increased commensurate with increases in historical organic carbon loadings. The 

 excess organic carbon has both accumulated in the estuarine sediments and been 

 transported to the Bight. The aesthetic and recreational value has been compromised 

 by oil sheens, floatable wastes, and odors that are widespread within the estuary. To 

 a lesser extent, oil sheens and floatable wastes are frequent features of the Bight as 

 well. 



The most important economic function of the Bight and estuary is as a vehicle for 

 coastal and foreign transport. The total foreign and domestic waterborne commerce 

 to and from the Port of New York was about 175 X I0 6 t yr during the 1970s. 



RECENT MODIFICATIONS OF THE ECOSYSTEM 



Environmental Issues — 10 Year Changes 



Few striking trends over the past 10 years are evident in the structure or function of 

 the ecosystem. This lack of evidence may well be due partially to the combination of 

 limited measurements and the large variability in biotic responses to natural environ- 

 mental fluctuations. Only a few attributes of the Hudson-Raritan Estuary were 

 monitored over the past decade, and limited monitoring of the Bight did not 

 begin until 1976. Also, research measurements during the 1970s were seldom con- 

 ducted over time periods long enough to detect possible trends. However, a few 

 ecosystem features are known well enough to document the existence or probable 

 absence of significant decadal trends. Changes are evident in the community struc- 

 ture and commercial catch of demersal fishes and shellfish (Grosslein and Azarovitz, 

 1981). However, no major trends are noticeable in bacterial measures of water 

 quality nor in the locations of contaminated sediments of the inner Bight. It would 

 not be surprising if additional trends in contaminant loadings and ecosystem impacts 

 did occur during the 1970s but went undetected. 



Bathing Hater Quality In the New York and New Jersey coastal zone, swim- 

 ming is the most popular outdoor recreation (Carls, 1978). The City of New York has 

 increased its public beachfront from 1.6 km ( 1 mi) in 1933 to 29 km( 18 mi). Increas- 

 ing sewage loadings to the New York Harbor since the 1 800s havecaused widespread 

 closures of bathing beaches (Suszkowski, 1973). Despite continuing efforts to man- 

 age sewage wastes since the early 1900s, the entire inner harbor is not classified as 

 acceptable for bathing. Of the 12 recognized beaches in Lower Bay, most were open 

 to bathing, with intermittent closures, during the late 1970s (New York City, 1979). 

 There is no evidence of serious disease associated with swimming in the harbor since 

 1920, but upper respiratory inflammations and gastroenteritis have been associated 

 with swimming in recent years. The bacterial or viral agents of these diseases are not 

 yet identified, but the probability of illness among swimmers can be predicted rather 

 reliably from concentrations of appropriate indicator bacteria in bathing waters. 

 Based upon epidemiological observations at beaches of Coney Island and western 

 Long Island, Enterococcus and Escherichia coli were the best indicators of swim- 

 ming-associated gastrointestinal symptoms (vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, or stom- 

 achache). The probability of contracting such symptoms was generally higher at the 

 Coney Island than at the Long Island beaches. These studies also documented an 

 appreciable incidence of gastroenteritis from swimming in approved bathing waters 

 (Cabelli, 1981). 



There is no evidence that municipal waste discharges from Long Island have 

 diminished water quality beyond existing bathing standards. Municipal wastewaters 

 from New York City and the New Jersey coast seldom cause coliform densities to ex- 

 ceed bathing water standards, at least along the open coast (Cabelli, 1981). 



Although bacterial and other water quality data for the 1970s over the Bight re- 

 gion are incomplete and not exhaustively analyzed, there seem to have been no 

 striking wide-scale trends in bathing water quality since 1970 (Gunnerson, 1981; 

 Cabelli, 1981). 



51 



