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Program to Restore and Protect the New York and New Jersey Harbor Has Seen Great Success; Challenges Remain as HEP Partners Recommit to Cleaning up New York and New Jersey Harbor

Release Date: 06/14/2001
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(#01070) New York, New York – Much has been accomplished toward restoring the New York/New Jersey Harbor through the New York/ New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program (HEP) -- a partnership between federal, state and local agencies, businesses and environmental groups and local communities. Five years after a comprehensive cleanup plan was forged by the HEP partners, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Acting Regional Administrator, William J. Muszynski, P.E., celebrated the many accomplishments under HEP and vowed to continue cleanup efforts and face the challenges that remain. "In 1997, as Governor of New Jersey, I joined Governor Pataki of New York and EPA Regional Administrator Fox in signing HEP’s Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan," said EPA Administrator, Christie Whitman. "I encourage your continued efforts and challenge you to work towards developing innovative solutions to the many issues you face." In 1996, HEP participants pledged to carry out an ambitious bi-state action plan to restore and protect the New York/New Jersey Harbor Estuary and the ocean waters of the New York Bight. The plan, called the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP), includes long-term strategies and immediate actions designed to restore and preserve habitat and living resources, control toxic contaminants, pathogens, nutrient and organic enrichment, rainfall-induced discharges of pollutants and floatable debris and manage dredged material. The HEP program is well on its way to meeting the goals of the HEP CCMP. Very high on the list of accomplishments is the work done to preserve and restore habitats, highlighted in a recently published report called The New York/New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program Habitat Workgroup Status Report 2001. More than $200 million is presently funding acquisition and restoration efforts around the Harbor. "The work this habitat report represents is vital to our efforts to protect the Harbor watershed – a massive 42,000 square kilometer ecosystem in the middle of the most urbanized area in the county," Mr. Muszynski remarked. "Now we have a guidebook to help us determine which habitats are most vital to the health of the Harbor and how to go about protecting or restoring those areas." This past winter the HEP held a dozen public meetings throughout the harbor region in order to get input from the public and encourage the public to get involved in the program. This outreach effort served to re-invigorate the efforts of the HEP, and this public input will be discussed at the June 14 conference. Other vital HEP accomplishments: New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has reorganized itself to better facilitate a watershed-based approach. It is also undertaking a pilot study to evaluate the potential toxic pollution entering the water from numerous contaminated sites. A comprehensive study of toxic contamination in the Harbor is well underway that will lead to reductions of toxic pollutants from both point and nonpoint sources. Work is underway on a Comprehensive Port Improvement Plan, which will help both the environmental and economic needs of the Harbor as a port. A computer model is being refined to reduce the amount of oxygen-depleting nutrients going into the Harbor and impairing aquatic habitat for fish and shellfish. New York City has eliminated more than 96% of illegal dry weather pollutant discharges into the Harbor, greatly reducing the amount of toxics and nutrients that pour into the Harbor every day. A highly successful plan to manage floating debris using surveillance and skimmer vessels has been implemented. Now our beaches are virtually never closed as a result of Harbor-generated floatables. "There is a tremendous amount of great work that has gone on under the HEP, but we must also recognize that much more has to be done and that there are many hurdles to be cleared before we can truly declare victory," Mr. Muszynski noted at a ceremony held at the World Trade Center overlooking the Harbor. "We stand here looking at an area that defines the terms ‘development pressure.’ There are pollutants entering this Harbor every moment from sources too numerous to count. We must continue the strong commitment from each and every one of us to do our part, to protect and restore this treasure." The HEP is a partnership of representatives from federal government, the states of New York and New Jersey, local agencies, scientists, the fishing community, public interest groups, environmental groups, business and industry and educators. Hundreds of people have participated over the past dozen years in the program to develop and carry out the blueprint for restoring the harbor. The New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary was designated an "Estuary of National Significance" in 1988 by EPA, in response to a request by the two state Governors. In 1987, Congress also required the preparation of a restoration plan for the New York Bight, the ocean area extending approximately 100 miles beyond Harbor waters. Because the Harbor and Bight are inextricably linked within the larger ecosystem, the two plans were joined. The total area encompasses more than 42,000 square kilometers, which include the waters of New York Harbor and the tidally-influenced portions of all rivers and streams that empty into it. "I am pleased that the our many partners working to clean up Long Island Sound and the Hudson River have joined us today," Mr. Muszynski noted. "All these systems are part of an interconnected ecosystem and we look forward to working together with the other estuary programs in our efforts to restore the Harbor." Estuaries are among the most productive of all ecosystems, with 80 percent of all fish and shellfish using them for primary habitats, spawning or nursing grounds. For more information on the HEP program or EPA’s National Estuary Program go to their Web sites.