Want To Be A Spill Spotter?

I can't believe that it has been two years since the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. When that happened, there was even talk that if it wasn't capped some of the oil would be making it up the Atlantic coast to NJ waters.

NJ doesn't allow offshore drilling currently. But the Delaware and Raritan bays are very active ports and our oil refineries bring tankers in loading and unloading petroleum and other chemicals. So, NJ is vulnerable and should be prepared.

The American Littoral Society has a "Spill Spotters" program in which they train volunteer citizens and community groups to recognize and respond to signs of an oil spill.

I only just became aware of the program via the NJ Conservation blog and the first of the three-hour workshops just took place on Delaware Bay, Barnegat Bay and on Raritan Bay.

But more are planned over the summer and The Littoral Society is looking for individuals, as well as teachers, scout leaders and other community activists who can, in turn, pass the knowledge on to those interested in coastal protection. The workshops are active learning with seine nets, clam rakes and binoculars. Participants learn to how to collect baseline data on birds, fish, crustaceans, mollusks, worms and other creatures living in and around coastal waters, since knowing the normal background conditions will help them detect problems in the future.

Individuals and groups can then "adopt" spots along bays or estuaries, collect biological data with the help of American Littoral Society staff members. It's a good volunteer opportunity and a great way to learn more about your local waterways.

The Spill Spotters use an oil spill response toolkit and have information for reporting problems, but their job is not remediation (such as caring for oil-soaked birds) although they can get that training too if they're interested.

For more information about the Spill Spotters program and to find a workshop near you, visit www.spillspotters.net or contact Stevie Thorsen at Stevie@littoralsociety.org or 732-291-0055.

Project PORTS Seeking Volunters for Oyster Restoration

shells with spat

Project PORTS (Promoting Oyster Restoration through Schools) is a community-based restoration project that engages school children in activities associated with the enhancement of oyster habitat at the Gandy's Beach Oyster Restoration Enhancement Area.

Students construct shell bags, which are deployed in the bay to become a settlement surface, and home to millions of young oysters. Participating schools, PORTS Partner Schools, receive a truckload of clam shells, which are placed in stretchy mesh bags by students on site at the school. The bags are then transported to a lower Bay Cape Shore site where they are deployed for two months in the summer to capture the settling oysters known as spat.

According to the Littoral Society, the oysters have set a bit late this year, but they are growing nicely on the shell bags that were deployed in June.

They need volunteers to help with the oyster transplant on August 23rd and 24th in Green Creek, NJ. The estimated start times are: 8:30 am on the 23rd 8:00 am on the 24th. The work on the 23rd will be consolidating the bags into a few piles (min. age: 10). The work on the 24th will be moving, transporting, and emptying the bags onto the oyster boat (min. age: 15).

If you can assist with this project please email bill@littoralsociety.org

The oyster spat (a baby oyster or larvae) and shell are transplanted to the upper Bay Gandy's Beach location where they grow, thrive, and provide important ecological benefits to the Bay ecosystem.

This work complements the State and Federal fishery-centered restoration efforts and demonstrates a way that local citizens can invest in the Delaware Bay and feel a personal commitment for its stewardship.


These young oysters are transplanted to upper bay conservation and fishery areas in early August.

Mature oyster

The eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica is one of, if not the most important species of the Delaware Estuary.

Dating back thousands of years, the oyster has served as a keystone organism in the estuary, positively influencing water quality and providing food, habitat, and refuge to countless organisms.

Challenged by disease, habitat deterioration, and overfishing, the resource is presently a fraction of what it once was.

Spring Equinox Shore Walk Saturday at Sandy Hook

The American Littoral Society will have a Spring Equinox Shore Walk in Guardian Park, Fort Hancock at Sandy Hook on Saturday, March 20 at 7 p.m.

The spring equinox is one of two days in the year when daylight and darkness equally share the 24 hours of the day. It’s also a great day for an evening walk on Sandy Hook.

Meet at 7 p.m. at Guardian Park. Free, but call ALS at 732-291-0055 in advance to ensure an accurate head count.

Information on visiting Sandy Hook  http://www.nps.gov/gate/planyourvisit/thingstodosandyhook.htm

Sandy Hook, NJ (Images of America)

Call For Volunteers - Delaware Bayshore

Volunteers are needed on the morning of August 13th in Green Creek, NJ on the Delaware Bay to help with Project PORTS (see earlier post).

Volunteers are needed to help transplant shell bags from a lower Delaware Bay
location. The shell bags, which were constructed by more than 500 school children, are part of a community-based oyster restoration project. The shell provides a settlement surface/habitat for oyster larvae.

Working at low tide, the volunteers will walk off shore to the location of the bags, lift the bags from the sand, load them onto skiffs, and float the skiffs to a larger vessel as the tide rises. The bags will be emptied on the larger vessel, which will transport them up bay to the Gandy’s Beach Oyster Restoration Enhancement Area. (Volunteers will not participate in transporting the bags up bay.)


When & Where - August 13th Rain date Aug 14th
From 8:00 am until finished (9:30 or sooner)
Cape Shore Facility of the Haskin Shellfish Research Lab
Green Creek, NJ

For contact information and more about this volunteer opportunity, see the Littoral Society's website:
http://www.littoralsociety.org/userfiles/doccenter/PORTS_CallForVolunteers_August-2009.pdf

Protecting The Coast

The American Littoral Society promotes the study and conservation of marine life and habitat, protects the coast from harm, and empowers others to do the same. Littoral is defined as "of or existing on a shore."

The group has been working since 1961 to care for the coasts through integrated programs focused on advocating, conserving, and learning.

They might restore habitat, but their objective is not only to replant dune grass or reseed an oyster bed, but also to motivate people to invest “sweat equity” into a piece of the coast, take ownership and become committed stewards.

The Society's Mid-Atlantic chapter has many local activities that New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland and the headquarters office is on Sandy Hook in Highlands, New Jersey.

In July, one project is helping to restore the oyster reef habitat in Delaware Bay as part of their Project PORTS. Volunteers will help deploy 10-lb. shell bags which were constructed by local school children into the bay as part of an oyster restoration project. The bags will serve as a settlement surface/habitat for oyster larvae. Later in the summer the young oysters will be transplanted to a State-designated conservation reef site. "Project PORTS: Promoting Oyster Restoration Through Schools" is a partnership project of Rutgers University’s Haskin Shellfish Research Laboratory and the American Littoral Society.


The eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica, is one of--if not the most--important species in the Delaware Estuary. For thousands of years, the oyster has served as the keystone organism in the estuary, positively influencing water quality and providing food, habitat, and refuge to a host of dependent organisms. Challenged by disease, habitat deterioration, and overfishing, the resource is now only a fraction of what it once was.

In addition to restoring historic oyster populations in Delaware Bay, Project PORTS educated K-12 school communities in New Jersey's Delaware Bay Shore region and involves them in the actual restoration of the species. The strategy of Project PORTS is to promote inquiry-based, hands-on activities that present basic scientific concepts and emphasize the local significance of the issue.

Some other projects are:

Protecting Delaware Bay: Learn about the unique coastal waterways and wildlife of New Jersey’s "other" coast, the threats to this coastal wilderness, and tools and resources you can use to help protect and preserve it.

Protecting Barnegat Bay: Get news and information about issues that impact Barnegat Bay and the Barnegat Bay watershed and what you can do to help this exceptional coastal resource.

If you are interested in joining the Society or joining them on a field trip, here are some upcoming events. These events do have a participation fee.

July 18, Fossil Hunting - Wade through Big Brook and sift for shark"s teeth, squid guards and fossilized mollusks. This is one of the best areas in the country to search for Cretaceous Era fossils. Be prepared to get wet and muddy, but the prizes are well worth it. We"ll bring the necessary gear and you bring footwear for muddy banks and shallow water. Great for families.

July 21 & August 4, 18, Family Exploration of Sandy Hook - Bring the kids any of these Tuesday evenings at 6 p.m. to explore some part of Sandy Hook. We will pull a seine net, use glass bottom buckets to search for critters in their own habitat, look at plankton and sand through microscopes, explore the dunes, pull up our "fish condo" to see what has moved in, and more. Each Tuesday will be its own adventure so come join us with the kiddies.

August 29, Fluke Tagging Trip - Join their fish tagging director for a day of fishing and tagging. Boat departs 7:00 am from Atlantic Highlands municipal marina. $65 per angler –all tackle, bait, and tags will be provided. Advance payment required. Space is limited.

More local trips at littoralsociety.org