Southbaysail.com
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Pre Sandy
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November 2012
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April 2013
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This is the first follow up on the Breach photo article.
Photo article here
Photo article here
Below from a study done in 2005 Kenneth R. Hinga Graduate School of Oceanography University of Rhode Island predicts a breach at Old Inlet and discusses possible effects.
It is estimated that there have been 28 inlets through Fire Island over the last 300 years (Leatherman, 1985). When inlets open or close, the rates of exchange of water between the estuary and the offshore change. It follows that there are then changes in the residence time and salinity of water, which in turn may affect the organisms living in the estuary.
Most of the historical inlets were at Westhampton Beach (part of the barrier Island at Moriches Bay. Recent studies indicate that the most probable places for breaches in Fire Island are at Old Inlet and Barret Beach (Conley, 2000). Modeling of the water flow expected if there was a breach at these locations indicates that a breach would raise the average salinity of GSB from 25.9 to about 29.5 parts-per-thousand.
The residence time of the Bay would also be reduced by roughly half - from 96 to 40 or 52 days, depending upon the location of the inlet.
http://www.ci.uri.edu/naccesu/FIIS_page/Hinga_GSB_final.pdf
Most of the historical inlets were at Westhampton Beach (part of the barrier Island at Moriches Bay. Recent studies indicate that the most probable places for breaches in Fire Island are at Old Inlet and Barret Beach (Conley, 2000). Modeling of the water flow expected if there was a breach at these locations indicates that a breach would raise the average salinity of GSB from 25.9 to about 29.5 parts-per-thousand.
The residence time of the Bay would also be reduced by roughly half - from 96 to 40 or 52 days, depending upon the location of the inlet.
http://www.ci.uri.edu/naccesu/FIIS_page/Hinga_GSB_final.pdf
During the 1930's two natural events decimated the Great South Bay’s oyster population. The first was in 1931 when a coastal storm opened Moriches Inlet into Moriches Bay.
The opening of Moriches Inlet increased the salinity of the eastern Great South Bay which enabled the oyster drill, a small snail that that preyed upon seed oysters,to increase in abundance and to expand its range in the bay. As a result the natural production of oysters declined substantially. The second major event was the hurricane of 1938 which destroyed many of the bay’s oyster beds.
While the events of the 1930s devastated the oyster population, they greatly benefited the hard clam population. The higher salinities were favorable to the hard clam which became increasingly abundant in the eastern part of the Great South Bay. As the baymen would say, “God took away the oyster but gave us the hard clam.”
Above from http://www.longislandtraditions.org/southshore/sights_sounds/fishing/pdf/kassner_essay.pdf
The opening of Moriches Inlet increased the salinity of the eastern Great South Bay which enabled the oyster drill, a small snail that that preyed upon seed oysters,to increase in abundance and to expand its range in the bay. As a result the natural production of oysters declined substantially. The second major event was the hurricane of 1938 which destroyed many of the bay’s oyster beds.
While the events of the 1930s devastated the oyster population, they greatly benefited the hard clam population. The higher salinities were favorable to the hard clam which became increasingly abundant in the eastern part of the Great South Bay. As the baymen would say, “God took away the oyster but gave us the hard clam.”
Above from http://www.longislandtraditions.org/southshore/sights_sounds/fishing/pdf/kassner_essay.pdf
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Clams once filtered the entire Great South Bay once every 2.5 days. At current population levels it takes 100 days to filter the bay. And that’s not nearly enough to do any good. If all goes well the Nature Conservancy’s goal to have the clam population restored to sustainable harvest levels by 2020 will be met, and hopefully we’ll see a healthier bay and be enjoying those fresh Long Island clams again.
Clams once filtered the entire Great South Bay once every 2.5 days. At current population levels it takes 100 days to filter the bay. And that’s not nearly enough to do any good. Image at left and text from - Loving Long Island.com |
The below from the SUNY Stony Brook Great South Bay Project
shows changes in salinity to areas of the Great South Bay
shows changes in salinity to areas of the Great South Bay
Before and after Sandy charts from Save the Great South Bay Facebook
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Ocean salinity has been slightly more than 32 psu for a long time and that is reflected in the Old Inlet record during flood tides. During ebb tides, the salinity in the inlet drops to Bay salinities, which are quite variable at Bellport as winds and local runoff alter the inner Bay conditions. Soon after hurricane Sandy, salinities at Bellport reached values of around 30 psu but gradually the salinities settled to fluctuate around 27 to 28 psu. In the last month or so, the salinities at Bellport seem to have increased somewhat and now quite often reach values greater than 31 psu. The seems to indicate that there is more exchange with the ocean through the inlet even though the tide range at Bellport has not increased. At the end of the plotted record the salinity at Bellport has dropped way down to around 25 psu and appears associated with the wide spread drop in water level and may be due to a drainage of the local fresh water creeks and river. In the last day or so the salinity Bellport has recovered to nearly 30 psu so the drop in salinity was a temporary phenomena.
Real time data on salinity and more from Great South Bay Buoy #1
http://somas.stonybrook.edu/~RTDS/pages/gsb.php
There will be a follow up - Effect on tides in 1-2 weeks - Mike
http://somas.stonybrook.edu/~RTDS/pages/gsb.php
There will be a follow up - Effect on tides in 1-2 weeks - Mike
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