ECOLOGY OF BUZZARDS BAY: An Estuanne Profile 101 



in New Bedford Harbor. Unregulated industrial 

 discharges, primarily from two local manufacturers 

 over many years, have resulted in high levels of sev- 

 eral toxic pollutants in the sediments. PCB*s, which 

 were discharged into New Bedford Harbor and 

 Buzzards Bay via the Acushnet River and from the 

 New Bedford Wastewater Treatment Facility at 

 Clarkes Point from 1 947 through 1 978, are major 

 sources of concern. Heavy metals have also been 

 introduced to the bay, again primarily at New 

 Bedford, including copper, chromium, zinc, silver, 

 cadmium, and lead. Sediment samples from out- 

 side New Bedford Harbor indicate a gradual spread 

 of these contaminants. Fish and shellfish in the area 

 continue to maintain high levels of these contami- 

 nants in their tissues. Because of the retention of 

 these pollutants in the sediments, fishing and 

 shellfishing in many areas will continue to be pro- 

 hibited for years to come. In addition to any imme- 

 diate toxic effects of these pollutants, their 

 bioaccumulation can also seriously affect offspring, 

 such as eggs and juveniles of winter flounder (Camp. 

 Dresser, and McKee, Inc. 1 990). This impact is 

 not limited to resident species, but also affects mi- 

 gratory species that return to inshore spawning ar- 

 eas. In addition to the decreased viability of em- 

 bryos, high concentrations of these compounds of- 

 ten reduce or delay spawning activity in adults 

 (Bengtsson 1980; Black etal. 1988). The extreme 

 difficulty and expense of removing, treating, and 

 safely disposing of these compounds (notably the 

 PCB's), however, has led to at least one recom- 

 mendation that they remain in their present environ- 

 ment rather than being moved and reintroduced into 

 a new area. 



Other sources of toxic pollution to Buzzards Bay 

 include storm water runoff and landfills. Storm drains 

 can often combine rainwater with oil and gas runoff 

 from roads, chemicals from lawn fertilizers, and 

 animal wastes from pets or wildlife. Landfills can 

 be a major source of pollution from commercial and 

 household toxic wastes that can leach into and con- 

 taminate groundwater and drinking water supplies. 



Oil Pollution. Petroleum hydrocarbons enter 

 Buzzards Bay waters directly through large and small 



accidental spills, waste discharges, and boating 

 activities, and indirectly through stormwater runoff. 

 There are no major point sources within the water- 

 shed, no production facilities, refineries, or petro- 

 chemical plants; about half of the oil entering the 

 bay comes from oil "imports" to New Bedford, to 

 meet demands for gasoline, heating oil, and indus- 

 trial oil, and to the Boston region via the Cape Cod 

 Canal. In fact, one of the major ecological effects 

 of the canal stems from its use for oil transport re- 

 sulting in periodic ( 1 969, 1 974. 1 978) large-scale 

 spills from oil barges traveling northward (Fig. 6.2). 

 While the impacts of these spills are dramatic, they 

 are also localized and account for only about half of 

 the total oil entering the bay over the past 25 years. 

 Small-scale spills from boats and fuel/oil harbor fa- 

 cilities, leaching from pilings, and outfalls account 

 for less than 1 0% of the inputs. The largest chronic 

 source, and the hardest to control, is runoff from 

 residential, commercial, industrial, and road surfaces 

 ( S AIC 1991). There is another potential source of 

 oil to bay waters, however, ironically from com- 

 mercial fishing vessels and small recreational boats. 

 Buzzards Bay supports about 4,300 moorings and 

 slips and is the highway for more than 20,000 ves- 

 sels per year. Recreational vessels discharge oil pri- 

 marily as a function of outboard motor use, but it is 

 the 200 or so fishing vessels that use 1 .9-3.8 mil- 

 lion liters of engine oil per year, much unaccounted 



Fig. 6.2. Oil spill from the barge Florida. 1969 Photo 

 by J Teal 



