20 First Annual Report of the 



50,000 acres of what were formerly valuable shellfish lands 

 have been ruined by the deposit of industrial waste. Legislation 

 is needed to prevent the pollution of public water from sewage by 

 requiring municipalities to install sewage disposal plants. The 

 question has been ignored too long, although its great importance 

 has frequently been called to public attention. Provisions should 

 be made by statute prohibiting the cities and towns of the State 

 from sewering into public waters, and the authority of law should 

 likewise be vested in this Commission to prevent by injunction the 

 pollution of streams by the manufacturers in all cases where it 

 can be shown that the deposit of such materials in streams is 

 destructive to fish life or where the public health is imperilled by 

 a continuance of the process. 



The investigation of sanitary conditions of oyster beds is being 

 actively prosecuted by the Commission, and such measures will be 

 taken as are deemed necessary for the protection of public health. 

 Many of the States, including Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island 

 and Maryland have already dealt with the problems of pollution in 

 a modern and progressive manner. The city of Baltimore has but 

 recently inaugurated a system of sewage disposal and prohibited 

 the discharge of manufacturers' waste products into the waters 

 within its jurisdiction. The same work is now being given active 

 consideration by the fisheries and health authorities of New Jersey. 

 This State should no longer delay action upon a question which 

 concerns the health of its people and the protection of one of its 

 important industries. There is a great necessity for a biological 

 station on Long Island for the study of the habits, spawning 

 grounds and propagation of migratory fish, mollusks and Crustacea. 

 This would inaugurate a work which would within a short period 

 increase the catches of marine species to a great degree and furnish 

 to our citizens vast quantities of cheap and desirable food. The 

 Empire State cannot afford to lag behind in a work of this 

 character which is now being carried on with great success by most 

 of the European countries, some of the South American Republics 

 as well as the States of New Jersey, Virginia, Alabama, Mississippi 

 and Louisiana. If Uruguay can afford to appropriate $150,000 

 per annum for the development of its fisheries we ought not to 

 hesitate in the work of developing and protecting the fisheries in 

 our 400 miles of sea coast. 



