News Release
RI Department of Environmental Management
235 Promenade Street, Providence, RI 02908
(401) 222-2771 TDD/(401) 222-4462
| For Release: |
May 28, 2007 |
| Contact: |
Gail Mastrati 222-4700 ext. 2402
Stephanie Powell 222-4700 ext. 4418 |
DEM ANNOUNCES ANNUAL
RECLASSIFICATION OF SHELLFISH WATERS AND SEASONAL SHELLFISH CLOSURES
THAT TAKE EFFECT ON MAY 26
Reclassification Includes Closure of All Uncertified Waters, Important
New Maps, and Winter Two-Month Closure of 1,322 Acres in Greenwich Bay
PROVIDENCE - The Department of Environmental Management has announced
its annual reclassification of shellfish waters and seasonal shellfish
closures.
The reclassification includes new maps that depict boundaries of all
waters that are fully evaluated. All waters landward of those
boundaries are closed. In effect, all uncertified, or
non-evaluated, waters in the state are now closed to shellfish
harvesting. Where the boundary crosses over water (such as inlets to
tidal ponds and creeks) the boundary shall be a straight line connecting
the high tide mark on either side of the water along the main shoreline.
DEM and HEALTH have taken several actions to address the potential for
shellfish harvesting in uncertified waters. This need came to light
following notification by federal Food and Drug Administration that
experimental testing methods indicated a wild oyster sample from an
uncertified area, Quicksand Pond in Little Compton, collected by a
commercial shellfisherman and sold to a dealer, tested positive for
Norovirus. In additional to the new maps, other immediate actions taken
include:
 | As an interim step, on May 19th, DEM closed nine ponds/marshes to
shellfishing that, while adjacent to shellfish growing areas in class
SA waters, are not themselves routinely evaluated, and, therefore, are
considered uncertified. The eight other waterbodies in addition to
Quicksand Pond have similar characteristics to it.
|
| DEM shellfish and water quality staff have also worked closely
with Department of Health staff, who notified all dealers about the
uncertified waters issue, and have been in close contact with DEM law
enforcement and members of the RI Shellfishermen's Association to
ensure that no one is harvesting from uncertified waters. DEM has
found no evidence to suggest any other instances of commercial
shellfish harvesting in uncertified waters. |
Although DEM takes 1,400 water samples every year to verify water
quality, with 413 miles of coastline, it is impossible to test every
cove and inlet. DEM will be working with the RI Shellfishermen's
Association and other stakeholders to develop a prioritized plan to
collect the data necessary to fully evaluate as many areas as possible.
"DEM, in continued conjunction with the Department of Health, is working
diligently to protect the integrity of the state's shellfish industry
and human health," says DEM Director W. Michael Sullivan, Ph.D. " Rhode
Island has a high reputation for its excellent shellfish, in large part
due to strict monitoring standards, and we are committed to ensuring
that that reputation remains deserved. As part of that commitment, we
worked closely with HEALTH and others to promptly address the issue of
shellfish harvesting from uncertified waters. We are confident that this
was an isolated incident and the new maps clarify specifically which
areas are approved for shellfishing."
Four Areas Reclassified as a Result of Routine Monitoring
Program
In addition to the newly defined boundary describing approved waters,
DEM has reclassified four areas of the state's shellfish harvesting
waters based on results of the Department's routine monitoring program.
All changes will take effect at sunrise Saturday, May 26. They include:
| 44.5 acres of the Kickemuit River from a conditional area to
prohibited; includes the northern portion of the Kickemuit River north
of a line from the DEM range marker located at the eastern extension
of Patterson Avenue in the Laurel Park section of Warren to the
flagpole on the opposite eastern shore on the property of 61 Asylum
Road in Touisset.
|
| 17.9 acre portion of Upper Narragansett Bay Conditional Area "A"
from a conditional area to prohibited; includes all waters east of a
line from the DEM range marker located approximately 1,000 feet north
of the end of Beach Road in Bristol to Nun Buoy 2, and east of a line
from Nun Buoy 2 to the northern landward end of the dock located
approximately 1,000 feet south of Beach Road, just north of the
extension of Gibson Road in Bristol.
|
| 6.2 acre tidal pond east of Winnapaug Pond in Westerly from
approved to prohibited; includes all tidal pond waters east of
Weekapaug Road in the Winnapaug Pond area of Westerly. The area has
actually been closed since December.
|
| 1,322 acres of Greenwich Bay, currently classified as conditional,
will be closed between December 1 and February 1 under a
seasonal/conditional classification. The area includes all waters of
Greenwich Bay south and east of the current prohibited areas of
Greenwich Bay, including Buttonwoods Cove, Brushneck Cove, Bakers
Creek, Apponaug Cove, Mary's Creek, Greenwich Cove, and all other
coves and tributaries of Greenwich Bay and west of a line from the DEM
range marker located on pole 19 Beachwood Drive in Potowomut to the
southeasternmost riprap jetty at the entrance to Warwick Cove, located
at the southeastern end of Oakland Beach. |
DEM plans to conduct studies of the Greenwich Bay area during the
two-month closure in an effort to shed light on reasons for the seasonal
decline in water quality. Primary contributors could involve runoff,
migratory waterfowl, high groundwater table combined with excess
leachate from failed septic systems, and/or environmental conditions.
Annual Seasonal Closures Also Take Effect May 26
The yearly seasonal shellfish closures will also take effect at sunrise
Saturday, May 26. Consistent with US Food and Drug Agency requirements,
DEM closes these shellfishing areas every year at this time due to
potential water quality impacts associated with marinas and mooring
fields. The seasonal closures will end at sunrise on Tuesday, October 9.
The areas seasonally closed to shellfishing include waters within the
following areas: Block Island (Great Salt Pond and Trims Pond), Bristol
Harbor, Jamestown (Dutch Harbor area), Potter Cove (Prudence Island),
Sakonnet Harbor, and Wickford.
Please contact DEM's Shellfish Program at 222-3961 (press 2 for the
receptionist) with any questions regarding the shellfish harvesting
boundaries, for additional information on shellfish closures and/or for
copies of the new classification maps. Information and maps can also be
found on DEM's website,
www.dem.ri.gov, by clicking on "Maps",
and selecting the "Paper
Maps" and then "Shellfish
Grounds: Closures and Approved Areas". Updated information on
conditional closures is available by calling DEM's shellfish hotline at
222-2900. |
