Oyster Bay Estuary Water Quality, a project of Friend of the Bay.

In Long Island Sound and its embayments, a majority of nitrogen loading comes from treated human sewage discharged from wastewater treatment plants.

Nitrogen oxide deposits associated with energy and transportation pollution and storm water runoff from animal waste and lawn fertilizer also play a role in nitrogen loading.

While nitrogen is a necessary nutrient in a productive ecosystem a building block for plant and animal tissue too much nitrogen fuels the excessive growth of planktonic algae (floating plants). The dense algae blooms cloud the water and shade the bottom.

When the algae die and settle to the bottom, they are decayed by bacteria, a process that uses up available oxygen. Oxygen in short supply impairs the feeding, growth, and reproduction of aquatic life. In extreme conditions, some organisms may suffocate and die, while others flee the hypoxic zones.

The dense blooms also prevent enough light from reaching shallow water bottoms to support the growth of submerged aquatic vegetation, an important habitat for shellfish and juvenile fish. As a result, nitrogen in excess impairs the function and health of Long Island Sound and its embayments.

To determine the nitrogen concentrations in the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor Estuary, Friends of the Bay tests nitrate/nitrite, total nitrogen, and ammonia once per month.

The donation of laboratory services by South Mall Analytical Labs allows us to conduct nitrogen testing.

The next item we monitor is >>> Coliform Bacteria.