Peconic Estuary Research Articles

Economic Valuation for Coastal Water Infrastructure Planning: Analysis of the Housing Market and Nutrient Pollution in Suffolk County, NY

The waters around Suffolk County, New York, are plagued by water quality concerns from nitrogen inputs, algal blooms, and eutrophication. Meanwhile, waterfront and near-water homes fuel a robust real estate market with many iconic regions, such as the Hamptons. Aging cesspools and septic systems are a paramount concern in the area. With approximately 74% of homes outside sewer systems, several jurisdictions are evaluating approaches to funding retrofits that would improve septic systems and water quality. It is therefore an ideal location to assess the impact that water quality has on home values; this paper investigates property sales near the Long Island Sound, South Shore Bays, and Peconic Estuary System. Results show that water quality has a significant impact on nearby home sales, with the largest effects generally seen nearest to the coastline. These results inform a discussion about potential benefits and costs of widespread septic tank and cesspool retrofitting, which is currently incentivized by grant and loan programs.

Management pathways for the successful reduction of nonpoint source nutrients in coastal ecosystems

Eutrophication remains a threat to coastal habitats and water quality worldwide. The U. S. Clean Water Act resulted in reductions of nutrient loading from point sources but management of nonpoint sources (NPS) of nutrients remains challenging despite efforts over at least three decades. The hydrological factors, best management practices (BMPs) and regulatory mechanisms that target nutrient NPS and improve coastal ecosystem function are poorly understood. We identified three case study sites in the U.S. with sufficient NPS management and monitoring history to quantify changes in estuarine habitat and water quality following BMP implementation and regulation targeting nutrient NPS. Utilizing publicly available data, we compared sites that are geographically distant and hydrologically distinct. We found that BMPs targeting NPS loads from surface waters into Roberts Bay (Florida) and Newport Bay (California) significantly reduced nutrient concentrations and harmful algal blooms within ∼20 years. Improvements occurred despite concurrent human population growth within both watersheds. Conversely, we found that the majority of BMPs implemented within the Peconic Estuary (New York) watershed targeted surface waters despite a dominance of nitrogen inputs (97%) from groundwater and atmospheric sources. Declines in habitat and water quality in Peconic Estuary may be due to a failure to control the dominant nutrient sources and the long residence time of nitrogen in groundwater. Compared to surface water, reducing groundwater and atmospheric nutrients face greater technical and financial challenges. Improvements to Peconic Estuary may occur with further reductions in surface water inputs and as nutrients leach out of the groundwater. Although the effectiveness of specific NPS BMPs has been examined at small spatial scales, our study is the first to quantify improvements at a watershed scale. We showed that successful NPS management pathways are those which targeted the dominant sources of nutrients to coastal ecosystems and applied multiple BMPs within watersheds.

Acoustically Measured Distribution and Abundance of Atlantic Menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) in a Shallow Estuary in Long Island, NY

Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) is an euryhaline forage fish abundant along the eastern coast of the USA that seasonally migrates between the open ocean and shallow water estuaries. These fish are known for forming large, dense schools and are important prey for piscivorous fish, seabirds. Following several large fish kills in the late spring of 2015 in the western Peconic Estuary in Long Island, New York, we conducted multiple surveys during the spring, summer, and fall using scientific echosounders to quantify menhaden abundance in this region. Acoustic backscatter data were used to estimate numeric abundance and biomass of menhaden for the western Peconic Estuary. We found that the 2015 fish kills represented between 7 and 18% of the total local population (~ 2.4 million) that were present at the time. Significant changes in target strength distributions during the study suggest that the size classes of menhaden present in the estuary change as fish grow or migrate in and out of the estuary. This study demonstrates that vertical beam active acoustics is a viable method for quantifying forage fish in a very shallow (< 4 m depth) estuary.

Acoustic quantification of abundance, biomass, and size class of Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) in a shallow estuary in Long Island, New York

Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) is an euryhaline forage fish commonly found on Long Island from late spring to fall and is both ecologically and economically important to fisheries along the entire eastern coast of the United States. Schools of menhaden frequently occupy the shallow (<4 m) bays and rivers of the western Peconic Estuary on Long Island, New York. These shallow habitats are difficult to sample using traditional pelagic (i.e., net trawls) or shore-adjacent (i.e., beach seines) methods due to shallow water depths and salt marsh coastline. We conducted multiple acoustic surveys using fisheries echosounders (38, 120, and 200 kHz) and sidescan sonar between May and November in 2015 and 2016 in Flanders Bay and the Peconic River. Active acoustic surveys were capable of providing estimates of abundance, biomass, and length distribution of Atlantic menhaden. Abundance and biomass estimates for the entire western Peconic Estuary were extrapolated from survey data and showed large (order of magnitude) variations in the menhaden population in these waters from spring to fall. Length distributions of menhaden differed both among seasons and between years. Data were ground-truthed using video, photographs, and morphological measurements of Atlantic menhaden.

Contrasting Growth Patterns of Suspension-Feeding Molluscs (Mercenaria mercenaria, Crassostrea virginica, Argopecten irradians, and Crepidula fornicata) Across a Eutrophication Gradient in the Peconic Estuary, NY, USA

While many coastal ecosystems previously supported dense meadows of seagrass and dense stocks of bivalves, the impacts of overfishing, eutrophication, harmful algal blooms, and habitat loss have contributed to the decline of these important resources. Anthropogenic nutrient loading and subsequent eutrophication has been identified by some researchers as a primary driver of these losses, but others have described potential positive effects of eutrophication on some estuarine resources. The Peconic Estuary, Long Island, NY, USA, offers a naturally occurring nutrient-loading gradient from eutrophic tidal creeks in its western reaches to mesotrophic bays in the eastern region. Over 2 years, we conducted an experiment across this gradient to examine the effects of eutrophication on the growth of estuarine species, including juvenile bivalves (northern quahogs (Mercenaria mercenaria), eastern oysters, (Crassostrea virginica), and bay scallops (Argopecten irradians)) and slipper limpet (Crepidula fornicata). Water quality and phytoplankton community biomass and composition were concurrently monitored at each site, and the effects of these variables on the growth of estuarine species were analyzed with multiple regression model. Eutrophication seemed to impact shellfish through changes in the quality of food and not the quantity since the growth rates of shellfish were more often correlated with densities of specific cell types or quality of seston rather than bulk measures of phytoplankton and organic seston. Northern quahogs and eastern oysters grew maximally within eutrophic locales, and their growth was positively correlated with high densities of autotrophic nanoflagellates and centric diatoms in these regions (p < 0.001). The growth rates of northern quahogs were also positively correlated with relative water motion, suggesting an important role for tidal currents in delivering seston to suspension feeders. Bay scallops and slipper limpets were negatively impacted by eutrophication, growing at the slowest rate at the most eutrophic sites. Furthermore, bay scallop growth was negatively correlated with densities of dinoflagellates, which were more abundant at the most eutrophic site (p < 0.001). These results suggest that nutrient loading can have significant but complex effects on suspension-feeding molluscs with select species (e.g., oysters and clams) benefiting from eutrophication and other species performing poorly (e.g., scallops and slipper limpets). Future management approaches that seek to restore bivalve populations will need to account for the differential effects of nutrient loading as managers target species and regions to be restored.

Temporal Variability in Phytoplankton Removal by a Commercial, Suspended Eastern Oyster Nursery and Effects on Local Plankton Dynamics

ABSTRACT Quantitative measurements of phytoplankton removal in a natural setting are needed to evaluate interactions between aquacultured bivalve populations and the surrounding environment. We report high-frequency (15-min) measurements of environmental variables relevant to oyster feeding and excretion at the inflow and outflow of an oyster nursery—floating upweller system (FLUPSY)—from June through September 2010 in the East Creek embayment, Peconic Estuary, NY. We demonstrated large variability in oyster particle clearance rate on short- (minutes to hours) to long-term (seasonal) timescales, including oyster responses to environmental variation, such as diurnal temperature and dissolved oxygen cycles, wind-driven turbulence, and the presence of harmful algae. A diel cycle in clearance rates calculated from whole FLUPSY measurements was apparent, with a maximum weight-specific clearance rate (CRW) of 2.21 L/h/g occurring around midnight, and a minimum CRW of 0.32 L/h/g at 0740 HR, coincident with the l...

Characterization, dynamics, and ecological impacts of harmful Cochlodinium polykrikoides blooms on eastern Long Island, NY, USA

We report on the emergence of Cochlodinium polykrikoides blooms in the Peconic Estuary and Shinnecock Bay, NY, USA, during 2002–2006. Blooms occurred during late summer when temperatures and salinities ranged from 20 to 25 °C and 22 to 30 ppt, respectively. Bloom patches achieved cell densities exceeding 10 5 ml −1 and chlorophyll a levels exceeding 100 μg l −1, while background bloom densities were typically 10 3–10 4 cells ml −1. Light, scanning electron and ultrathin-section transmission electron microscopy suggested that cells isolated from blooms displayed characteristics of C. polykrikoides and provide the first clear documentation of the fine structure for this species. Sequencing of a hypervariable region of the large subunit rDNA confirmed this finding, displaying 100% similarity to other North American C. polykrikoides strains, but a lower similarity to strains from Southeast Asia (88–90%). Bioassay experiments demonstrated that 24 h exposure to bloom waters (>5 × 10 4 cells ml −1) killed 100% of multiple fish species (1-week-old Cyprinodon variegates, adult Fundulus majalis, adult Menidia menidia) and 80% of adult Fundulus heteroclitus. Microscopic evaluation of the gills of moribund fish revealed epithelial proliferation with focal areas of fusion of gill lamellae, suggesting impairment of gill function (e.g. respiration, nitrogen excretion, ion balance). Lower fish mortality was observed at intermediate C. polykrikoides densities (10 3–10 4 cells ml −1), while fish survived for 48 h at cell densities below 1 × 10 3 cells ml −1. The inability of frozen and thawed-, or filtered (0.2 μm)-bloom water to cause fish mortality suggested that the thick polysaccharide layer associated with cell membranes and/or a toxin principle within this layer may be responsible for fish mortality. Juvenile bay scallops ( Argopecten irradians) and American oysters ( Crassostrea virginica) experienced elevated mortality compared to control treatments during a 9-day exposure to bloom water (∼5 × 10 4 cells ml −1). Surviving scallops exposed to bloom water also experienced significantly reduced growth rates. Moribund shellfish displayed hyperplasia, hemorrhaging, squamation, and apoptosis in gill and digestive tissues with gill inflammation specifically associated with areas containing C. polykrikoides cells. In summary, our results indicate C. polykrikoides blooms have become annual events on eastern Long Island and that bloom waters are capable of causing rapid mortality in multiple species of finfish and shellfish.

Valuing Estuarine Resource Services Using Economic and Ecological Models: The Peconic Estuary System Study

This article summarizes four integrated economic studies undertaken to contribute to resource preservation and restoration decisions for the Peconic Estuary System of Suffolk County, NY. Completed as part of the National Estuary Program, the studies apply distinct resource valuation methods to a wide range of resource issues. The principal goals of this article are to highlight different methodologies that may be used to assess nonmarket economic values in a coastal management context, and characterize differences in the results that one may expect from each approach. We also emphasize potential relationships among values estimated by different nonmarket methodologies, and comment on the implications of these relationships for the interpretation and use of economic value estimates.

Physicochemical speciation of iron during coastal algal blooms

Abstract Previous coastal marine studies have concluded that the total dissolved Fe may influence the initiation of algal blooms, including Brown Tides of Aureococcus anophagefferens. However, the existence of unavailable colloidal and organically complexed Fe make the dissolved pool a poor indicator of what is bioavailable for assimilation by phytoplankton. To evaluate the role of Fe in the formation of coastal algal blooms, we measured its physicochemical speciation—dissolved, high molecular weight (HMW), low molecular weight (LMW), labile particulate, refractory particulate, organically complexed, and labile dissolved factions—in the Peconic Estuary, NY, USA, which hosts sporadic Brown Tides. Across the Brown Tide-prone, high salinity portion of the estuary dissolved Fe varied from 9 to 240 nM, which is above and below levels reported to cause physiological Fe stress in this species (100 nM). Dissolved Fe in the more saline portions of the Peconics was, on average, 80% organically complexed and 73% high molecular weight (HMW=colloidal, 0.2 μM–10 kDa). Within an intensively studied embayment, decreases in labile particulate Fe, along with increases in low molecular weight (LMW) Fe, coincided with peaks in algal biomass. A significant positive correlation between LMW Fe and chlorophyll a (r2=0.62, P

Estimating Amenity Benefits of Coastal Farmland

This paper investigates differences in non‐market farmland amenity values estimated using distinct methodologies, with a focus on the potential causes and policy implications. The paper compares farmland amenity values generated by a hedonic property value model and a contingent choice model, both estimated from data collected in the Peconic Estuary System of Suffolk County, NY. The analysis demonstrates that a combination of non‐market valuation methodologies can provide policy insights not otherwise available to those relying on any single approach, and illustrates types of information that may be obscured by methodologies used in isolation.

Trace Metals and Dissolved Organic Carbon in an Estuary with Restricted River Flow and a Brown Tide Bloom

This study was designed to establish the distributions of trace metals (Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and inorganic nutrients (PO4 and H4SiO4) in the water column of the small, relatively pristine Peconic River estuary. We were also able to examine the effects of a harmful microalgal bloom, known as the brown tide, which occurred in the area during our study. Because river inflow to the Peconic estuary is restricted by a small dam at the head of the estuary, direct evaluation of the relative importance of riverine inputs on estuarine metal distributions was possible. The simultaneous analyses of geochemical carrier metals (Al, Fe, and Mn), an indicator of sewage (Ag), and other ancillary parameters (e.g., suspended particulate matter, dissolved O2, chlorophylla) were used to describe the major processes controlling metal concentrations in the dissolved phase. The trace metal distributions indicated two distinct biogeochemical regimes within the estuary: an anthropogenically perturbed region with high metal levels (e.g., Ag, 165 pM; Cu, 51 nM; Zn, 57 nM) at the head (Flanders Bay), and a larger outer region with relatively low metal concentrations. The very similar distributions of some metals (e.g., Mn, Ni) in the Peconic estuary compared to those in estuaries having much higher river flow demonstrated the dominant role of internal processes (e.g., diagenetic remobilization) in controlling these metal patterns. An inverse relationship between dissolved Fe and DOC with cell counts of the brown tide microalgaeAureococcus anophagefferens in our field study suggested a close association with the bloom, although a similar relationship was observed between dissolved Al and brown tide cell counts, implying that removal of Fe could be due to particle scavenging rather than biological uptake.