HomeMy WebLinkAboutHeritage at Cutchogue •
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pfb' t t 5 February 2016
Ms. Heather M. Lanza, AICPrn- I (� �y_ til; i f�
Planning Director �' y!u � It
Town Hall Annex Building IL FEB 10 2016 ( RECEIVED
54375 Route 25
P.O. Box 1179 Scut;c+a Town
Southold,NY 11971 P1aa3 u,r, FEB 1 0 2016
Southold Town Clerk
Dear Ms. Lanza: •
I am writing to expand upon my previous comments about the"Heritage at Cutchogue", the
124-unit condominium complex proposed for the heart of Cutchogue; specifically, I will focus my
letter on the potential impacts of excess Nitrogen levels that would be generated by the development.
Nitrogen is a chemical element that is essential to life: it is present in amino acids,proteins and
nucleic acids (DNA, RNA) - basic cellular components of all life forms. Elemental Nitrogen is
abundant in air,but few organisms (mostly bacteria) can use this form of Nitrogen. Ammonia,nitrites
and nitrates are the forms of Nitrogen most commonly used by terrestrial and aquatic plants;these
forms of Nitrogen are incorporated into chemical compounds in cells during the process of
photosynthesis—when light energy is harnessed to fuel these chemical reactions.
As opposed to what is seen on land, where large plants (trees, shrubs, grasses) are responsible for
most of the photosynthesis that takes place, in the oceans it is single-celled organisms (algae and
bacteria)that are responsible for the great majority of the photosynthesis that occurs here. In coastal
marine waters of New York(e.g. bays, estuaries), single-celled algae (phytoplankton) are usually the
most dominant and important photosynthetic organisms.
In surface marine waters,Nitrogen is considered to be the factor that usually limits the rate of
photosynthesis (Miller 2004). When Nitrogen levels are higher than usual, the rate of photosynthesis
thus increases. When Nitrogen levels are very high,this can lead to dramatic increases in
phytoplankton populations—known as algal blooms. These may occur naturally when increases in
Nitrogen inputs result from increased runoff from the land(rivers and streams),when higher nutrient
levels in deeper waters are circulated into shallower waters (as in upwelling), or when living or dying
organisms release Nitrogen(Miller 2004). Algal blooms may also result when high Nitrogen inputs to
bays and estuaries result from human activities, such as: wastewater flow(most notably, sewage),
runoff of surface waters that contain Nitrogen-laden fertilizers (e.g. from agriculture, lawns and golf
courses), erosion of farmland, and/or from discharge of groundwater that includes Nitrogen that has
accumulated from discharge of septic systems (as well as irrigation) (Castro &Huber 2013).
Most phytoplankton species are integral components of healthy, well-functioning marine
ecosystems but some may be harmful to marine life or to humans. When blooms of harmful
phytoplankton occur, they are referred to as harmful algal blooms (HABs). In waters of Long Island,
New York, HABs that have been seen regularly in recent years include brown tide, rust tide and red
tide. Brown tides (Aureococcus anophagefferens) decimated Peconic bay scallop populations in the
mid-1980's—mid-1990's (Cosper et al. 1987); these populations have only recently rebounded due to
+ Y
very extensive restoration efforts (Tettelbach et al. 2015). Rust tides (Cochlodinium polykrikoides)
have been shown to rapidly(in hours to days) kill finfish and bay scallops in laboratory experiments
(Tang & Gobler 2009) and are believed to be the likely cause of recent scallop and finfish mortalities
in the Peconic Bays (particularly in 2012 and 2013). Red tides (including Alexandrium spp.)are also
present in the Peconic Bays (Gobler et al. 2012). Red tides may directly harm human health and may
even cause fatalities (Miller 2004), although this has not been observed in Long Island waters to date.
When red tides have occurred, as in the Peconic Bays in 2015, closures of shellfish harvesting areas
have been enforced by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
Another, separate impact of algal blooms (harmful and non-harmful)results when phytoplankton
populations die off(crash); cells are then metabolized by bacteria,which deplete oxygen levels in the
water(Castro &Huber 2013). These conditions,known as hypoxia or anoxia(when there is very little
or no dissolved oxygen present,respectively), may cause further mortality of shellfish and finfish
species (Castro &Huber 2013). This was most recently seen in the Peconic River in spring 2015, when
mass mortalities of menhaden(bunker) occurred due to very low dissolved oxygen levels.
The connections between wastewater,Nitrogen input and harmful algal blooms have been very
clearly linked in the scientific literature (see below);this is why Suffolk County executive Steve
Bellone has made Nitrogen reduction one of his very top priorities for protecting the water quality of
Suffolk County's bays and creeks.Nitrogen reduction is also the central focus of the Peconic Estuary
management plan, which was adapted after massive brown tide algal blooms of the mid-1980's
decimated the Peconic bay scallop fishery-reducing commercial harvest from an annual average of
300,000 lbs of meats (1966-1984)to <100 lbs in 1987 and 1988 (Tettelbach'& Wenczel 1993). Most
recently,the Long Island Nitrogen Action Plan(LINAP)has been introduced through the efforts of the
New York State Legislature and Governor Andrew Cuomo to coordinate and catalyze efforts of state,
county and local agencies to reduce Nitrogen inputs to Long Island's groundwater and surface waters.
In a paper co-authored by many of the world's leading experts on algal blooms, in response to a
charge given by the United States Environmental Protection Agency(EPA), Heisler et al. (2008)
worked to reach a consensus on the relationships between eutrophication(nutrient pollution of aquatic
environments) and harmful algal blooms. Their unanimously adopted conclusions, which are most
germane to the focus of this letter, are as follows:
"Degraded water quality from increased nutrient pollution promotes the development and persistence
of many HABs and is one of the reasons for their expansion in the U.S.'and other nations";
"High-biomass blooms must have exogenous nutrients to be sustained";
"Both chronic and episodic nutrient delivery promote HAB development"; and
"Management'of nutrient inputs to the watershed can lead to significant reduction in HABs".
Gobler& Sa_nudo-Wilhelmy(2001) found a highly significant correlation between groundwater
seepage and the density of brown tide algal cells in West Neck Bay, Shelter Island,NY; they
concluded that groundwater inputs to this bay can stimulate growth of brown tide (Aureococcus
v
anophagefferens) by initiating blooms of other phytoplankton species,which in turn supply
remineralized organic nitrogen to Aureococcus.
Gobler et al. (2012) studied the dynamics of rust tide(Cochlodinium polykrikoides) blooms in three
different estuaries on Long Island,NY (including the Peconic Bays) and determined that various forms
of Nitrogen stimulated blooms. They concluded that rust tide blooms are limited by the amount and
type of available Nitrogen; the predominant forms of Nitrogen assimilated by phytoplankton
communities dominated by Cochlodinium were nitrate and nitrite.Nitrate is the form of Nitrogen most
commonly released from leaching fields of septic systems (Toor et al. 2014; Barnstable County
Department Of Health And Environment 2016).
Hattenrath et al. (2010) studied the dynamics of red tide (Alexandrium fundyense) blooms in Long
Island,NY waters and concluded that"sewage-derived N [Nitrogen] loading and above average spring
temperatures can promote intense and toxic A.fundyense blooms in estuaries". In addition to higher
numbers of Alexandrium cells resulting from sewage-derived Nitrogen inputs, the authors determined
that the toxicity of these cells also increased.
Lapointe et al. (2015) stated that nutrient pollution(including Nitrogen) is a primary driver of
harmful algal blooms (HABs) in coastal waters and estuaries around the world. They determined that
in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida,high Nitrogen levels explained the widespread occurrence of
HABs and that much of this Nitrogen input occurred via groundwater flow. Their analyses indicated
that the most likely source of Nitrogen inputs to this marine system was from septic tanks. They
concluded, based on the high degree of Nitrogen contamination in the Indian River Lagoon from
sewage, combined with recent HABs, occurrence of toxic seaweed, seagrass loss and wildlife mortality,
that there was "a critical need for improved sewage collection and treatment, including nutrient
removal".
In a study of Nitrogen loading to the Peconic Estuary, which was sponsored by The Nature
Conservancy in partnership with the Peconic Estuary program, Lloyd (2014) showed that for
Cutchogue, wastewater contributes 40% of the Nitrogen loading from land to the Peconic Estuary. As
cited in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement(DEIS) submitted by the "Heritage" developer,
wastewater from the clustered septic systems proposed for the"Heritage" would flow Southeast into
Wickham Creek and then into Great Peconic Bay in just a few years. Unlike sewage treatment plants
or other methods of advanced wastewater treatment, septic systems do not reduce the amount of
Nitrogen present in sewage. Furthermore, fertilizers (which contain high levels of nitrates) that would
be used for the>10 acres of lawns proposed for the "Heritage" development would also make their
way into groundwater in conjunction with the excessive irrigation that is proposed(more than double
the volume of sewage during the irrigation season). Thus,the sewage and fertilizers from the proposed
"Heritage"development can be expected to contribute substantially to the Nitrogen loading of
Wickham Creek and adjacent portions of Great Peconic Bay. Dr. Christopher Gobler of Stony Brook
University(personal communication, January 2016) estimates that the proposed"Heritage"
condominium complex would likely raise the loading of Nitrogen to the Peconic Bays from wastewater
in Cutchogue from 40%to 50%. Furthermore, Dr. Gobler noted that Alexandrium (the cause of red
tides) and anoxia have been detected in nearby Haywater Cove (also in Cutchogue) and that these
would be expected to worsen with increased Nitrogen loading.
As noted above, harmful algal blooms have become a regular occurrence in the Peconic Bays. It has
been clearly shown, as cited in scientific papers above,that Nitrogen input to coastal waters (primarily
via sewage) drives the formation and persistence of harmful algal blooms and raises their toxicity; in
addition, mitigation of nutrient inputs to these aquatic systems can lead to significant reductions in
HABs. As stressed in management plans adopted by the Peconic Estuary Program and Suffolk County,
and in the Long Island Nitrogen Action Plan, reduction of Nitrogen inputs to our bays and creeks is
essential to their well-being and sustainability as well as to the health of local citizens, resident marine
life (including bay scallops), and the local economy. Increased Nitrogen inputs that would result from
the proposed"Heritage at Cutchogue" condominium complex thus represent a significant threat to the
Peconic Estuary,the center of life on the East End of Long Island.
Sincerely yours,
Stephen T. Tettelbach, Ph.D.
1530 Crown Land Lane
Cutchogue,NY 11935
and
Professor of Biology,
Long Island University
720 Northern Blvd.
Brookville,NY 11548
References Cited in Text Above:
Barnstable County Department Of Health And Environment(2016) Basics of Wastewater Treatment.
http://www.barnstablecountyhealth.org/resources/publications/compendium-of-information-on-
alternative-onsite-septic-system-technology/basics-of-wastewater-treatment(accessed 5 February
2016)
Castro P, Huber MF (2013)Marine Biology, 9th Ed. McGraw-Hill.
Cosper EM, Dennison WC, Carpenter EJ, Bricelj VM, Mitchell JG, Kuenstner SH, Colflesh D,
Dewey M(1987) Recurrent and persistent brown tide blooms perturb coastal marine ecosystem.
Estuaries 10:284-290.
Gobler CJ, Burson A, Koch F, Tang Y, Mulholland MR(2012) The role of nitrogenous nutrients in the
occurrence of harmful algal blooms caused by Cochlodinium polykrikoides in New York estuaries
(USA). Harmful Algae 17:64-74.
Gobler CJ, Sanudo-Wilhelmy SA(2001) Temporal variability of groundwater seepage and brown tide
blooms in a Long Island embayment. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 217:299-309.
Hattenrath TK, Anderson DM, Gobler CJ (2010) The influence of anthropogenic nitrogen loading and
meteorological conditions on the dynamics and toxicity of Alexandrium fundyense blooms in a New
York(USA) estuary. Harmful Algae 9:402-412.
Heisler J, Gilbert PM, Burkholder JM, Anderson DM, Cochla W, Dennison WC, Dortch Q, Gobler CJ,
Heil CA, Humphries E, Lewitus A, Magnien R, Marshal HG, Sellner K, Stockwell DA, Stoecker DK,
Suddles M(2008) Eutrophication and harmful algal blooms: A scientific consensus. Harmful Algae
8:3-13.
Lapointe BE, Herren LW, Debortoli DD,Vogel MA(2015)Evidence of sewage-driven eutrophication
and harmful algal blooms in Florida's Indian River Lagoon. Harmful Algae 43:82-102.
Lloyd S (2014)Nitrogen load modeling to forty-three subwatersheds of the Peconic Estuary. Final
Report prepared by The Nature Conservancy in partnership with the Peconic Estuary Program.
Miller CB (2004)Biological Oceanography. Blackwell Publishing, Cornwall, England. 402 pp.
Tang YZ, Gobler CJ(2009) Characterization of the toxicity of Cochlodinium polykrikoides isolates
from Northeast US estuaries to finfish and shellfish. Harmful Algae 8:454-462.
Tettelbach ST,Peterson BJ, Carroll JM,Furman BT, Hughes SWT, Havelin J, Europe JR, Bonal DM,
Weinstock AJ, Smith CF(2015) Aspiring to an altered stable state: rebuilding of bay scallop
populations and fisheries following intensive restoration. Marine Ecology Progress Series 529:121-136.
Tettelbach ST, Wenczel P (1993) Reseeding efforts and the status of bay scallop Argopecten irradians
(Lamarck, 1819)populations in New York following the appearance of"brown tide" algal blooms.
Journal of Shellfish Research 12(2):423-431.
Toor GS, Lusk M, Obreza T(2015) Onsite Sewage Treatment and Disposal Systems:Nitrogen.
University of Florida IFAS Extension Publication#SL348. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ss550.
(accessed 5 February 2016) '