ECOLOGY OF BUZZARDS BAY: An Estuanne Profile 1 03 



bay. As with the Florida spill, high winds and rough 

 seas made containment impossible, and the oil was 

 driven onshore onto Bassett*s Island and Winsor 

 Cove. A substantial immediate kill of marine life re- 

 sulted, affecting crabs, snails, and clams; shortly 

 thereafter marsh plants in Winsor Cove began re- 

 sponding as in the West Falmouth spill, with brown- 

 ing of Spartina, Salicornia, and the sea lavender 

 (Limonium). Although plants were recolonizing the 

 affected areas after 3 years, the recovery was slow 

 and new growth limited in stem density and culm 

 height compared with unoiled areas. Winsor Cove 

 was more affected than other areas, as it received 

 repeated applications of oil through tidal inundation 

 and consistent winds. The marsh became impreg- 

 nated with oil, and weathering was limited. The slow, 

 chronic release of toxic aromatics from the buried 

 oil impeded recolonization of plants and animals. 



While the general focus will probably remain on 

 the large and dramatic oil spills where there are 

 obvious impacts, it is clear for Buzzards Bay and 

 likely for most coastal waters that petroleum is en- 

 tering daily, possibly at rates greater than those of 

 the spills. Regardless of the source, all petroleum 

 hydrocarbons combine to create the potential for 

 cumulative chronic impacts to the aquatic systems 

 of the bay, each with its specific sensitivity and ca- 

 pacity to retain or lose hydrocarbons. 



Concern over the potential for significant envi- 

 ronmental degradation from future shipping acci- 

 dents has brought increased scrutiny to the regula- 

 tions covering shipping through the Cape Cod Ca- 

 nal. Considering the hazardous nature of canal cur- 

 rents and the ecologically sensitive nature of Buz- 

 zards Bay, Massachusetts and federal regulations 

 now require all foreign vessels and U.S. vessels 

 sailing on register to be under the direction of a first- 

 class pilot whose license is endorsed specifically 

 for the canal and bay waters. In addition, begin- 

 ning in 1 992 a substantial effort was undertaken to 

 remap the bay floor, primarily in response to sev- 

 eral groundings in poorly charted areas around the 

 bay. 



Pesticides. The impacts of pesticides on the 

 bay have greatly decreased since the banning of 



certain chlorinated pesticides such as DDT and di- 

 eldrin. During the 1950'sand 1960's, these pesti- 

 cides were frequently used for mosquito control 

 within the watershed with detrimental results, most 

 notably to resident invertebrate and fish populations 

 (SAIC 1 991 ). The pesticides routinely in use today 

 (e.g., diazinon, parathion, cararyl), primarily for 

 cranberry agriculture and mosquito control, are short 

 lived and generally nonpersistent in the environment. 

 As with most chemicals, however, excessive or im- 

 proper application may have deleterious effects on 

 animal communities, especially fish in small 

 embayments; therefore, routine monitoring of these 

 compounds is necessary to ensure protection of 

 potentially susceptible areas. 



Polychlorinated Biphenyls. Although minor 

 inputs of PCB's enter Buzzards Bay from boat 

 paints, dredged material disposal, and atmospheric 

 inputs, the most significant input has been from manu- 

 facturing, primarily in New Bedford ( Farrington and 

 Capuzzo 1990; SAIC 1991). Contamination of 

 New Bedford Harbor by PCB's represents the larg- 

 est single source of toxic contamination in the bay 

 because they were used since 1 926 as insulation in 

 electrical transformers and as coolants and lubri- 

 cants. Significant inputs of PCB*s occurred in the 

 upper reaches of New Bedford Harbor from the 

 1940"s to the late 1970's as a result of industrial 

 waste discharge from several New Bedford firms 

 that manufactured electrical components. Because 

 these compounds do not break down into less haz- 

 ardous chemicals, they pose a potential long-term 

 problem to the ecology of Buzzards Bay and to the 

 public health of residents who consume fish and 

 shellfish from the region. 



About 145 1 of PCB's were discharged into the 

 New Bedford-Acushnet River system between 

 1958 and 1977 (Farrington and Capuzzo 1990; 

 SAIC 1991 ). However, with the decline in PCB 

 release to the environment because of the develop- 

 ment of alternative compounds and an active pro- 

 gram to halt PCB discharge through the outfall, the 

 primary present sources to Buzzards Bay are from 

 resuspension of sediments in New Bedford Harbor 

 and from atmospheric deposition. It appears that 

 with the cleanup of the most contaminated 



