Watershed Action Plan Public Meeting Postponed

Due to the inclement weather, the Watershed Action Plan Meeting has been postponed.  Please watch the blog for a reschedule date. 

Watershed Action Plan Survey

The public is invited to attend the Watershed Action Plan Meeting on Thursday, September 30 at Christ Church, 7:00 pm.  Even if you can't make it, please take a minute to fill out a short survey Watershed Action Plan Survey.  Friends of the Bay wants to hear your voice. 

Cleanup Opportunities for September 25th

(Reprinted with permission from the Oyster Bay Enterprise Pilot)

Saturday, September 25 will be a very busy day in Oyster Bay.  If you wish to do hands on work and assist in cleaning up the harbor and beaches, or the land within the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor Estuary, this will be the perfect opportunity. 

Volunteers and staff from Friends of the Bay, the Oyster Bay Power Squadron, the North Oyster Bay Baymen’s Association, Sagamore Yacht Club, and the Town of Oyster Bay will work together to clean our harbors and bays.  Meet at the boat launch ramps in Theodore Roosevelt Park at 8:30 am.  Anyone who has participated in the Earth Day cleanups knows how satisfying it is to participate in these events, and how much is accomplished to make our bays and harbors cleaner.  There is a wonderful feeling of camaraderie between all the volunteers.  The Oyster Bay Power Squadron and Sagamore Yacht Club are sponsoring a barbecue after the cleanup for participants.

This year is a very special year, since it is the 25^th anniversary of the International Coastal Cleanup.  By engaging people to remove trash and debris from beaches and waterways, and identifying sources of debris, the Ocean Conservancy believes that people’s behaviors will change and the amount of marine debris will decrease.  Most marine debris is entirely preventable.  Participants will be asked to record what is picked up.  This data is compiled and a report is issued on what is picked up worldwide.  The number one item?  Cigarette butts!  They not only make humans sick, they hurt the health of our oceans and bays.  Number two?  Plastic water bottles!  Water bottles use large amounts of petroleum in the production and transportation process, and they litter our shores.  And, water from the tap costs pennies…time to think before you buy those bottles.  To register or for more information, call Jaime Van Dyke at 677-5943. 

Sagamore Hill National Historic Site will be observing National Public Lands Day on the 25 as well.   Volunteers will have an opportunity to perform a beach cleanup and remove invasive plants.  The work period will be from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm.  Meet behind the visitor center at 8:30 am.  Refreshments and snacks will be provided after the work session.  Participants over the age of 15 will receive one free admission pass to be used for a future visit to a National Park Service site or other Public Lands in the United States.  Participating Boy and Girl Scouts will receive Certificates of Participation.  No reservations are required. 

There is no charge to visit Sagamore Hill National Historic Site on September 25, 2010. Visitors will still need to obtain tickets to tour the home of the 26th president, which they should do upon arrival at the visitor center, located adjacent to the parking lot. Tours are offered on the hour, and on a first-come-first-served basis.  Visitors are encouraged to come early in the day to reserve a tour time.

And finally, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is sponsoring the first nationwide prescription drug take back program.  The DEA will be collecting potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs for destruction on Saturday, September 25 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.  The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.  The two nearest sites to Oyster Bay are Nassau County Police Department Second Precinct at 7700 Jericho Turnpike, Woodbury and the Old Brookville Police Department at 5701 Route 25A, Glen Head.  For more sites, visit www.dea.gov. 

By disposing of prescription drugs properly, you will not only be helping preserve the health of the waters, you will be protecting your children and family.  Rates of prescription drug abuse are increasing at alarming rates, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overduses due to these drugs.  Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.  Many Americans do not know how to properly dispose of their unused medicine, often flushing them down the toilet.  From there, the drugs can enter our harbors and bays, or our drinking water supplies. 

By participating in any or all of these events, you will be rendering a very valuable service to your community, and will make a real, substantial difference in the health of our local environment.  Please come out and lend a hand!

The inclement weather kept Friends of the Bay volunteers on land on Monday.  We were hoping to be able to catch a sign of Corrigan.  We have heard no more word of “our” manatee, so we can only hope he is headed back south for warmer waters.

Watershed Action Plan Survey

Friends of the Bay (FOB) is holding our initial meeting to develop a Watershed Action Plan.  This meeting will be held on Thursday, September 30 at 7:00 in the Parish Hall of Christ Church, 61 East Main Street, Oyster Bay. 

We value your opinions, and hope you will be able to participate in a brief survey.  Please click on  this link  - http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/773Q8ZX, which will take you to the survey. 

We hope to see you at the meeting! 

Upcoming Events at Friends of the Bay

The next few weeks are going to be very busy in Oyster Bay, and for Friends of the Bay - here are some upcoming events

September 25 - International Coastal Cleanup.  Join us at Theodore Roosevelt Park by the boat launch ramps at 8:30 am to participate in the 25th anniversary of the International Coastal Cleanup, and clean our beaches and bays!  To register to volunteer, call Jaime Van Dyke at the Town of Oyster Bay - 677-5943 to register.

September 30 - Watershed Action Plan Public Meeting - 7:00 pm at Christ Church Parish Hall, East Main Street, Oyster Bay.  Friends of the Bay is forming a steering committee to help to formulate a watershed management plan for the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor Estuary. The public is invited to participate. 

October 6, Friends of the Bay Lecture with Dr. Matt Sclafani talking about Horseshoe Crabs.  7:30 pm, Friends of the Bay Office, 2 Townsend Square, Oyster Bay

October 9 - Friends of the Bay will be speaking at the Orvis Store in Greenvale, New York, 3:00 pm

October 16 and 17 - OYSTERFEST! in Oyster Bay.  Come and celebrate our namesake food.  Volunteers are needed to help spread the word about Friends of the Bay's programs and initiatives.

November 3  - Friends of the Bay Lecture with Adam Grohman informing us about the underwater wrecks of Long Island - 7:30 pm, Friends of the Bay office, 2 Townsend Square, Oyster Bay

A Manatee in Oyster Bay?

Hows the Water - September 3, 2010

(reprinted with permission from the Oyster Bay Enterprise Pilot)

We seem to have had a very unusual visitor in Oyster Bay waters this Labor Day weekend.  There were multiple sightings of a manatee.  The Friends of the Bay office received voice and emails on Sunday and Monday of Labor Day weekend that a manatee had been seen in Mill Neck Creek.  Eric Scheblein reported that he saw the manatee in Mill Neck Creek, and that he followed the manatee as it headed out towards the Bayville Bridge, following the outgoing tide.  Another caller expressed concern for the manatee, and wanted to know who would be able to assist the animal, if it showed signs of distress. 

Dave Relyea and I went out to look for Corrigan (our nickname for the manatee, after the famous aviator, Wrong Way Corrigan) on Monday, but did not see him.  On Tuesday, during our water quality monitoring run, our volunteers looked carefully, but to no avail.  Hopefully, Corrigan is heading back towards southern waters before the water cools in Long Island sound and he gets in trouble. 

A manatee was spotted as for north as Massachusetts in 2008.  According to the website of the Buzzards Bay National Estuary Program “late in September 2008…a manatee either crossed or traveled up Buzzards Bay to appear in the cold waters of Cape Cod Bay in East Dennis, MA, on the north side of Cape Cod about October 1, 2008. The Manatee could not find its way back around Cape Cod, so on 12 October a rescue was attempted by a wildlife rescue group from Florida.” Unfortunately, this manatee did not survive the trip back to Florida.  In August of 2008, a manatee was reported in Stonybook, and in 2009 one spent time at Point Judith in Rhode Island, so it is not impossible that a manatee would come to Oyster Bay.  Why not, we all know it’s a beautiful place to visit!

The waters have been very warm this summer, with temperatures nearing 80 degrees.  It is the warmest I have recorded in the years I have been doing water quality monitoring for Friends of the Bay.  Despite the warm water temperatures, the Dissolved Oxygen levels have been very good.  Without having a complete analysis done, there were very few times when the levels were below 3.5 mg/L of dissolved oxygen, and those lower levels occurred mostly in the back areas of Mill Neck Creek, or the southern end of Cold Spring Harbor.  It would seem to be an attractive habitat for a visiting manatee.  The bluefish were certainly happy – we saw quite a few jumping when doing water quality monitoring on Tuesday. 

And, just to do justice to “Wrong Way Corrigan” let me explain this brave aviator’s nickname. Douglas Corrigan was a pilot and aircraft mechanic.  He purchased an OX5 Robin monoplane and modified it for a transatlantic journey.  Corrigan applied to the government in 1935 for permission to make a flight from New York to Ireland.  He was not given permission since the federal authorities thought the plane was not capable of making the trip.  Corrigan applied several times more, but was always turned down.  By 1938 he had grown tired of waiting.  He flew from California to New York.  According to his flight plan, he was to return to California.  He took off from Floyd Bennett Field in heavy fog, and headed east.  He had been told by airport officials to head in any direction but west.  They expected him to turn west and return to California, but he kept heading east. 

Corrigan claimed that he had very poor visibility and that according to his compass he was heading west.  28 hours and 13 minutes later, he arrived at Baldonnel Airport, Dublin, Ireland.  He claimed that he had been “following the wrong end of the compass needle”.  Authorities did not believe his story about the compass, but could not make him change his explanation.  Corrigan was treated as a hero when he returned to the United States.  He was given a ticker tape parade with more than a million people watching (more than came to see Lindbergh).  He never publicly acknowledged that he intentionally flew to Ireland.  

Only the most competent and bravest pilots would attempt a transatlantic flight at the time “Wrong Way Corrigan” made his journey.  So, perhaps naming our manatee Corrigan is a fitting acknowledgement of the incredible journey he has made, far from his native waters. 

Not "our" manatee - but this one certainly looks tired from a long swim!

Hurricane Earl

Hows the Water - August 30, 2010

(reprinted with permission from the Oyster Bay Enterprise Pilot)

As I am writing this column, hurricane Earl is heading up the eastern seaboard, and no one is yet sure what path the storm will take, or what the impact may be.  Boaters are securing their vessels, making sure the anchorages are secure, removing sails, and in some cases pulling them out of the water.  Birders are wondering what the impact will be on the early migrants, and what rarities might be blown off course and to our shorelines. 

So where do these hurricanes come from anyway?  Hurricanes are intense tropical storms which form in the North Atlantic.  To be classified as a hurricane, wind speeds have to reach at least 74 mph.  There are certain conditions which are necessary for a hurricane to form:  80 degree or warmer water temperatures, which is at least 150 feet deep; a low pressure area with wind disturbance; a lack of stability in the air, which allows clouds to develop; a centrifugal force, known as a Coriolis Force, which stems from the earth’s rotation; moist air in the lower portion of the atmosphere, and low level winds with directional changes (wind shear).

Tropical storms form when a system of thunderstorms converge and begins to rotate in the atmosphere.  This vortex is a tropical depression.  Heat is drawn up from the ocean surface through the vortex.  Water vapor condenses to form rain around the perimeter of the vortex.  High winds are generated by energy from the heat of the ocean.  When winds reach 35 mph the system is considered a tropical storm, and is assigned a name by the National Hurricane Center.  Hurricanes are assigned categories based upon their wind speeds.  A category 3 or higher storm (wind speeds of greater than 111 mph) is a major hurricane. 

According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, global warming may be making the impact of hurricanes worse.  “Sea level is rising and will continue to rise as oceans warm and glaciers melt. Rising sea level means higher storm surges, even from relatively minor storms, which increases coastal flooding and subsequent storm damage along coasts. In addition, the associated heavy rains can extend hundreds of miles inland, further increasing the risk of flooding.  Recent scientific evidence suggests a link between the destructive power (or intensity) of hurricanes and higher ocean temperatures, driven in large part by global warming.”  We can only wait to see what hurricane Earl will bring, and what other storms may form this year. 

The water in the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor Estuary is very warm, with temperatures as high as I have seen them while performing water quality monitoring for Friends of the Bay.  Friends of the Bay volunteers recorded temperatures in the 75 to 77 degree Fahrenheit range this week.  The dissolved oxygen levels appear to have reached their lowest levels for the season, and are beginning to rise again.   The DO levels were mostly at 4.0 mg/L of dissolved oxygen, which considering the extremely hot summer we have had, is quite good. 

Watershed Action Plan Public Meeting

Hows the Water - August 23, 2010

(reprinted with permission from the Oyster Bay Enterprise Pilot)

Friends of the Bay is pleased to announce the formation of a Steering Committee to assist in the development of a Watershed Action Plan for the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor watershed and estuary.  The plan will include measurable goals and prioritized action items that could be adopted by governmental agencies and private groups to protect and improve the health of the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor watershed and estuary.  The initial meeting will be held on Thursday, September 30 at 7:00 in the Parish Hall of Christ Church, 61 East Main Street, Oyster  Bay. 

The Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor Estuary and its watershed have been facing increasing challenges in recent years.  Friends of the Bay is committed to the protection, preservation and restoration of the watershed area and is actively involved in water quality issues, watershed and wetlands conservation, and land use planning. Research, education, community action and advocacy are at the core of FOB’s mission. 

The Steering Committee will work with the project team to identify, discuss and evaluate strategies to address the watershed management goals and objectives.  The Watershed Action Plan will be developed consistent with EPA and NYSDEC guidance for the development of watershed-based plans, which includes nine key elements that establish the structure of the plan.  These nine elements include specific goals, objectives, and strategies to protect and restore water quality; methods to build and strengthen working partnerships; a dual focus on addressing existing problems and preventing new ones; a strategy for implementing the plan; and a feedback loop to evaluate progress and revise the plan as necessary.

I am so very pleased to invite the community to participate in this process.  Friends of the Bay is working to develop a forum by which residents, governmental agencies, municipalities and businesses can work together to restore and protect the ecological health of our unique watershed. It is exciting to see our efforts coming to fruition.    

Those individuals interested in participating on the Steering Committee should be available to attend three meetings to be scheduled between September 2010 and early January 2011, and to review and provide comments on various draft project documents during the planning process.

For more information regarding the Steering Committee or to volunteer to participate in the Committee, please contact me at (516) 922-6666 or by email at p.aitken@friendsofthebay.org.  Please place “Steering Committee” in the subject line of the email.

A small craft advisory and threat of heavy downpours kept the Friends of the Bay volunteers on land this past Monday.  The rain certainly was welcome, and I am confident that the rain and cooler temperatures will lead to improved dissolved oxygen readings next week when we do our water quality monitoring. 

Shark Fishing in Montauk

Hows the Water - August 16, 2010

(reprinted with permission from the Oyster Bay Enterprise Pilot)

On Sunday some lucky friends of Friends of the Bay took a road trip to Montauk to go fishing for sharks.  This shark fishing trip was an auction prize won by Frank Leone at the Friends of the Bay Launch the Season fundraiser, held in May.  Frank Leone, four of his friends, and myself boarded Rich Appel’s boat Journey early in the morning for a full day of fishing.  We all speculated as to how many sharks we would see, and whether we would catch anything besides sharks. 

As has happened so often during my time at Friends of the Bay, I learned so much.  The knowledge fisherman have to have about the correct bait, the way to set the lines in the water, bearing in mind the wind, current and drift of the boat, the knowledge of where sharks will most likely be, was a revelation to me.   There was much discussion regarding fishing regulations, and the plight of oceanic fish like tuna and cod, whose fishing stocks are being depleted by rampant overfishing.  Without some kind of international agreement concerning fishing limits, their future is uncertain.  Many species of sharks are also endangered, which is why our trip was strictly catch and release.  Even the hook used to catch the sharks was made to dissolve after a month or so in the water. 

As a birder, I was thrilled to be able to watch a Cory’s Shearwater, which came right up to the boat and had a great feed off of the chum being left in the water to attract sharks.  Wilson’s Petrels also followed the boat for a considerable amount of time.

A Mako shark struck the bait, and I was the lucky one who got to reel him in.  I have new respect for the strength needed to haul in a large fish.   Our shark was a young one, and it was hard for me to reel him in. I can only imagine what it would take to land a large shark, or one of the fighting fish like a marlin or a swordfish.  One day, I want to find out!

It was a great day, spent in great company.  Friends of the Bay is very fortunate to have such generous supporters, who care for and respect the marine environment. And we know how to have a good time doing it!  Frank Leone, besides being the “Best Friend of Friends of the Bay” is also the President of the Oyster Bay Historical Society.  Frank and his lovely wife Stephanie are hosting a party at their home on Saturday, August 28 to benefit the Oyster Bay Historical Society.  This is another group that knows how to have a good time in support of a good cause.  For more information or to purchase tickets, call 516-922-5032.

Back in Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor, the dissolved oxygen levels continued to be low.  This is not to be unexpected due to the hot weather, and once autumn begins the levels will begin to climb again.  We noticed many herons and egrets in Mill Neck Creek.  They gather there, and then one day, they are almost all gone, heading off to their winter home in the south.  Soon the winter ducks will be returning to the Refuge. 

The fishing crew

We called him "Chewy" - and let him go!