14 



BIOLOGICAL REPORT 31 



aeglefmus), striped bass (Morone saxatilis), winter 

 flounder (Pleuronectes americanus), and the like as 

 well as ocean scallops (Placopectin megellanicus). 

 More locally, shellfishing (primarily bay scallop 

 (Aequipectin irradians) and quahog) was and con- 

 tinues to bean important industry throughout the 

 bay ($4.5 million in 1988), with additional 

 commercial and recreational harvest of soft- 

 shelled clams (Mya arenaria) and lobster 

 (Homarus americanus). However, overfishing 

 and the ever-increasing shellfish bed closures because 

 of coliform contamination put a growing strain on this 

 industry as an economic resource (S. Cadrin, Massa- 

 chusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, personal com- 

 munication). 



The exception to the modern day decline in ag- 

 riculture within the watershed is cranberry growing. 

 Cranberries were harvested around Buzzards Bay 

 by Native Americans and later by European colo- 

 nists. With the cultivation of cranberries and devel- 

 opment of cranberry agriculture came both in- 

 creased yields and the construction of extensive 

 cranberry bogs, usually by converting freshwater 

 wetlands (Thomas 1 990). At present, cranberry 

 agriculture yields 30 times more revenue than the 

 second most important agricultural industry, dairy 

 farming, and employs 1 2 times the workers (Terkla 

 et al. 1 990). Many of the bogs within the Buzzards 

 Bay watershed were originally under cultivation more 

 than a century ago when the watershed accounted 

 for about 25% of the total cranberry production in 

 the United States. The wetland nature of many of 

 the bogs, which are located on streams and rivers 

 emptying into Buzzards Bay, makes management 

 of this fertilized agriculture potentially significant to 

 managing the nutrient-related water quality of the 

 bay (Howes and Teal 1 992). 



The value of Buzzards Bay and the Cape Cod 

 Canal to the shipping industry is almost incalcu- 

 lable, not only for the direct economics of 

 transport in shortening the circuitous route around 

 Cape Cod but also for the savings in countless 

 lives and ships. As in the colonial era, the bay 

 continues to serve as a major transportation sys- 

 tem. Traffic through the bay today consists pri- 

 marily of oil tankers, freighters, and barges 



carrying over 1 7.2 million t of commercial cargo 

 and much of the refined oil for New England. More 

 than 6,300 large cargo vessels pass through the 

 canal each year, as well as more than 25,000 smaller 

 vessels, including fishing and pleasure boats, many 

 of which would be ill-equipped for the long and 

 dangerous voyage around Cape Cod (Farson 

 1993). 



One of the primary uses of Buzzards Bay to- 

 day is as an aesthetic and recreational resource. 

 The many small coves, inlets, and harbors around 

 the perimeter of the bay provide shelter for nu- 

 merous boat moorings and many types of recre- 

 ational activities, from boating, fishing, sailing, and 

 swimming to other water sports such as scuba div- 

 ing and water skiing. The high level of water quality 

 generally found within the bay attracts a large num- 

 ber of tourists each year to its shores, providing an 

 important economic resource to many of the local 

 communities. The active recreational fishery in Buz- 

 zards Bay provides both direct income to the local 

 marine industries and indirect support for the tour- 

 ist industry. 



The major alteration in land use within the Buz- 

 zards Bay watershed over the past century has been 

 the shift from farming to residential housing, prima- 

 rily post- World War II. The major urban center, 

 greater New Bedford, has maintained a nearly con- 

 stant population since 1 930, a result of the major 

 expansion in population due to the whaling industry 

 in the 1 800's and the city's growth as a manufac- 

 turing center (Terkla et al. 1 990). In recent years, 

 regional changes have been primarily related to sub- 

 urban growth, particularly in the tourism and retire- 

 ment populations (Fig. 1 .5). The result is that the 

 nonurban population has now surpassed the urban 

 population, as was the case 200 years ago. 



After almost 400 years of recorded develop- 

 ment, many of the activities within the bay-water- 

 shed system remain essentially the same although, 

 of course, technologically advanced in practice. 

 Fisheries and agriculture remain essential resource 

 uses, but, as in many other systems, the fisheries 

 yields have diminished due either to overfishing or 

 alterations in habitat. The major shift of emphasis 

 has been from farming to residential and tourist 



