Long Island Sound Watershed

Long Island Sound Watershed

Estuaries

Long Island Sound is an estuary. An estuary is a tidal body of water that is fed by both salt and fresh water sources. Estuaries are partially sheltered water sources that are protected by land from harsh winds, and storms, that occur in oceans. Because of this protection, estuaries are perfect habitats for marine creatures in early stages of development. Estuaries are special because they act as transition habitats for marine animals moving from fresh water sources to ocean habitats. They also act as temporary homes or resting places for many creatures such as migratory birds and mammals, and as breeding grounds for many fish and other wildlife, and as permanent homes to shellfish and finfish. Tens of thousands of species can be found in an estuary. Many types of birds, fish, and mammals depend on estuaries for survival.

Estuaries are important because they are among the most productive systems on earth. Due to the unique water chemistry, many habitats are created. The mixture of salt and fresh water, tidal conditions, and shelter from harsh atmospheric conditions, create a unique and critical habitat for the survival of many marine species. Habitats are very diverse in estuaries ranging from less to concentrated saline areas, rocky shores to sandy beaches, mud flats to coral reefs, shallow harbors to deeper open waters, and regularly flushed areas to more stagnant enclosed areas.

Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound is bordered by New York and Connecticut. It is approximately 110 miles long and at its widest point reaches 21 miles. It is unusual in that it connected to the ocean at opposite ends: “the Race” at its eastern end, and the East River at its west end. (Most estuaries have only one connection to the ocean.) Long Island Sound’s salt-water source is the Atlantic Ocean; its fresh water is from all of the rivers that drain to it, but the most significant fresh water sources are the Housatonic, Connecticut, and Thames Rivers.

Over 5,000,000,000 dollars is generated from activities related to Long Island Sound, including sport fishing, boating, swimming, and beach-going as well as commercial fishing. Long Island Sound’s oyster fishery is one of the largest in the United States, generating 95% of the Nation’s oysters.

Long Island Sound Watershed

Although Long Island Sound itself is 110 miles long, its watershed covers more than 16,000 square miles – an area the size of Delaware times eight. Long Island Sound’s watershed covers all of Connecticut and parts of New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, and a small portion of Quebec, Canada. It is estimated that 8,000,000 people live within Long Island Sound’s watershed. Because of the large human population in the watershed, human impacts are high.

We all live in a watershed. Watersheds consist of a network of land and water that eventually join at one location, much like the branches of a tree come together at its trunk. Watersheds channel water from rain, snow, and ice and from underground sources to larger bodies of water. Watersheds are the land that water flows across as it makes its way to gutters, streams, bays, lakes, and rivers, and out to estuaries and eventually the ocean. In this process, nutrients are picked up and deposited into these bodies of water as well as on the land along the way. Watersheds can be small or large; the Long Island Sound watershed is large, but consists of a network of many smaller watersheds. Because watersheds are networks, changes to one watershed will affect others downstream.

Due to the significant human population in Long Island Sound’s watershed, human-induced activities have a detrimental effect on water quality in the Sound. Humans have altered the land in the watershed, reduced open spaces, and have caused both point and non-point types of pollution in the watershed and in the Sound.

Point-source pollution is pollution from a specific source. It is the type of pollution that is discharged from a pipe from a factory, industrial site, or sewage treatment plant. It is the image most commonly associated with pollution. Although point-source pollution is an important issue concerning Long Island Sound and other water bodies, another type of pollution has an even greater negative effect – non-point source pollution.

Non-point source pollution, or “people pollution”, cannot be associated with a distinct source but comes from many diffuse sources. It is a product of human activities, such as driving and washing automobiles and boats, maintaining lawns and gardens, constructing buildings and homes, altering the land, improper disposal of hazardous chemicals, and failing septic systems. These actions directly and indirectly affect the water quality of nearby waters that, in turn, will travel to the Sound. Because Long Island Sound’s watershed is large and highly populated, the amount of non-point source pollution entering water bodies that drain into Long Island Sound is quite significant.

Non-point source pollution causes many of the same problems as point-source pollution, the only differences are that it is difficult to pinpoint its exact source and that it is far more difficult to prevent. Non-point source pollution adds extra nutrients, sediment, bacteria, toxins, and heavy metals to the Sound. This can stress and kill organisms and it adds to poor water quality resulting in such problems as hypoxia [jeb1] .

Why protect Long Island Sound?

Long Island Sound provides more than five billion dollars to the region’s economy. People enjoy the recreational, economic, and aesthetic values of Long Island Sound, which are part of the region’s culture. The Long Island Sound estuary not only provides recreational, economic, and aesthetic values, but it supports a wide variety of habitats. These habitats provide food and shelter for plants and animals as well as protect humans from the full force of storms. As more and more people choose to live and vacation in the region, human impacts to the Sound will also increase. It is critical that humans evaluate their activities at home and work to minimize their impact on the watershed and the Sound. The Sound is an important to the region’s natural, recreational, and economic vitality; it is the region’s greatest natural resource. It is our responsibility to protect and restore it so that it remains viable for future generations.