For Release: Wednesday, August 30, 2006
DEC Temporarily Closes Shellfishing Areas in Suffolk County
Shellfish Closures Follow Heavy Rainfall
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today announced that it has designated additional shellfish harvesting areas in Suffolk County as temporarily closed to shellfishing. These temporary emergency closures are in response to the extraordinary stormwater runoff caused by the heavy rainfall that occurred on August 28 through August 30, 2006.
The following areas were designated as uncertified on Wednesday, August 30, and the harvest of shellfish is temporarily prohibited through September 6:
- Town of Smithtown: All that area of Stony Brook Harbor and its tributaries;
- Town of Brookhaven (north shore): All of Stony Brook Harbor, Flax Pond, Port Jefferson Harbor, Conscience Bay, Setauket Harbor and Mount Sinai Harbor; and
- Towns of Riverhead and Southold: All creeks, canals, and tributaries on the north shore of Great Peconic Bay from Miamogue Point to New Suffolk Point.
This action was taken to protect public health following the unusually heavy rainfall event that affected Long Island throughout Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, August 28 through August 30, 2006. Rainfall exceeded three inches in the affected areas. The extraordinary volume of stormwater runoff may cause shellfish in the affected areas to be hazardous for use as food.
Additional areas in the towns of Hempstead, Oyster Bay (south shore), Babylon, Islip, Brookhaven (south shore), Southampton, and Southold were closed for shellfish harvesting on Monday, August 28, and remain closed through September 4. Some additional areas in the towns of Riverhead, Southampton, East Hampton, Shelter Island, and Southold were closed on August 29, and will remain closed through September 5.
DEC will re-open areas as soon as possible based on the results of bacteriological analyses of water samples that will be collected during the week. A taped message advising harvesters of the status of these shellfish areas may be heard at (631) 444-0480. The message will be updated during the course of the temporary closures.
