic level, herbivorous zooplankton the second
trophic level, and carnivorous organisms the third and higher trophic levels.
Virus: The smallest form of microorganisms capable of causing disease.
Wasteload Allocation (WLA): The maximum load of pollutants each discharger of waste is allowed
to release into a particular waterway. Discharge limits are usually required for each specific water
quality criterion being, or expected to be, violated.
Wastewater Treatment Plant: A facility containing a series of tanks, screens, filters, and other
processes by which pollutants are removed from water.
Wastewater: The spent or used water that contains dissolved or suspended matter from individual
homes, a community, a farm, or an industry.
Water Column: The water located vertically over a specific location on the seafloor.
Water Quality Criteria: (See: Criteria).
Water Quality Standards: State-adopted and EPA-approved ambient standards for water bodies.
The standards cover the use of the water body and the water quality criteria which must be met to
protect the designated use or uses (e.g., drinking, swimming, fishing).
Watershed: The land area that drains into a stream, river, estuary, or other waterbody.
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Wetlands: An area that is regularly saturated by surface or groundwater and subsequently is
characterized by a prevalence of vegetation that is adapted for life in saturated soil conditions.
Examples include: swamps, bogs, fens, and marshes. Often defined based on soil characteristics.
Zinc: An essential trace element to living organisms. It is toxic when present in high concentrations
and can act synergistically to increase the toxicity of other metals and contaminants. Uses of zinc-
based chemicals include wood preservatives, pigments, metallurgical operations, dry cell batteries,
and its most important use as a catalyst in vulcanizing rubbers. Major point sources of atmospheric
zinc are smelters, galvanizing operations, and waste incinerators.
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