Business & Tech
DEC Shuts Down Shellfishing in Huntington
Runoff contaminants from this weekend's deluge lead to temporary prohibition in town's waters.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation announced Monday that shellfish harvesting in certain Town of Huntington waters is temporarily prohibited because of the high volume of runoff from this weekend's storm.
All of Lloyd Harbor, Northport Bay, Centerport Harbor, Duck Island Harbor, and the southern portions of Cold Spring Harbor and Huntington Bay have been designated as uncertified and closed to shellfishing through Aug. 22.
All areas receiving over three inches of rain were affected by the temporary DEC prohibition. Such high volumes of stormwater runoff carry bacteria and viruses into bays and harbors which may contaminate shellfish.
Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.
The DEC said that it will reopen the areas as soon as possible based on the results of bacteriological analyses on water samples to be collected this week.
Sunday's downpour also affected Huntington area beaches which were deemed inadvisable for swimming by the Suffolk County Department of Health on Monday for possible high bacteria concentrations. The county's advice against swimming applied for only 24 hours after the last rainfall.
Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
