July 12, 2007
BAYSHORE REGIONAL WATERSHED COUNCIL
MINUTES
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Keyport Borough Hall
7:30pm – 9:30pm
Attendance:
Lou Andreuzzi (Union Beach)
Cynthia Bianchi (Leonardo Citizens Committee)
Marie Biro (Matawan)
Theresa Boyle (Hazlet Mobile Homes)
John Coffey (Hazlet Mobile Homes)
John Curran (HAQLA/Hazlet)
Annie Eng (Hazlet Township)
Fran Donnelly (Hazlet)
Stephen Gale (Keyport)
Gene Geer (Hazlet)
Vikas Hiremath (Americorps)
Eric Johnson (Cliffwood Beach)
Kevin Lavan (Hazlet/Deputy Mayor)
Bill Lawton (Hazlet Mobile Homes)
Bob Ludwig (Keyport)
Joe Martin (Middletown Township)
Kari Martin (Clean Ocean Action)
Bill McFarland (Holmdel Township)
Joe Pobego (Hazlet Township)
Joe Sheridan & son (Keyport)
Joe Reynolds (Atlantic Highlands)
Paul Rinear (Aberdeen Township)
AGENDA
1) Bayshore Regional Dredged Material Mgmt. Plan
Joe Reynolds reported on the public forum that took place on Thursday, June 14, 2007, from 7:30pm to 9:30pm inside Keyport Borough Hall. It was well received, with over 50 people in attendance from all over the Bayshore region of Monmouth County, and various parts of the state as well. The DMMP partners plan to meet on Wednesday, July 18th to review the information gathered during the forum and to plan out the tasks and responsibilities for the next several months. For more information about the forum and the DMMP, please view the following website: http://www.bayshorewatershed.org/bw/Current%20Projects/%2A%20Regional%20Dredged%20Material%20Management%20Plan
2) NY-NJ HEP Water Access Event Funding
The BRWC agreed to apply for $200.00 to hold a free public educational event at Cliffwood Beach during the spring or early summer of 2008. A tentative title of the event is: “Spend a Day in May Along Raritan Bay.” Some of the free public activities would include: seining, fish printing, nature walks, kite flying, and creating a large mural with the title “The Living Bay” that would be displayed after the event at various local libraries throughout the year.
3) Dead Fish & Brown Water in Bay
A number of water quality events have occurred recently in bay waters:
a) During the Memorial Day weekend in May, a huge brown tide or brown water event took place that stretched from Raritan Bay down to the Manasquan River inlet. This was one of the largest and earliest brown alga events in recent memory. Most disturbing was the fact that certain officials within NJDEP knew about this poor water quality event before the holiday weekend but did not put out a press release about it until the Tuesday after the weekend. For more information about this event, please view the following webpage: http://www.bayshorewatershed.org/bw/Announcements/Yucky%20Brown%20Tide%20in%20Sandy%20Hook%20Bay
b) Towards the end of June and early July, many Atlantic Menhaden or bunker were being washed up dead on the shoreline of Keyport, with some fish being discovered as far as Atlantic Highlands. Officials within NJDEP believed the dead Menhaden to be from a commercial boating accident that took place from faulty fishing nets. They base this belief on two matters: 1) no other fish were found dead in the bay, and 2) net marks were found on some of the dead menhaden. Nevertheless, it took more than a week before NJDEP tested bay waters to be sure and the parameters of the water testing have never been made public. BRWC members believe that more and better information needs to be transferred by NJDEP to the public when any local water quality event takes place. Furthermore, water quality tests need to be accomplished at the first sign of trouble.
c) The Borough of Atlantic Highlands is having a debate about what to do with the unused dead fish parts that accumulate in harbor waters from certain people who fish and throw away unused parts of what they catch in the water. Some people within the community feel it is not an issue as the currents carry the fish away or that living fish, birds, crabs, snails, and additional aquatic invertebrates eat the dead fish over time. Other people in the community believe that too many dead fish are being dumped in the water for the problem to just go away or for Mother Nature to take care of it. This issue is deterring the borough from passing a Clean Marina ordinance. BRWC members believe that the Borough of Atlantic Highlands should investigate how other marinas in New Jersey deal with this issue, especially the Forked River State Marina, which is a NJ certified Clean Marina: Forked River State Marina, 311 South Main Street, Forked River, NJ 08731. Other NJ certified Clean Marinas can be found at this website: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/njcleanmarina/certified.htm
4) Flat Creek NJDEP Project Grant Status
Kevin Lavin, Deputy Mayor of Hazlet, stated that Hazlet Township is in full support of the BRWC acquiring storm drain filters to be used to help improve water quality in Flat Creek. Mr. Lavin stated that Hazlet DPW would maintain the filters. Hazlet Township, however, would like to decide where the filters will be placed within the grant project area.
BRWC members agreed to use the remaining $45,000 to be used to install storm drain filters in both Hazlet Township and Holmdel Township, and to use a certain amount of funds, no more than $6,000, to be employed to create an environmental education component that will inform local property owners along the creek about nonpoint source pollution reduction activities.
John Coffey and various members of the Garden Park Mobile Home Owners Association, located along Bethany Road and Flat Creek in Hazlet Township, stated quite loudly that the remaining $45,000 of the Action Now grant should be used solely to dredge a small portion of the creek near their mobile homes. They stated that the creek often floods at this location and is causing health problems for several residents. BRWC members suggested that the mobile home owners should work with the property owner to improve conditions and to contact both the Monmouth County Mosquito Commission and the Monmouth County Health Department. Mr. Coffey stated that the property manager said to him that the MC Mosquito Commission would not dredge the creek without approval from NJDEP. BRWC members agreed to look into the matter.
5) Hazlet Open Space Committee
Annie Eng, chair of the Hazlet Open Space Committee, reported that committee members are meeting and gathering public comments to decide which properties should be placed on the open space plan. The plan needs to be completed by February 2008.
6) Waackaack Creek Watershed Restoration
Bill McFarland reported that he attended a meeting on 6/27 at T & M in Middletown about the flooding and drainage problems with Waackaack Creek.
The County called a meeting with T & M a few weeks ago to discuss the flooding of Palmer Ave. in two locations and wanted to get a combined group of the County, Middletown and Holmdel to support a study and a subsequent corrective action to stop the flooding. T & M has prepared a draft scope of work and will send it to the County. The county would like assisting from the BRWC in attempting to make it a regional approach and get Hazlet and Keansburg involved to cover Waackaack from it's headwaters to the bay. Right now they are not involved. It is believed that the silting and meandering of the Creek North of Middle Road is contributing to impeding the flow to the bay and should be part of the study. Right now all that is being discussed is the area between Rt. 35 and Middle Rd. The County's interest is that Palmer Ave. and Stone Road in Keansburg flood and both are County Roads. Opinions were expressed that it would be wise to look at the whole watershed, not just the one area. Therefore the suggestion was that the BRWC get involved.
7) Bayshore Pump-out Boat
BRWC members and other interested people recently met with the NY-NJ Baykeeper on Thursday, July 5th, to go over the possibility of establishing a pump-out boat exclusively for the Raritan Bay-Sandy Hook Bay area. It was agreed that a boat could easily be purchased for less than $50,000 to be employed for this project. Issues still exists, however, about the cost of maintaining the boat for 5 years. A meeting has been set on Thursday, August 9th with the Monmouth County Freeholders in hopes of getting much needed financial support from the county for this project.
8) Reports from Bayshore Communities
Vikas Hiremath, a local Americorp person, stated that he is seeking a site to conduct a public stream cleanup this summer. BRWC members recommended several sites along Flat Creek.
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