FISH ECOLOGY 

 INTRODUCTION 



The purpose of the marine monitoring programs at Millstone is to 

 determine if construction and operation of the nuclear power plants 

 effect changes in the local marine biota beyond those expected due to 

 natural variation. Plant operations may impact finfish in several ways. 

 Larger fish may be removed from the population by impingement on the 

 intake screens. Kggs, larvae and smaller fish may be adversely affected 

 during entrainment through the condenser cooling water system. In 

 addition, local fish distributions could change due to thermally or 

 physically altered habitats. Physical changes would include bottom 

 scouring in regions of high water velocity and riprap addition. 



Several finfish sampling programs were established as part of the 

 Millstone ecological monitoring effort. The shore-zone fish (seine) 

 sampling program began in 1969. Unit 1 impingement sampling began in 

 1972 followed by the trawl and both offshore and entrainment plankton 

 programs in 197 3, and Unit 2 impingement sampling in 1976. The program 

 objectives are: 



1. To identify and enumerate finfishes found in the plankton, 

 impingement, seine, and trawl samples collected from stations 

 within the Greater Millstone Bight. 



2. To determine which of the finfishes known to be present in the 

 area around Millstone Point are potentially susceptible to 

 entrainment, impingement and exposure to the thermal plume. 



3. To describe historical fluctuations of potentially impacted 

 finfishes as best estimated by egg or larval density or 

 impingement, seine or trawl catches or by a combination of 

 these methods. 



