Northwest Harbor 8/27/24 Photo Susan McGraw-Keber Shellfish Dealers and Shellfish Harvesters, DEC-Shellfisheries collected water samples in several of the areas that DEC designated as temporarily uncertified (closed) on August 19, 2024, after the extraordinary rainfall event in excess of three (3) inches in Nassau and Suffolk Counties on August 18 – 19, 2024. Testing results from those samples indicated that the following areas can be re-opened to the harvest of shellfish. Effective at 10:00 AM EST, Wednesday, August 28, 2024, the following areas are reopened to the harvest of shellfish, except as described in 6NYCRR, Part 41, “Sanitary Condition of Shellfish Lands.” 1. Town of East Hampton: All the normally certified
Shellfish Dealers and Shellfish Harvesters, DEC-Shellfisheries collected water samples in several of the areas that DEC designated as temporarily uncertified (closed) on August 19, 2024, after the extraordinary rainfall event in excess of three (3) inches in Nassau and Suffolk Counties on August 18 – 19, 2024. Testing results from those samples indicated that the following areas can be re-opened to the harvest of shellfish. Effective at sunrise, Friday, August 23, 2024, the following areas are reopened to the harvest of shellfish, except as described in 6NYCRR, Part 41, “Sanitary Condition of Shellfish Lands.” Towns of Oyster Bay (North Shore) and Huntington: All the normally certified areas of Oyster Bay Harbor
Carissa Katz 8/22/24 – The East Hampton Star The recent heavy rainfall and flooding has made our waters unsafe according to reports provided by Concerned Citizens of Montauk (CCOM) last Sunday, August 18th. The water samples were taken from Springs, Napeague, Montauk, and East Hampton…all indicated the water bodies had high levels of enterococcus bacteria at nearly every spot the organization monitors. Photo Durell Godfrey East Hampton Star “The only safe water bodies that we test are the Long Island Sound on Soundview Drive beach” and a spot on the east side of Napeague Harbor, Kay Tyler, C.C.O.M.’s executive director,
Due to the extremely heavy rainfall and extraordinary volume of rainwater runoff associated with the rainfall of August 18, 2024 through August 19, 2024, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Shellfisheries Bureau has temporarily closed the following areas to shellfish harvest in East Hampton: “All that area of Northwest Harbor lying east of a line extending northerly from Barcelona Point to Cedar Point, Three Mile Harbor, Hog Creek, Accabonac Harbor, Napeague Harbor, and Montauk Harbor.” Please see the official notice below for further closure areas around Long Island. This information will be updated as soon as we receive
Saoirse Quinn and Trustee Ben Dollinger worked together to measure and tag a horseshoe crab. Photo Margarette Doyle From the May 30th 2024 issue of The East Hampton Star- the beginning of the spawning season of the horseshoe crabs in our waters. The East Hampton Town Trustees have been involved with Cornell Cooperative Extension for the last seven years to help tag and measure the horseshoe crabs and provide valuable data for the study of these prehistoric animals. The spawning season commences in May and runs through June. Horseshoe crab spawning season 2024 Photo Jim Grimes Read the article by
Georgica Pond, East Hampton, NY A toxic algal bloom has been detected in Georgica Pond, the Suffolk County Department of Health Services announced Friday, July 19, 2024. No Crabs should be taken during the algal bloom. “Due to these findings, health officials ask residents not to use or recreate in these waters and keep their children and pets away from the area,” the department said in a statement. Image of Blue Green Algae Bloom from DEC website Stony Brook University performed the analysis. The blue-green algae, which are naturally present in lakes and ponds here, have risen to concerning levels,
Sponsored by SOFO, Surfrider Foundation/Eastern Long Island, and Suffolk County Legislature – Join the fun and meet your neighbors!
Suffolk County is treating the following marshes by helicopter for mosquito larvae today July 23rd – July 26th: Cedar Point County Park Napeague Beach Hampton Accabonac Harbor Learn more by visiting Suffolk County Vector Control’s website. Vector Mosquito Control For current and future notices and/or further information: Suffolk County Division of Vector Control 631-852-4270 Spraying Information Hotline 631-852-4939 For Spray Notices visit: www.suffolkcountyny.gov/News If you are not sure that your land line phone is included in the SuffolkAlert system or to receive notifications via cell phone, text messaging or e-mail, contact: https://suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/FRES/Office-of-Emergency-Management/suffolkalert-notifications
SOFO SPONSORED – August 1 @ 6:30 pm South Fork Natural History Museum & Nature Center – Bridgehampton For centuries, we have been fascinated by the sperm whale, the world’s largest toothed predator. Like many of our co-inhabitants on the planet, sperm whales were nearly hunted to the brink of extinction. While the most famous sperm whale of all is Moby Dick, it was a young male nicknamed Physty—who fell ill in the early 1980s and came ashore just off Long Island, New York that captured the heart of Gaelin Rosenwaks and started her on a career in marine science—studying,
ATTENTION BOATERS OFF OF NJ AND NY: Aggregations of North Atlantic Right Whales are Foraging Offshore of New Jersey and New York NOAA Fisheries sent this bulletin at 07/12/2024 01:38 PM EDT Two Dynamic Management Areas/Right Whale Slow Zones have been declared near Hudson Canyon where right whales have been sighted. Mariners are requested to avoid or transit at 10 knots or less inside these areas. Boaters are also reminded that approaching a right whale closer than 500 yards is a violation of federal and state law.Boaters can download the Whale Alert App for real time updates on Slow Zones
As part of the contractual agreement with Orsted and Eversource, the East Hampton Town Trustees negotiated for specific studies to be conducted annually. Click on each tab to open a report: SFW Annual Trawl Survey 2023 SFW Acoustic Telemetry Fishers Brochure 2023 SFW Annual Acoustic Telementry Report
Statement from Orsted Regarding Mooring System in Use
“As part of the fish monitoring study outlined in the SFW Fisheries Study Work Plan, the Stony Brook University team is conducting a regular visit to the sensor array off Wainscott today to collect data from sensors, replace batteries, and deploy new retrievable moorings alongside the previous moorings. As the Stony Brook team is deploying new moorings alongside the existing moorings there’s no change to the mariners briefing, our standard method for updating mariners on the presence of equipment in navigational waters. Members of the fisheries outreach team, in collaboration with the research team, have worked with the fishing community to select an alternative mooring, one that is smaller, lightweight and retrievable, and is more compatible with commercial fishing in response to the feedback we’ve received from the community on original deployment of cement moorings.”
Images of the mooring system and a diagram are shown below.
