IEC Passes Through LISP Funding to Support CSHH's Core Monitoring Program

Through funding provided by the Long Island Sound Partnership (LISP), IEC has secured a subaward to support Coalition to Save Hempstead Harbor (CSHH), a group which conducts water-quality monitoring of physical, chemical, and biological indicators of pollution at up to 21 sites in Hempstead Harbor and Glen Cove Creek. The project will assist nine local governments as well as state and federal agencies and regional planning entities in better management of Hempstead Harbor and will help carry out LISP’s Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan (CCMP), which prioritizes “collaboration across numerous cross-jurisdictional partners and stakeholders” as well as strengthened monitoring, specifically in embayments and near-shore waters.

Hempstead Harbor is an important site to gather data due to the water quality challenges it has faced and the wide variety of uses the Harbor continues to support, including industry, primary and secondary contact recreation, and fishing. Previous industrial and commercial uses resulted in degraded water quality through oil spills, sewage spills, toxic contamination, air pollution, and industrial discharges. High bacteria levels and low oxygen levels have resulted in fish kills and closed beaches and shellfishing sites. Runoff from the Harbor's subwatershed and tidal water from the Long Island Sound has impacted both the hydrologic and ecologic system. However, collecting data from this site allows future planning to include further remediation in the Harbor. Much work has already been done in remediating industrial pollution, reducing bacteria levels, and reopening shellfish harvesting sites. Monitoring done by CSHH will continue to support improved water quality on the Harbor.

In addition to their core monitoring program funded by IEC, CSHH is a member group of both the Pathogen Monitoring Network and the Unified Water Study on the Long Island Sound. The Unified Water Study, coordinated by Connecticut Fund for the Environment- Save the Sound, aims to fill in many of the data gaps that exist in Long Island Sound embayments in order to inform water quality management decisions and get a more comprehensive picture of water quality health throughout the Sound. CSHH has been a member since 2017 and continues to provide essential data. The Pathogen Monitoring Network, created by IEC in conjunction with Harbor Watch at Earthplace, The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, uses monitoring groups throughout the Sound in order to obtain data for fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) in the watershed. Currently, FIB is mainly monitored only at primary contact recreation sites, which leaves large areas of the Sound untested. CSHH’s participation in both of these networks helps to fill data gaps and create a more comprehensive picture of water quality and environmental health in the Long Island Sound.

The data collected will have many uses, including identifying seasonal and long-term trends in water quality, monitoring aquatic habitats, investigating pollutant sources for targeting reduction efforts, and guiding local and regional environmental planning, policy, and compliance efforts. The project is also aligned with the overarching program goal of improving water quality by reducing contaminant and nutrient loads from the land and the waters impacting LIS. Testing began in May and will run until October, with parameters including dissolved oxygen, fecal coliform bacteria, enterococci bacteria, total organic nitrogen, ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, salinity, pH, turbidity, clarity, water temperature, air temperature, wind speed and direction, precipitation, and wildlife observations. These data will be compiled into an annual water quality report to be produced and disseminated.