Any ways to clean up the beaches water?

[Aqua Pro Builder]

I went to Sunken Meadow State Park and notice the whole water front is full of weed(oops) seeweed. What can be done so that swimmers can enjoy a cleaner water?

Any idea could be constructive, so please voice your most daring idea.
I will collect all these ideas and submit back to the couple eco system conservation organisations.

Thanks.


I, myself, was thinking of netting the seeweed at the beginning of the day or so. Would this be a waste of time? People were able to over fish by netting why not over weed by netting? Would this netting produce too much by-catch and thus reversely affect the Eco system? Is there ways of making net that is suitable to catch weed not fish/shrimps/millows....? There are no fish around the beaches but only weed, so I assume the by catch will be very little if the net stay in the surface water.

 

[Bob 1000]

Certain times of the year there are elevated levels of seaweed.. Also only around on certain tides, mostly high tide once it has been ripped from it's base on the incoming part of the tide.. It's usually only a few weeks a year..

 

[Imbarrie]

Low pressure systems to the south of us push water on shore. This brings seaweed. If you go now, they may be none at all. It all depends on nature. I know it may not be the prettiest thing but it is nature. And isnt that why you are going to see the ocean?

 

[ming]

Maybe the water is just too full of nutrients from sewage runoffs. The seaweed is actually absorbing the nutrients making the water cleaner, although unsightly process

 

[kidninja]

i think a 20% water change is in need =)

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

Low pressure systems to the south of us push water on shore. This brings seaweed. If you go now, they may be none at all. It all depends on nature. I know it may not be the prettiest thing but it is nature. And isnt that why you are going to see the ocean?

I just went yesterday. There's a lot of the seeweed uprooted. Since the State has designated it to be a swimming area, I guess it would be best not to have too much decaying seeweed. I think decaying seaweed can be a health hazard to swimmers.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

Maybe the water is just too full of nutrients from sewage runoffs. The seaweed is actually absorbing the nutrients making the water cleaner, although unsightly process

Too much run offs for sure. Not sure how the State Park can balance this part of the equation.


I think uprooted seeweed are actually releasing nutrients rather than uptake as they continue to die and decay in the water column and when being washed to the shore.

 

[lfsmarineguy]

Someone should write an angry letter to nature for being so inconsiderate! How dare nature leave dying seaweed where Wingo wants to swim... Write a letter to Patterson, I'm sure he can find the funds to clean it up, as soon as NY isn't broke anymore.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

Looks like most who voiced their opinions think it's a natural phenomenon and do not see it as a potential problem.

However, I see it as a potential problem that's brewing. Just like the Hudson river zebra mussel(did I use the right word) crisis years back when everyday NY citizens see the "black" water of the Hudson river as a natural phenomenon until the DEP, DEC and other agencies declared the existing of a mussels crisis in the Hudson river and decided to clear the river bed of those mussels. According to most boaters in some documentary, they are spending much less maintaining their boats than those "black" water years. During those years, I did call numerous times(not angry letters though) to DEP, EPA and other agencies about the black water situations. When we pass the Hudson river over the bridges now, we can see the water as green, not black anymore. I don't want to stay indifferent to something that seems abnormal to me. I called DEP about adnormal behaviour of mosquitoes and dying/vanishing crows at the Flushing Meadow Park area before the news broke out about the West Nile mosquitoes in Flushing and at least 2 people died of it. When I see something adnormal to the environment I do report them. May be I am over sensitive but what if I am right. Agencies trying to protect our health and the environment rely on info from all of us, not indifferent attitudes. Every season, when I see birds drop dead at the roadside, I called DEP. They do want the dead bodies meaning they do concern about what's going on even though a bird drop dead in the city seems very normal to most NY citizens.

 

[lfsmarineguy]

I feel like I am walking into this one but I have to know, how exactly does a fly act "funny"? There has to be some level of coincidence since I don't know you personally but I will go out on a limb and say I'm pretty sure the word "entomologist" does not appear on your resume. They can't respond to every phone call you place because it would be an astronomical waste of tax dollars to chase down each incident to confirm it's validity. There needs to be some empirical evidence of something for them to take action. But if you need a hobby I guess you could do far worse and I am sure that you brighten the day of whoever you end up speaking to when you do call.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

I feel like I am walking into this one but I have to know, how exactly does a fly act "funny"? There has to be some level of coincidence since I don't know you personally but I will go out on a limb and say I'm pretty sure the word "entomologist" does not appear on your resume. They can't respond to every phone call you place because it would be an astronomical waste of tax dollars to chase down each incident to confirm it's validity. There needs to be some empirical evidence of something for them to take action. But if you need a hobby I guess you could do far worse and I am sure that you brighten the day of whoever you end up speaking to when you do call.

I have not seen a fly that acts funny yet so I cannot tell you. To sense something correctly, you have to first read correctly.

A mosquito acts funny when you hit it couple times but it will still stay in front of your eyes and try find a spot to bite at noon-the hottest time in the middle of Union St car park of Flushing where there are mostly concrete not dirt of our backyard. This is not the usual time, nor usual habitat for most common mosquito to look for a bite. Most mosquito species are crepuscular (dawn or dusk) feeders. A mosquito will follow the radiant to your body heat, thus unless you are standing still or walking backwards, they usually bite from the back where you cannot see. This is a fact known to biologist and many college students-it's in the text book. In fact, many documentary on TV talks about that too. I am sure the libraries still have some videos of the behaviour of mosquito, if you want to find out more. This happens to me couple times and friends actually cracked up when they saw it and called them robo mosquito. This prompted me to report. I am sure I am not the only person who reported abnormal amount or abnormal behaviour of the mosquito during those time. During thoese days, neighbours would complaining to one another that there were so many mosquitos when we met in the front yards going to work or when we were coming back from work. When you lived in an infected area, your could sense it first hand and you would react more aggressively towards the changing environment.

Probably they(depart of health and DEP) are paid to do that, everytime I called to report a bird drop dead, they do want me to hold the body(if it's within my property) for them to collect. Obviously, they treat danger of dieases much more seriously than many of us. They react to a bird drop dead as strongly as a rat bites a human being. When they gather(given) enough data, enough replication of same type of reports will prompt them to further investigate whats' going on. Without these reports, they are on their own and most data are lost to the trash collection.

This is a statement from Department of Health:
"Because crows are an especially good indicator of West Nile virus, it is critical to report all dead crows. The reports themselves are vital information, used to help track the virus and determine where it may be most active."


I consider these pair of flys are acting normal.

When an arrow mosquito bites a human being, I would consider it VERY abnormal and would definitely report to all agancies concerned.

 

[lfsmarineguy]

Mosquitoes, like most animals are subject to exploratory behaviors. This means, and it is well documented, that female mosquitoes can and will feed in the middle of the day if they happen upon a possible food source. Just like some fish will nip at corals when the species is not known for it. They are subject to free will and so they have the ability to make decisions on their own, even if it goes against what's written in textbooks.

I'm sure the DEC takes your call and makes a note of it but nobody came out to that parking lot that day because a mosquito bit you when the textbooks said it wasn't supposed to. Now, if they got a few calls that day or even that week about it than maybe they would investigate. You can't honestly believe that they collect every bird and rodent that dies for necropsies to determine cause of death just in case it could be a sign of a potential problem. Your idea of how the government operates is slightly skewed.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

You can't honestly believe that they collect every bird and rodent that dies for necropsies to determine cause of death just in case it could be a sign of a potential problem..

I agreed to this.

It just happened in the past 5-10 years, every bird (including two doves) I reported they wanted me to hold them for collection the next day. They may dump them to the trash right the way which I have no idea from then on.

I did not report last year so not sure if they are still collecting now.