Inaugural Blue Star Award Presented to Wall Township

On Wednesday, August 26^th, Clean Ocean Action awarded the Blue Star certification to Wall Township, NJ, to recognize their effort to improve water quality. Clean Ocean Action’s Municipal Blue Star Program was established in 2014 to encourage towns in coastal regions and beyond to prioritize water quality protection measures, while achieving Sustainable Jersey Certification.

Wall Township achieved 90 of the necessary 75 points to attain the Municipal Blue Star certification. Examples of the actions completed include Community Education & Outreach, Education for Sustainability Programs, and Open Space Plans.  In addition to Sustainable Jersey projects, towns are required to choose one of COA’s additional actions. Wall Township completed the Innovative Water Quality Project action through partnering with Monmouth County in a Wreck Pond Sediment Control Project. This project works to improve water quality within the watershed in an effort to help resolve impairments that contribute to the precautionary closings of the Spring Lake beaches. Additionally, Wall Township afforded its residents with a Clean Water and Lawn Conservation Program that educates the community on promoting better conservation green practices. The development of the Program was made possible by the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.    

Wall Township joins Long Beach Township as the second of two inaugural Blue Star towns. Congratulation to our Blue Star inductees!  

ACTION ALERT: 100,000 VOICES NEEDED TO SAVE THE WHALES

Sign the Petition telling the White House to reject seismic airgun

surveys for oil and gas drilling in the Atlantic Ocean! 

http://goo.gl/8yvqa 

  

Photo Credit: NOAA

Friends of Marine Life: Immediate Action is needed to keep the ocean wild and industry free! The federal government is considering allowing "seismic surveys" in the Atlantic Ocean - airgun blasts designed to pinpoint offshore oil and gas deposits deep in the seafloor.  From death to deafness, these shockwaves threaten fish and fisheries, whales and dolphins, and the entire marine ecosystem.

  

Ted Danson, ocean advocate and actor, recently said it best in a blog post calling for a nation-wide voice in opposition to this proposal:

"In the ocean you find a symphony of sound, from the clicking of snapping shrimp to the long mournful wails of whales, and zips of dolphins. Now imagine this oceanic soundscape shattered by dynamite-like blasts, every 10 seconds for days and even weeks on end. Blasts so loud they can literally deafen marine mammals that need to listen to live, possibly injuring or killing these animals by the tens of thousands. This grisly scenario may soon become a reality in an area of the Atlantic Ocean twice the size of California, where the Department of the Interior is currently reviewing a proposal to test the seafloor with seismic airguns, all in the speculative pursuit of more offshore oil and gas."

Recently, a cohort of Congressmen and Senators urged President Obama to reject these surveys and protect the Atlantic Ocean from oil and gas activities. Read more here.

Please Act Now Take These Two Steps: 

Step One: Sound the alarm! Share this with your family, neighbors, and communities; every voice counts.  Ramp up the volume for the ocean! See how many signatures you can get. Send to 10, 20, 30, or more of your friends.  

Step Two: Join One Hundred Thousand of your fellow ocean heroes by signing this petition, urging the President to protect the mammals, fish, ecologies, and economies of the Atlantic Ocean:  http://goo.gl/8yvqa

Fracking, the Foodopoly, and Our Future

Please join us for Fracking, the Foodopoly, and Our Future 

Thursday, April 4th at 7pm 

Reception with light hors d'oeuvres begins at 6pm

Two River Theater -- 21 Bridge Ave-- Red Bank, NJ 07701 

Join Food & Water Watch for a panel discussion featuring experts on energy policy and our food system to understand how the rush for natural gas development and the deterioration of our food system are intricately linked together. 

Panelists

Wenonah Hauter-- Executive Director, Food & Water Watch and Foodopoly author

Dean Nelson-- Dean's Natural Food Market

J. Stephen Cleghorn, PhD-- Paradise Gardens and Farm, LLC

Sean Dixon-- Coastal Policy Attorney of Clean Ocean Action

Free and open to the public! 

Register at http://bit.ly/foodopolyredbank. 

For more information, contact Emily Reuman at 978.844.2164 or ereuman@fwwatch.org. 

~

Thanks to our Host Committee: 

Rosemary Parish, Robert Scardapane, WATERSPIRIT, and Tina Weishaus. 

~

To purchase your copy of Foodopoly in advance through River Road Books and pick it up at the Theater, visit www.riverroadbooks.net/special_order.html. 

You'll also have a chance to buy a signed copy of Foodopoly at the event (while supplies last). 

The State of Coastal Lakes in NJ

In mid-February, COA staff attended the Coastal Lakes Summit: Moving to a Healthier and More Resilient Future at Monmouth University.  The Summit was organized by the Urban Coast Institute (UCI).  UCI held its first Coastal Lakes Summit in 2008.

About the Summit

The purpose of the 2013 Summit was to bring together natural resource managers and engineers, municipal officials, representatives of civic groups, community organizations, federal and state agency representatives, and local coastal and watershed management groups to indentify post-Sandy recovery and restoration priorities for the coastal lakes of NJ and to implement lake restoration plans.   

About Coastal Lakes

Deal Lake Photo Credit: Etsy

New Jersey has over 20 coastal lakes!  The coastal lakes, throughout Monmouth and Ocean County, provide local freshwater resources, offer important recreational and aesthetic amenities, and most historically were estuaries.  Many of these lakes used to have a connection to the ocean, before intense man-made development altered the landscape.

Deal Lake is the largest coastal lake in New Jersey; other well-known lakes include Lake Takanesse, Spring Lake, Wreck Pond, Stockon Lake, Little Silver Lake and Twilight Lake.

Sadly over time, these lakes have become merely regional stormwater basins, collecting untreated and unmanaged stormwater runoff generated by the surrounding communities.  What were historically estuaries have become impoundments for excessive algae growth and nutrient loading.

Impact of Superstorm Sandy

While nutrient loading has been an issue within the NJ coastal lakes for quite some time, Superstorm Sandy has presented new issues:

·         Physical Impacts

o   Filling

o   Erosion

o   Shoreline failure

·         Structural Impacts

o   Failed or damaged weir/flume/dam

o   Storm sewer lines filled with sand and debris

·         Environmental Impacts

o   Water quality: contaminants, bacteria, nutrients, sediment

o   Debris: upland wreckage, boats, trees, other submerged material

Fish and Wildlife Issues

Since the coastal lakes were historically estuaries, many of the species needed a delicate balance of fresh and salt water and open exchange with the ocean to survive.  Anadromous fish, like New Jersey’s River Herring, are born in fresh water, spend most of their life in the ocean and then return to fresh water to spawn.  On the other hand, catadromous fish, like the American Eel, live in fresh water and enters salt water to spawn.  Both types of fish need an open exchange between the salt water ocean and the fresh water lake to migrate and spawn properly. 

Over time, human population booms and over-development have closed these lakes off to the ocean, to prevent flooding (among other issues), but also causing declines in fish populations.  The River Herring is now a candidate species under the Endangered Species Act to be upgraded from a “Species of Concern” to Threatened or Endangered. 

Solutions

To help with stormwater runoff and to return the coastal lakes from impoundments back to estuaries, Summit attendees thought to plant native species around the lakes, create maritime forests (ocean coastal wooded habitats found on higher ground than dune areas), restore riparian corridors, preserve habitat for migratory birds, scrutinize the source of sand for beach replenishment projects, re-establish dunes, and preserve open space.  Creating soft shorelines, is also a good solution for two reasons.  One is so that nesting shorebirds have invertebrates to eat, and to improve water quality.  Soft shorelines filter pollutants out from stormwater runoff.

It is perhaps most important to have a project as a model that can be used to educate the public and local elected officials about the responsibility that comes living near a coastal lake.  The maritime forest project in Ocean Grove/Bradley Beach at Fletcher Lake can serve as a model for citizens to visualize the benefits of preserving the coastal lakes and restoring them to estuaries for generations to come. 

Water Monitoring and Barnegat Bay

NJ Water Monitoring Council Meeting Focuses on Barnegat Bay

Barnegat Bay, photo credit: NY Times Richard Perry

In early February, COA participated in a NJ Water Monitoring Council meeting that was hosted by the Barnegat Bay Partnership.  The goal of the NJ Water Monitoring Council was “to promote and facilitate the coordination, collaboration and communication of scientifically sound, ambient water quality and quantity information to support effective environmental management.”  About 100 people attended. 

DEP highlighted the Governor’s 10 point plan for the Bay which included developing nutrient loading targets to direct restoration efforts and to conduct more research to fill gaps in data.  DEP has been monitoring the Bay more intensively from the summer of 2011 and will continue to do so through the summer of 2013.

The northern part of the Bay has the highest loadings of nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended sediments – which are linked to the intense development in this region.  The Toms River, which drains the largest basin of the watershed, is the largest source of nutrient loadings. 

Nitrogen pollution comes from land disturbance, increased erosion, fertilizer use, burning fossil fuels and its fallout from the air, and increased hardened surfaces such as pavement and roofs that prevent rain, and nitrogen from getting absorbed into the land and plants.   Coastal waters may become even more susceptible to nutrient pollution as coastal waters warm in response to climate change.

Too many nutrients in the Bay has resulted in the excessive growth of harmful algae blooms, such as brown tide, and macroalgae which can lower dissolved oxygen levels in localized areas and degrade seafloor habitats.     Both of these can contribute to the loss of sea grass that has been documented in Bay.  The composition of the microalgal community, and associated food quality for other sea life, may also be affected by nutrient levels.

Although some shellfish can thrive under high microalgae levels, shellfish are negatively impacted by brown tide blooms, decreased food quality, and excessive macro algae such as sea lettuce.  Young clams are also very sensitive to certain types of chemical pollution, such as oil and gas from cars and boats. 

As part of the 10 Point Plan, nutrient water quality standards were adopted for marine waters.  DEP now needs to evaluate the Bay under these standards.  DEP will be taking a comprehensive approach to looking at the nutrient loading problems in Barnegat Bay, including the impacts of Superstorm Sandy.  For example, sand and debris associated with the storm surge and breeches have covered seagrass beds and wetlands areas.  Localized contamination may also have occurred from fuel tanks, cars, fertilizer and other household chemicals. The official determination of whether the Bay fails to meet the state nutrient water quality standard is important for requiring action to be taken to reduce nutrient loadings.

In light of Superstorm Sandy, the need for understanding the sources of the bay’s problems and action to reduce these impacts is more important than ever.  Implementation of the Barnegat Bay Partnership’s strategic plan is critical and can serve as a guide for recovery efforts.  The Special Area Management Plan that was part of the Governor’s 10 Point Plan should be made a priority and be part of the recovery process.  In addition, more enforcement of and stronger stormwater regulations are still needed.  Greater awareness and efforts by the public to decrease the use of fossil fuels and to reduce rain and fertilizer runoff as well as soil loss and erosion would be beneficial to the Bay.

What Debris is in Your Local Waterway?

Here is a very helpful update from DEP and DOT on Waterway Debris Removal:

Debris in marsh areas in Brick, NJ

• The State of New Jersey has awarded three contracts to companies who will remove Sandy-related, FEMA-eligible debris from waters of the State  in the 11 Debris Management Zones.  The duration of the contract is one year.  The goal of this cleanup effort is to be 75% complete by June 1st  but cleanup will likely continue throughout the boating season and into the Fall.

• The areas where debris has been identified was  determined by reconnaissance conducted by State personnel as well as reports from FEMA, municipalities, counties and residents.  Additional reconnaissance will be conducted by the contractors to further identify debris and sand deposits. 

• The areas where the contractors will be operating are within the waters of the State of New Jersey.  This includes (without limitation): bays, tidal rivers,  and those tidal waterways affected by the storm surge.  As part of the cleanup effort, debris monitors will be assigned to  each debris removal contractor.  In addition, a project manager will be identified for the entire project.  The project manager will be responsible for scheduling, invoicing, data management, oversight of the contractors, etc. 

• The materials that will be removed through this effort must be FEMA eligible.  The best source of information on FEMA eligibility is this FEMA guidance document.

• In addition to the contractors that have been hired, the State Department of Transportation is surveying State navigation channels.  This activity has already begun.  NJDOT will be using side scan sonar to identify debris areas including new shoals.

How You Can Help

Your help in this effort is needed.  If you know of areas where waterway debris is located, please send a photograph of the site along with latitude and longitude or your best location information (e.g., closest intersection) so we can direct our contractors to the site.  Please send these photos to communications@cleanoceanaction.org.  Also if you are aware of any debris washing into the OCEAN during the storm, including cars, boats, structural debris, trees, household contents, as well as items washing up onto beaches, please let us know. 

For additional information on Waterway Debris removal click here.

Like the Dracula Monster Liberty Gas is Back Again!

Guest blog by Rav Freidel, Director, Concerned Citizens of Montauk – Rav@agencyrav.com

Big energy isn’t fiddling around while New York and New Jersey rebuild the coastline. They’re, once again, trying to fast track both oil exploration and the industrializing of the Atlantic Ocean with LNG – Liquefied Natural Gas facilities.

First they tried to place Broadwater, a 1200’ long terminal, in Long Island Sound. But impossible to ignore resistance from both sides of the estuary thwarted this LNG facility. (To his credit, New York’s replacement Governor David Patterson vetoed it after his predecessor Eliot Spitzer had failed too.)

Undaunted, big energy tried to get a foothold in the ocean and build “Safe Harbor” an artificial island off Long Beach, New York. Plus two more Broadwater type LNG terminals off the New Jersey shore — “Blue Ocean” and “Liberty Gas.” (Karl Rove himself couldn’t have come up with three better names to try and cloak the raping of the ocean.)

So the battle to protect the New York /New Jersey Bight from big energy ensued. Why it’s called “the Bight” I don’t know.  What I do know is that it’s one of the most bio diverse marine environments along the Atlantic Coast. It’s home to more than 300 species of fish, 350 species of birds, 25 species of whales, dolphins and seals, and 5 species of endangered sea turtles. It runs 256 miles from Cape May, NJ to Montauk Point, NY and out to the continental shelf.

Due to soaring energy costs brought on by greed, big energy got an enormous amount of support from Washington. Congress wanted to drill everywhere without environmental review. Barack Obama, facing a difficult reelection, championed opening up more of the Arctic, the Gulf of Mexico and even the Atlantic Ocean to oil and natural gas exploration.

Then fate stepped in. BP’s Deep Water Horizon (also one of those apple pie and motherhood names) exploded and defiled the gulf. Day after day of news stories on the massive oil spill placed a pall over big energies plans for the Atlantic.  

Suddenly Safe Harbor folded its tent. So did Exxon’s Blue Ocean. And NJ Governor Chris Christie kept his campaign promise and vetoed the last hold out, Liberty Gas! LNG in the Bight was finally dead.

Cindy Zipf, executive director of Clean Ocean Action based in Sandy Hook, New Jersey sensed an opportunity. She dusted off legislation she had been working on for years and rekindled the campaign to create a Clean Ocean Zone (COZ) to protect the Bight.

Enough with all these endless meetings, late night hearings, and countless conference calls, for once and for all we were going to get a federal law that made sure that the only energy development in the Bight would be renewables — green energy, like wind, solar and geothermal. There would be no oil drilling, no LNG terminals, no BP type oil spills, no medical waste, no toxic dredge spoils or sludge and sewage disposal. And both New York and New Jersey would have a greater say in what neighboring states wanted to do to the ocean.

Cindy got tremendous support from municipalities, commercial and recreational fishermen, surfers, boaters, businessmen, environmentalists, restaurants and resorts up down the coast. There were 170 different business and environmental groups who signed on to the COZ. Then last summer Cindy launched the “Tour for the Shore” educational campaign. It featured Margo Pellegrino, a world-class ocean kayaker paddling from Cape May to Montauk, Clean Ocean Action attorney Sean Dixon peddling his 10-speed all the way, and philanthropist Andrew Sabin, who calls himself a Teddy Roosevelt republican, wearing a GOP cycling suit, as he covered the last 100-mile leg of the journey.

The politicians on both sides of the isle started paying attention. But it was an election year. No new legislation would be possible until 2013. Cindy had planned a massive letter writing campaign, meetings with our congressmen and senators and Town resolutions supporting the COZ.

Then fate stepped in again. October 29, 2012, super-storm Sandy devastated the coast and all bets were off on the COZ. People were focused on getting the ocean out of their homes. Not trying to protect an unfriendly sea.

As expected, Liberty Gas has resurfaced again with a new proposal to place another Broadwater type terminal off Atlantic Beach — the New York side of the Bight. And once more were playing whack-a-mole with LNG.

In case you’re wondering what LNG is all about, it’s simple. These gigantic facilities are for is exporting natural gas extracted by Fracking — the process of sending pressurized fluid (water) into the shale, and blasting the trapped gas out of the rock.  Fracking contaminates drinking water and pollutes the air we breathe. What’s more, LNG, a carbon-based fuel, is almost as dirty as coal.  It’s a greenhouse gas that’s helping to cook the life out of the planet, and by the way, helping cause super storms like Sandy, last summers drought and the recent blizzard in the northeast.

For more information and how you can help drive a stake through the heart of big energy and protect the NY/NJ Bight, please contact Zipf@cleanoceanaction.org, or myself, Rav Freidel, director, Concerned Citizens of Montauk – Rav@agencyrav.com.

Sponsor Waves of Action!

Would your business like to support Clean Ocean Action’s important Super-storm Sandy relief efforts?  

Learn how you can help revitalize our communities and rebuild them sustainably in the future. 

View ways your business can be recognized for contributing to Sandy relief efforts

Your support would help continue relief efforts in communities like New Dorp, Staten Island.

Waves of Action ‘For the Shore’ started in the aftermath of Sandy – a long-term program developed to connect volunteers to immediate needs of different communities affected by the storm.  Clean Ocean Action’s network of organizations, businesses, citizens, and municipalities along the Jersey Shore and the Shore of Long Island has identified and implement projects that are needed within coastal communities.

Waves of Action will continue each month throughout 2013. The projects will change as the needs of the communities’ change, as they move from recovery to rebuilding and restoration.

Additional donations to support Waves of Action can be made here or can be mailed to Clean Ocean Action at 18 Hartshorne Drive, Suite 2, Highlands, NJ 07732.

More photos from our January 19^th Waves of Action can be found here.

For more information, contact Emily at Clean Ocean Action
via e-mail: events@cleanoceanaction.org.

View sponsorship opportunities here

CALL FOR PROJECTS – FORTHESHORE.ORG

CLEAN OCEAN ACTION’S WAVES OF ACTION DAY

NY/NJ First Wave of Action Day Set for Saturday, December 8, 2012

In the aftermath of the storm, there is a tremendous response from volunteers region-wide who have dedicated their time and efforts to help those affected and in need.  In the spirit of the organic volunteer effort that has grown in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Clean Ocean Action, in partnership with organizations from across New York and New Jersey, are calling on members of the community to coordinate relief effort projects for the first “Waves of Action” day on Saturday, December 8. 

The first Waves of Action Day on Saturday, December 8, is looking for community leaders to become project leaders by registering their task online and facilitating the volunteers that respond.  Types of projects can include: beach, town, and park clean-ups; food, household items, and furniture drives; fundraisers for wildlife and communities in need; and/or home clean out and repair.  The projects will vary based on real, on the ground needs. 

“In the aftermath of Sandy it is evident that all communities were impacted differently,” commented Tavia Danch, Clean Ocean Action’s Education Coordinator.  “‘For the Shore’ is a way to connect projects with people” added Danch.

A call for volunteers is going out as well, to match those in need with people looking to help.  To register for a project, visit www.fortheshore.org or contact Clean Ocean Action at
732 872-0111.

Clean Ocean Action education and advocacy volunteer, Kathleen Gasienica said, “Like many others I have an overwhelming feeling of wanting to help the people in the coastal areas who were devastated by the storm.  Thanks COA for your Day of Action and for giving me the opportunity to help where it is most needed and encouraging the restoration efforts after the television crews have all gone home.”

The Waves of Action day will begin a restoration program “For the Shore” to help initial relief efforts for our community beaches, neighborhoods, and businesses in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.  Future Waves of Action days will evolve with the needs of communities and keep the momentum going for continued improvement of the shore through debris clean ups and projects to improve water quality.

“It has been inspiring to see the response to the devastation, but the journey to restore the shore will be long. We established this program to provide a longer-term strategy to help heal our coastal communities,” said Clean Ocean Action Executive Director Cindy Zipf.

Already making waves, planned projects include clearing trails and debris at the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center, cleaning up Munns Pond County Park, (both in Hampton Bays, NY), a dune restoration project in Midway Beach, South Seaside Park, NJ, and many others.

“The Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center was hit hard by Superstorm Sandy.  All of our resources are being used to care for the influx of exhausted seabirds blown in from the storm, so little time is available to clear our nature trails,” stated Ginnie Frati, Executive Director of The Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center.  “We are so appreciative of Clean Ocean Action for helping us plan this day, and for all the good work they do for the environment.”

Projects being confirmed and posted on ForTheShore.org include December 8 events by Surfrider chapters, Sierra Club chapters, NY/NJ Baykeeper, and NJ Watershed Ambassadors.

Krissy Halkes, Chair of the South Jersey Chapter of Surfrider Foundation noted that her chapter “has been organizing cleanups every weekend since Hurricane Sandy devastated our beautiful beach towns and we look forward to participating in Clean Ocean Action's Wave of Action on the 8^th.”

To register a project visit www.fortheshore.org or contact Clean Ocean Action at
732-872-0111. 

In the interim, for current relief efforts and needs, visit COA’s blog: www.cleanoceanaction.blogspot.com – UPDATED DAILY -- for volunteer opportunities throughout NJ and NY.

BRWC Examines Health of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay

The Bayshore Regional Watershed Council (BRWC) is an all-volunteer environmental group. Since 2000, the council has been working to improve the physical environment in the Bayshore region of Middlesex and Monmouth counties, New Jersey. The BRWC is made up of citizens, scientists, environmental commissioners, and municipal officials from a variety of Bayshore communities, from Old Bridge Township eastward to the Borough of Highlands. The council's goal is the restoration and conservation of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay. This goal can only be accomplished, however, through active public participation by people in each Bayshore community.

Please consider becoming a member of the watershed council. BRWC meet the second Thursday of every month inside Keyport Borough Hall, located on Front Street. For more information, visit www.bayshorewatershed.org. 

Photo Credit: Joe Reynolds

On September 16, 2012, BRWC hosted a Free Seining Event of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay.  One way to discover how healthy a natural body of water might be is to conduct a biological test, like seining.  Two people pull a long net through the shallow part of the water to capture fish, crabs, and anything else that lives along the shallow edge of the bay, mostly small and juvenile animals. After recording and taking a close look at what was found, participants then release the animals back into the water.

Seining is like a taking a brief health check to see the abundance and diversity of who's swimming in the water. In general, the more variety of life in the water, the healthy it is.  Four bayside beaches were tested: Cliffwood Beach in Aberdeen Township, Conaskonck Point in Union Beach, near the mouth of Pews Creek in the Port Monmouth section of Middletown Township, and near the mouth of Many Mind Creek in Atlantic Highlands.

Photo Credit: Joe Reynolds

The goal was to see if water quality in Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay, a gritty urban-suburban estuary downstream from New York City, was healthy during a late summer day. 

Among the catch was:

• Herring, including bluebacks and shad
• 4" Snapper Blues
• Atlantic Silversides 
• Striped Killifish by the handful
• Northern Pipefish
• Several species of drums
• Lots of comb jellies, mole crabs, and mud snails
• Skillet fish
• Juvenile Blennies

There was also an assortment of crabs and shrimps:

• Blue crabs
• Lady crabs
• Spider crabs
• Mud crabs
• Mole crabs
• Snapping shrimp 
• Shore shrimp

Pipefish found in Atlantic Highlands. Photo Credit: Joe Reynolds

In spite of the diversity, though, the turbidity was poor. The water was cloudy and turbid, so much so that in some places you could only see a few inches down. Perhaps this was due to recent rains that had washed in an abundance of sand, sediment, and other substances. There could have also been an abundance of algae floating in the water.  

To find out the full results of the seining survey, check out "Nature on the Edge of NYC:"  here.

Guilty! By Guest Blogger Rav Freidel

Rav Freidel of Concerned Citizens of Montauk wrote the following Letter to the Editor on August 3, 2012 to the East Hampton Star: 

I did it. I confess. I put up most of those “Tour for the Shore” road signs.  They’re all about stopping pollution in the ocean. Right now the battle lines are being drawn between big energy and the fisheries and the Atlantic Ocean is up for grabs. I eat fish, not oil. I’m on the side of the fish and those who make their living catching them. I want an ocean where you and your kids can swim, surf, go sailing and enjoy yourselves free of sewage, sludge, medical waste, toxic dredge spoils and BP type oil spills. I want an end to the acidification of our sea caused by burning carbon-based fuels. They’re cooking the life out of the planet. Half the coral reefs are dead or dying. The rest, I’m told, will be gone in 25 years. As they disappear so do the fish.

Creating a Clean Ocean Zone from Cape May to Montauk Point and out to the continental shelf is a very complicated issue. We’re not Exxon/Mobil with unlimited budgets and virtually every politician in the country on our payroll. The only way to get our message across on a shoestring was to use these signs. I hope people visit cleanoceanzone.org and find out more and write their congressmen and senators and tell them they want the ocean protected! No drilling. No LNG facilities. No dumping. No spills. No pollution, period. The only industrialization will be for clean, renewable energy.

A lot of work went into creating these signs. By themselves each one looks terrific. But in mass, it’s an eyesore. They’re visual pollution. I hate it —even if it’s for a good cause. For my money, all these signs should be banned. East Hampton Village has it right. Create a designated area for signs and that’s it. That goes for good causes and bad, for carnivals and politicians.

On August 24, at noon, Margo Pellegrino and her kayak and Sean Dixon on his ten-speed will arrive at Turtle Cove under the Montauk Lighthouse and complete their 256-mile journey from Cape May. I urge you to come out and join them and show your support for the Clean Ocean Zone.

All the signs will be gone on August 25. But the need to protect the ocean will still remain.     

[PRESS RELEASE] OCEAN CHAMPIONS TO DIVE INTO “TOUR FOR THE SHORE” CAMPAIGN ONE WEEK FROM TODAY

PRESS RELEASE

***For Immediate Release***

Contact: Lindsay McNamara, Clean Ocean Action
732-872-0111 (office) 908-310-6729 (cell)

OCEAN CHAMPIONS TO DIVE INTO “TOUR FOR THE SHORE” 
CAMPAIGN ONE WEEK FROM TODAY

 Paddle, Bike, and Rally from 

Cape May, NJ to Montauk, NY for a Clean Ocean

Beach-lovers urged to “Get in Motion for the Ocean” to raise awareness of 

ocean pollution threats and to support for a Clean Ocean Zone

Sandy Hook, NJ –– One week from today, on Friday August 10, Clean Ocean Action and other marine advocacy groups will begin a two week adventure along the coast of Cape May, New Jersey, to Montauk, New York, to raise awareness of ocean pollution issues and the need for a Clean Ocean Zone.


Facing threats from ocean blasting for oil and gas development, pollution, and reckless development, the Clean Ocean Zone initiative was created by concerned citizens along the New York and New Jersey coastlines to lock-out harmful pollution and industrial activities off the coast while locking-in permanent protection for future generations. The ultimate goal is for the citizen-drafted federal law to be enacted.


The Tour for the Shore will kick off in one week, next Friday in Cape May, making its way up the coast, through New York City, and along the South Shore of Long Island. The Tour will conclude in Montauk, NY on Friday, August 24th, 2012. To finish strong, there will be a 100-mile “Century Ride” from Babylon, NY to Montauk kicking off at the break of dawn at 6 A.M. on the 24 – bringing Dixon and other cyclists to Montauk at the same time as Pellegrino and other paddlers-at-sea.


The Tour for the Shore includes special events like; a bike cruiser ride through Fire Island, a town meeting-style environmental summit on the state of the Monmouth County Bayshore and to meet up with other advocates at “Blue Drinks” events.  Beach-goers can discuss the Clean Ocean Zone, ocean conservation, marine policy and renewable energy with ocean champions from New Jersey and New York at local restaurants along the Tour.


For details about the dates, and locations of the Tour visit www.cleanoceanzone.org or call Clean Ocean Action at 732-872-0111. 

###

[PRESS RELEASE] NY/NJ CONGRESSMEN JOIN TOGETHER IN BI-PARTISAN SUPPORT OF A CLEAN OCEAN!

For Immediate Release: July 25, 2012

Press Information:  Lindsay McNamara

communications@cleanoceanaction.org

For Policy Questions:  Cindy Zipf (732) 996-4613 or Sean Dixon (732) 872-0111

NY/NJ CONGRESSMEN JOIN TOGETHER IN BI-PARTISAN

SUPPORT OF A CLEAN OCEAN!

Ocean defenders say “NO” to expanded offshore oil drilling and fight to protect clean ocean economies.

Sandy Hook, NJ--This afternoon, the New Jersey Congressional delegation voted nearly unanimously in bi-partisan support for the ocean by saying “NO” to HR 6082, the latest attempt to bring Offshore Oil and Gas Drilling to the Atlantic Ocean.  Unfortunately, despite New Jersey’s strong bipartisan opposition, and the support of New York’s coastal Congressional Democrats, the bill ultimately passed by a margin of 253 – 170.

New Jersey Republicans LoBiondo (R-2nd), Runyan (R-3rd), Smith (R-4th), Lance (R-7th), and Frelinghuysen (R-11th) joined with New Jersey Democrats Andrews (D-1st), Pallone (D-6th), Pascrell (D-8th), Rothman (D-9th), Holt (D- 12th), and Sires (D-13th), and coastal New York Democrats Bishop (D-1st), Israel (D-2nd), McCarthy (D-4th), and Nadler (D-8th) in voting against this bill that could bring oil and gas rigs to the greater Mid-Atlantic Ocean within the year. 

The five New Jersey Republicans voting no to HR 6082 were only joined by 4 other members of the Republican caucus – making the NY/NJ delegation the fiercest bi-partisan group defending clean ocean economies.

“The bipartisan support for the ocean by the NY and NJ Congressmen today affirmed the region’s longstanding leadership and bi-partisan commitment to our clean ocean economies,” said Cindy Zipf, Executive Director of Clean Ocean Action. “We are extremely proud that our leaders put politics in the back seat, instead choosing to protect our fisheries, coastal businesses, and our Atlantic Ocean.”

“All along the New Jersey and Long Island coastlines, our Representatives have heard the voices of coastal citizens and businesses,” noted Clean Ocean Action attorney Sean Dixon; “bringing oil and gas drilling to the Atlantic Ocean would risk the ruin of our billion-dollar commercial and recreational fisheries, our billion-dollar tourism and recreation industries, and our priceless history of ocean stewardship.”

This vote, the fifth or sixth vote by the House of Representatives trying to open a majority of the nation’s oceans (including the Atlantic Ocean) to offshore energy production, will not likely be passed by the Senate, and if it was, President Obama has promised a veto.

This summer, Clean Ocean Action will be holding a “Tour for the Shore” – travelling from Cape May Point, NJ on August 10th to Montauk Point, NY on the 24th, holding rallies and meet-ups in each of these Congressional districts to thank these Representatives for their commitment to the ocean and to call for the establishment of the nation’s first Clean Ocean Zone (www.cleanoceanzone.org).

For more on the Tour for the Shore, see cleanocean.wordpress.com/tour

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NJ Coastal Water Health Investigation Using Glider

This week a submerisible vehicle, an autonomous Slocum glider, was released off the New Jersey coast to collect important data on the health of the water. EPA, DEP and Rutgers have teamed up to conduct these high-tech monitoring efforts.  Clean Ocean Action called for and has supported more data collection along the coast and is glad to see that these efforts that continue to evaluate marine life health by documenting dissolved oxygen conditions.

“The glider, resembling a yellow torpedo with swept-back wings, will zigzag as it makes its way south to Cape May, taking rapid-fire readings of dissolved oxygen, salinity and temperature at various depths. The data will be analyzed by DEP scientists, as the agency works to better understand why the ocean off New Jersey tends to have low levels of oxygen, particularly in the summer.”

Last year, the glider observed stratification of the water column, with warmer waters overlying cold waters below.  Coastal upwelling and a massive algal bloom also occurred that was eventually broken up after the passage of Hurricane Irene which mixed the water layers.

This year gliders have documented more mixed waters in June than seen last year, and unusually warm waters earlier this spring. For the full story, click here.

Check on the http://maracoos.org/ main page too for science updates on the New York/New Jersey Bight. There is real-time data for the Mid-Atlantic Bight, research updates, and a blog that explains some of the research and events that occur.  Plus a new app for rip tides along parts of the Jersey Shore has been posted by Stevens Institute, so you can enjoy the waters and stay safe!

[PRESS RELEASE] ONE MONTH COUNTDOWN TO THE “TOUR FOR THE SHORE” GROUPS TO RALLY 30 OFFICIALS IN 30 DAYS

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: July 10, 2012

Contact: Joanna Simon, Clean Ocean Action, 732-872-0111 (office) 908- 489-5611 (cell)

ONE MONTH COUNTDOWN TO THE 

“TOUR FOR THE SHORE”

GROUPS TO RALLY 30 OFFICIALS IN 30 DAYS

Summer-long Campaign to Engage the Power of the People

Mayor of Belmar, Matt Doherty signing on the Clean Ocean Zone

Belmar, NJ—– Today, New Jersey residents and environmental advocates gathered at Taylor Pavilion in Belmar to announce the start of Clean Ocean Action’s summer 2012 campaign to raise awareness of current ocean pollution issues. The C.O.A.S.T. (Clean Ocean Action Shore Tips) campaign promotes citizen-to-citizen communication, building a grassroots movement of concerned and informed citizens. 

Today also marks the one month countdown to the Tour for the Shore - an unprecedented public awareness campaign to support the nation's first Clean Ocean Zone (COZ), an initiative which will permanently protect and celebrate the waters off our coast. Through the 2012 C.O.A.S.T. program, Clean Ocean Action and COA volunteers will be working to rally 30 elected officials to sign-on in support of the COZ in the next 30 days leading up to the Tour. 

“If there’s one thing that the C.O.A.S.T. campaign must do this summer, it’s to get beachgoers out of their beach chairs and show their support for the Clean Ocean Zone,” said Joanna Simon, 2012 C.O.A.S.T. Intern. “We, the citizens, have to mobilize others to get in motion for the ocean, to influence our elected officials and protect our beaches for ourselves and future generations.”

Belmar Mayor Matt Doherty was in attendance and the first of the 30 officials to sign-on in support of the Clean Ocean Zone, stating “I am proud to be the first elected official to sign the Clean Ocean Zone resolution during this C.O.A.S.T. campaign,” he also added that “all New Jersey residents should be thankful for the hard work and success that COA has had with the waters off the New Jersey coast.”

“Citizens have worked hard for over 25 years to turn our ocean from a national joke to a premier tourism destination and it is now time for us to lock in that success and become the nation’s first Clean Ocean Zone.  Our elected officials must now step up and endorse the Clean Ocean Zone initiative” said Cindy Zipf, Executive Director of Clean Ocean Action.

 “The Clean Ocean Zone has been 10 years in the making. The time is now to act on this important initiative,” said Richard Lee, Executive Director of Surfers Environmental Alliance. “Tell your friends, tell your family. Please support the Clean Ocean Zone,” he added.

Also in attendance was paddling enthusiast, Margo Pellegrino. No stranger to raising awareness for the ocean, Pellegrino paddled from Miami to Maine in 2007 over the course of just-under 11 weeks, bringing attention to Atlantic Ocean issues from pollution to over-development. In 2008, she paddled from Long Beach Island (New Jersey) to Washington, D.C., delivering “messages in a bottle” to legislators. In 2009, Pellegrino paddled the Gulf Coast, then a year later, paddled from Seattle to San Diego - all in the name of the ocean. Margo is gearing up for the 2012 Tour for the Shore as she plans to lead the way for Clean Ocean Action, paddling the entire distance from Cape May to Montauk.

Margo will travel by outrigger canoe along the shoreline while Clean Ocean Action’s Coastal Policy Attorney Sean Dixon hits the pavement on a road bicycle. Rallies, action-tables, and beach teams will be held along the way in every coastal district and elected leaders will be urged to participate and support the initiative. The tour is scheduled to take place during the peak of the shore’s tourist season providing the coalition the opportunity to reach tens of thousands of people with one message: “The time is now for the Clean Ocean Zone.” 

“We hope cyclists, surfers, families, kayakers, and beachgoers will grab a bike or a board and join us as we make our way up the coast,” said Sean Dixon, COA Coastal Policy Attorney excited to be making his first cycling adventure for-a-cause. “We will have maps and timetables online – as well as difficulty estimates – to help anyone who wants to participate decide the best way to take action for the ocean,” Dixon added.

To find out more about this summer’s tour and to find out how to participate, please visit www.cleanoceanzone.org or call Clean Ocean Action at 732-872-0111.

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[MEDIA ALERT] ONE MONTH COUNTDOWN TO THE “TOUR FOR THE SHORE” GROUPS TO RALLY 30 OFFICIALS IN 30 DAYS

***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***

MEDIA ALERT

Contact: Joanna Simon 732-872-0111 (office)

908-489-5611 (cell)

ONE MONTH COUNTDOWN TO THE “TOUR FOR THE SHORE”

GROUPS TO RALLY 30 OFFICIALS IN 30 DAYS  

Summer-long Campaign to Engage the Power of the People

Who: Clean Ocean Action: C.O.A.S.T. Intern Joanna Simon, Executive Director Cindy Zipf, Cyclist/Attorney Sean Dixon; Outrigger Canoeist Margo Pellegrino, Surfers’ Environmental Alliance Executive Director Richie Lee

What: Clean Ocean Action announces the start of its summer 2012 C.O.A.S.T. campaign to gain support from 30 elected local, state and federal officials before the Tour for the Shore.  The Tour is an unprecedented two week bike, paddle, and rally event beginning on August 10 in Cape May and ending on the 24th in Montauk, NY.

When: Tuesday, July 10, 11:00 AM

Where: Borough of Belmar Taylor Pavilion

             500 Ocean Avenue Belmar, NJ

            Click here for a map: http://bit.ly/NJgWkk

Why: To raise awareness for the Clean Ocean Zone, an action that would designate the NY/NJ Bight as a no-dumping, no-drilling, pollution-free zone through an unprecedented citizen action campaign to raise awareness for a clean ocean.

Photo Ops: Speakers, Elected Officials, Citizen Activists, Scenic Views

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