December 18, 2018

Guardians of Barnegat Bay

by S-FX.com

Gef, Stan, and Ron for Guardians of the Barnegat Bay

Each year the Barnegat Bay Partnership presents the Guardian of Barnegat Bay “Lifetime Achievement” award to individuals  who have made significant, long-term contributions to protecting and restoring the Barnegat Bay. The Partnership recently honored Dr. Ron Baker and Gef Flimlin as the 2018 recipients of the “Lifetime Achievement” award.

Ron Baker Scaled
Dr. Ron Baker shows off the inscription on the back of his “fish plate” award.

Recently retired, Dr. Ron Baker was a research scientist with the US Geological Survey (USGS).  During his many years with USGS, he worked to quantify nutrient loading from the Barnegat Bay watershed to the estuary, providing valuable data and a scientific foundation for plans to protect and restore the bay’s water quality.  His idea to analyze water samples for stable isotope composition contributed to a greater understanding of the potential sources of nitrogen to surface water and groundwater within the watershed.

In addition to his valuable research, Dr. Baker also freely shared his expertise about the bay while serving as a member of the BBP’s Science and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) and as a member of the Steering Committee for the development of the Metedeconk River Watershed Protection and Restoration Plan.

Gef Flimlin And Rick Bushnell Scaled
Gef Flimlin with Rick Bushnell, President of ReClam the Bay.

Gef Flimlin, retired Professor and Marine Extension Agent with Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Ocean County, worked with commercial fisheries in New Jersey for over 33 years.  He helped establish the New Jersey Aquaculture Association and East Coast Shellfish Growers Association, and worked tirelessly with commercial fisheries to improve aquaculture in New Jersey.

The innovative program he initiated, the Barnegat Bay Shellfish Restoration Program (BBSRP), has been hugely successful in educating the public about water quality while engaging volunteers in shellfish restoration efforts throughout the bay. The BBSRP Shellfish Gardeners course and certification program, along with his motto of “The best way to reclaim the bay is to RECLAM the bay,” inspired the founding of ReClam the Bay,  a volunteer organization with a mission to educate about shellfish resources and water quality in the bay.  Another innovative project Mr. Flimlin started, the “Clam Trail,” has been widely recognized and acclaimed as a unique combination of public art and science education.

During the December meeting of the Partnership’s Science and Technology Advisory Committee, Director Dr. Stan Hales presented each of these deserving awardees with a hand-crafted ceramic Barnegat Bay fish plate in honor of their achievements. Thank you both for your dedication to protecting and restoring the Barnegat Bay!

Read more about previous Guardian of the Barnegat Bay award recipients.

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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.

 

Guardians of Barnegat Bay

Each year the Barnegat Bay Partnership presents the Guardian of Barnegat Bay “Lifetime Achievement” award to individuals  who have made significant, long-term contributions to protecting and restoring the Barnegat Bay. The Partnership recently honored Dr. Ron Baker and Gef Flimlin as the 2018 recipients of the “Lifetime Achievement” award.

Ron Baker Scaled
Dr. Ron Baker shows off the inscription on the back of his “fish plate” award.

Recently retired, Dr. Ron Baker was a research scientist with the US Geological Survey (USGS).  During his many years with USGS, he worked to quantify nutrient loading from the Barnegat Bay watershed to the estuary, providing valuable data and a scientific foundation for plans to protect and restore the bay’s water quality.  His idea to analyze water samples for stable isotope composition contributed to a greater understanding of the potential sources of nitrogen to surface water and groundwater within the watershed.

In addition to his valuable research, Dr. Baker also freely shared his expertise about the bay while serving as a member of the BBP’s Science and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) and as a member of the Steering Committee for the development of the Metedeconk River Watershed Protection and Restoration Plan.

Gef Flimlin And Rick Bushnell Scaled
Gef Flimlin with Rick Bushnell, President of ReClam the Bay.

Gef Flimlin, retired Professor and Marine Extension Agent with Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Ocean County, worked with commercial fisheries in New Jersey for over 33 years.  He helped establish the New Jersey Aquaculture Association and East Coast Shellfish Growers Association, and worked tirelessly with commercial fisheries to improve aquaculture in New Jersey.

The innovative program he initiated, the Barnegat Bay Shellfish Restoration Program (BBSRP), has been hugely successful in educating the public about water quality while engaging volunteers in shellfish restoration efforts throughout the bay. The BBSRP Shellfish Gardeners course and certification program, along with his motto of “The best way to reclaim the bay is to RECLAM the bay,” inspired the founding of ReClam the Bay,  a volunteer organization with a mission to educate about shellfish resources and water quality in the bay.  Another innovative project Mr. Flimlin started, the “Clam Trail,” has been widely recognized and acclaimed as a unique combination of public art and science education.

During the December meeting of the Partnership’s Science and Technology Advisory Committee, Director Dr. Stan Hales presented each of these deserving awardees with a hand-crafted ceramic Barnegat Bay fish plate in honor of their achievements. Thank you both for your dedication to protecting and restoring the Barnegat Bay!

Read more about previous Guardian of the Barnegat Bay award recipients.

Contact Guardians of Barnegat BayContact Guardians of Barnegat Bay
Gef, Stan, and Ron for Guardians of the Barnegat Bay