Project Summary

1. Project ID
Name	Great South Bay Shellfish Habitat Restoration
Region	Mid Atlantic Region
State	New York
Location	Suffolk County (Town of Brookhaven)
Date of this update	June 1998

Habitat Restoration/Protection
Wetlands
River systems
Beaches/Dunes
Offshore areas
Mangroves
Assisting Species at Risk
Pollution Mitigation
Non-Point Source Pollution
Other (describe)

3. Project description (100 words or less)

In order to reverse trends in hard clam (Mercenaria mercenaria) decline in the Great South Bay, a program is proposed to restore clam habitat by selectively altering bay bottom sediment type to reflect that most often associated with greater abundances. Based on surveys by the Town of Brookhaven, areas with muddy bottom tend to have the lowest abundances, while discrete and stable areas of high clam abundance are mostly associated with a sandy bottom mixed with shell (especially relict oyster reefs). It is proposed to replicate this condition by adding shell to sandy areas of the bay with low clam abundances. Because of the scarcity of oyster shell, surf clam shell would be used, and mixed with sand prior to placement at the sites. Larval surveys would be conducted to determine the level of natural clam set that might recolonize the area, and, if necessary, sets could be purchased and planted at the newly restored sites to jump-start the recolonization. These techniques have been tried elsewhere (Long Island Sound and Barneget Bay, NJ) with good success, and offer a potential long-term solution to the problem in Great South Bay.

4. Goals/Benefits (quantify where possible using measures of success list) Was a cost-benefit study conducted for this project? yes/no If yes, provide a summary of findings.

The benefits include restoration of historical clam populations in up to 10% (2500 hectares) of the bay, restoration of benthic communities associated with clam populations, and potential improvement of the water quality in the bay (whose flushing time has gone from 2.6 to 25.0 days since the 1970s) through increased filtration rates (4.5 million liters of bay water/day/hectare of improved habitat; assuming fivefold increase in clam abundance). Increased filtration might also play a role in helping to control recent outbreaks of brown tide (Aereococcus anorexefferens) that have plagued the bay recently. Additional benefits would be increases in harvests that could amount to as much as $7,500/hectare restored.

A cost-benefit analysis has not been prepared.

5. Partners (include each participant's responsibilities - funding, permitting, etc.)

• Federal 		Lead: Corps of Engineers (initial project report (PRP), NEPA review and project design/construction)  

• Non Federal		Local government: Town of Brookhaven  (permits, assist in water/shellfish surveys and in planting shell/sand mix)

6. Funding/Contributions (organization and amount)

• Cash:	  	Federal:  $10,000 (for PRP) + 75% of feasibility study and construction costs.		
Brookhaven:  25% of feasibility/construction costs.

• In-Kind Services: hours, equipment, or other forms of assistance and estimated value,
 personnel time, vessel support, stockpile and place shell

7. Legislative authorities used by each participant

• Section 1135 WRDA, 1996 (Corps)

8. Value added by Coastal America Partnership including Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) goals achieved through this collaboration (500 words or less)

Immediate benefits would be from practical experience gained by CA partners in similar undertakings along East Coast. The project would further benefit from the extensive coordination that the other partners would bring from other regional restoration efforts (NY/NJ Harbor Estuary Program, South Shore Estuarine Study, Long Island Sound Study, Peconic Bay Estuary Study). This coordination would gain valuable insight into efforts of these programs that may have direct bearing on reducing costs or increasing overall efficiency and success. The coordination would also assist in the overall permit review and help plan and utilize monitoring results to extend this type of restoration to other areas of Great South Bay outside the jurisdiction of the Town of Brookhaven.

9. Project Status

• Initiation date: June 1998 (PRP)
• Completion date: December, 1998 (PRP)
• Current stage (Initiated - I, Underway - U or Completed - C) I

10.Contacts

11. Any additional information/comments

Shellfish populations continue to decline rapidly throughout Long Island waters. Most efforts to reverse this trend have centered in on planting seed clams on an annual basis, a costly and often unsuccessful process if conditions are not suitable. Substrate changes offer a potential long-term solution that is based on careful selection of sites (only sandy areas with current low densities) with material natural to the area (surf clam shells) that would minimize any potential adverse effect. The sites would be selected to maximize retention of the shell for a limited but realistic demonstration effort that could be expanded to other areas of the bay if proven successful.