Long Island Sound Continues to Decline
Back in March, a report was released concerning the health of Long Island Sound. It was authored by Hannes Baumann, Assistant Professor of Marine Science for the University of Connecticut and Jacob Snyder -a graduate student. The report looked back over decades of scientific data, confirming that Long Island Sound continues to decline.
The report identifies four main areas of concern – steadily rising water temperatures in eastern Long Island Sound, acidification, loss of dissolved oxygen, and a decrease in the abundance and the diversity of marine life. All of them serious issues.
If you have been fishing the Sound for many year – as I have – this is a no big surprise. The Sound’s marine environment has been declining for decades. In good part it is due to the increasing urbanization of the surround land. Which in turn causes coastal eutrophication – an increase in pollutants such as nitrogen, phosphates, and waste water runoff. And there is no doubt the Sound’s problems are now aided by climate change.
Make no mistake my angling friends, the waters around us are changing before our very eyes. Difficult days may lie ahead, as Long Island Sound continues to decline.
