Opens in a new tab

Improving the Ecosystem for Everyone

A Positive Future for the Bay

Ocean County is one of the fastest growing counties in New Jersey, increasing by over 120,000 residents between 2000 and 2020.

With that increase in population has come new housing development, infrastructure changes, and many modifications in land use. The BBP and our network of partners are all working towards restoring, protecting, and educating about the bay and it’s resources- and how those all affect our community. 

seining seine blue crabjfy jersey friendly yards
blue crabbbpvmn volunteer master naturalists
beach haven

What do we do to affect the bay, and what small changes can we make to reduce our impacts?

jfy

Remember: Everything Flows Downstream

What we do on land has a direct impact on the bay. Excess lawn fertilizers, pet waste, and stormwater runoff carry harmful nutrients and chemicals into local waterways.

These pollutants fuel algae growth, reduce oxygen levels, and put serious stress on the bay’s ecosystems. 

What you can do:

Learn more about how small changes at home can make a big difference.

Learn More about Fertilizers

Remember: Runoff Leads to Blooms

Residential development is the primary land use in the Barnegat Bay watershed.

Stormwater runoff from the land has led to increased and recurring harmful algal blooms which can impact human health, shellfish, fish, and many other species in the bay. In many cases, these blooms are caused by phytoplankton. Phytoplankton, like plants, thrive on increased fertilizer and nutrients – so nutrients running off from land continue to do their “job” once they reach the bay, and that is feeding the plants that thrive there.

Unfortunately, when phytoplankton bloom, the water can become toxic. For example, algal blooms can create an unhealthy amount of organic matter, known as eutrophication, which makes it difficult for many species to survive (but, ironically, creates ideal conditions for species like jellyfish).

What you can do:

  • Manage your fertilize use (do we see a pattern here?)
  • Maintain your septic system if you have one
  • Try to minimize pervious surfaces
  • Plant a rain garden on your property – ahh yes, JerseyYards.org can help with that!
  • Make sure you’ve got a solid riparian buffer zone between manicured land and the nearest stream
  • Pick up after your pet!

Learn more about the impacts of harmful algal blooms below.

Learn More about Harmful Algal Blooms
cattus
bbpvmn master naturalists

It's Better to be Proactive than Reactive

Living on the coast can come with it’s potential risks – including the risk of increased impacts from storms. It’s important to familiarize yourself with your community’s vulnerability (and the vulnerability of the bay ecosystem) to understand how to be proactive in the face of storms. 

As the Gem of the Jersey Shore, any significant impacts to the Barnegat Bay could have environmental, economic, and personal consequences none of us want to face.

What you can do:

Learn more about how storms can impact the bay below.

How Storms Are Changing the Bay

UNKNOWN

There is limited data available to quantify Wetland and Riparian Buffer Preservation, or updated data to quantify Wetland Acreage. The BBP has obtained funding and will begin assessment efforts for both targets, in the next few years.

 

 Hard Clam abundance has not been updated since 2012. Recovery of the stock will be guided by the Fishery Management Plan for Hard Clams, which is under development with the NJDEP, BBP, and other organizations. Reclam the Bay and other partners have continued to plant clams for restoration purposes. Continued plantings in strategic locations which maximize survival and reproduction is one strategy to pursue in the coming years. This work can use a model developed by Rutgers with BBP funding which identified areas where planted clams could have the greatest dispersal of their larvae and thus potentially maximally contribute to the recovery of the stock.

 Water Withdrawals were over the target in the 2021 report; USGS has not yet completed its latest update, so a definitive determination of status is not available. However, additional NJDEP data show that it is likely that we continue to not meet the target. Per capita water use has gone down, demonstrating the effectiveness of water-saving appliances and practices, but that decrease has been offset by population gains. 


IN PROGRESS

New maps quantifying Submerged Aquatic Vegetation extent were developed, but poor image clarity resulted in a high degree of uncertainty in the total acreage. NJDEP and Rutgers are working to resolve the uncertainty of these maps, and improve the total acreage estimate. Funding has also been obtained for further research and restoration activities. Several groups are developing potential restoration actions.

The USGS has completed the first phase of its study to identify minimum ecological flows in select Barnegat Bay tributaries. USGS scientists compared streamflow statistics between historical and current time periods to better understand trends in watershed flow conditions. This work provides a foundation for developing ecological flow targets in the Barnegat Bay watershed.  Similar to SAV extent, funding (approximately $450K) has been obtained by the BBP to complete the remaining phases necessary for threshold determination.

 

TARGETS ACHIEVED

No targets can be considered “Achieved” at this time.

 

NOT ACHIEVING

Several Public Swimming Beaches exceeded their safe swimming standards more frequently than during their baseline time period (2016-2018).

While most beaches are routinely safe for swimming, several problematic areas such as Beachwood, Hancock, Windward, and several lake beaches need track-down studies and restoration to pinpoint and address sources of bacteria.

Acres of Approved Shellfish Waters decreased from the last report. While this decrease was small, it represents a loss of previously approved waters. Similar to public beaches, track-down studies and restoration work are needed to pinpoint and address sources of bacteria.