For Release: Monday, May 2, 2005
DEC Announces Reopening of Raritan Bay Shellfish Transplant Program
Approximately 2,600 Acres Approved for Transplant Harvest
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Acting Commissioner Denise M. Sheehan today announced DEC's decision to reopen a portion of Raritan Bay, located off of Staten Island in Richmond County, to shellfish transplant harvest later this spring.
"We are very happy to announce this important reopening," Commissioner Sheehan said. "This decision is based on results of extensive shellfish monitoring conducted by DEC and the Marine Animal Disease Laboratory at Stony Brook University (MADL). The reopening of the shellfish transplant program in Raritan Bay will provide an important economic opportunity for New York's shellfish industry and at the same time offer the greatest protection to wild populations of hard clams in the Peconic Estuary."
The Shellfish Transplant Program in Raritan Bay was closed to harvest in September 2002 due to the finding of the hard clam parasitic disease Quahog Parasite Unknown (QPX) in hard clam populations in the transplant harvest area. This was the first time QPX had been found in hard clams in New York waters. The program has remained closed since 2002 to prevent the spread of the parasite. QPX is not harmful to humans and does not represent a public health concern, but can be fatal to hard clams.
The Shellfish Transplant Program involves the harvest of hard clams from areas uncertified for shellfishing and their relay to certified waters that are open for shellfishing for bacterial cleansing and eventual marketing as a safe food product. The program was terminated in the fall 2002 in order to prevent the potential introduction of the parasite to the cleansing sites and waters of the Peconic Estuary.
Since the closures, DEC has monitored hard clam resources for QPX in Raritan Bay, Peconic Bays and other areas of the marine district to determine the extent and distribution of QPX disease. The Shellfish Transplant Program supported a $5 million dollar fishery that operated on a seasonal basis from April through October. The shellfish harvested from Raritan Bay accounted for almost 45 percent of New York State's annual hard clam production.
DEC, in cooperation with the MADL, completed an extensive monitoring program in Raritan Bay in August 2004. The QPX sampling involved the collection of hundreds of clams from designated sampling sites in Great Kills Harbor and Raritan Bay. The final pathology report prepared by the MADL found QPX-positive infections at only four out of 11 sites tested with a significant drop in overall prevalence of the parasite. The four QPX-positive sites were restricted to the central portion of Raritan Bay.
An overall decrease in QPX prevalence in this important hard clam resource in Raritan Bay has allowed DEC to reopen approximately 2,600 acres out of 10,400 acres to transplant harvest. This program option was developed based on input from former shellfish transplant program participants and key stakeholders from the Peconic Estuary. The partial reopening of the program represents a scientifically supported management option that balances the immediate needs of the shellfish industry with the protection of natural populations of hard clams in receiving waters of the Peconic Estuary.
Dean and Director of Marine Sciences at Stony Brook, David Conover said, "We are extremely pleased that the research and diagnostic work performed by MADL has benefited the hard clam fishery while protecting the resource from further transmission of this disease. It is this type of research that led the legislature to create the disease lab."
The areas approved for transplant harvest in Raritan Bay are located in the western portion of the bay west of a line extending southerly from the mouth of Lemon Creek (about 2000 acres) and to the east in the area of Great Kills Harbor (650 acres). The program would be restricted to a maximum of 40 diggers.
In order to further minimize any potential transmission of QPX to receiving waters in the Peconic Estuary, all shellfish transplanted from Raritan Bay are required to be held in off-bottom culture containers (e.g., racks, cages or trays).
DEC will conduct continuous monitoring of the approved harvest area for the duration of the shellfish transplant program to make sure the shellfish are acceptable for transplant. The opening date for the transplant season has not been determined, but is expected to commence in approximately four to six weeks.
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