Local calls for help in fish kill cleanup

After discovering a major fish kill in Beaver Dam Creek along the Post-Morrow Foundation on Thursday, Sept. 7, Brookhaven Village Association (BVA) member Julia Villacara called on the Town of Brookhaven for help with remediating the issue with a cleanup.

“As a community, we’d like to pool together and help clean up the shore for the family; however, we’ve been advised of the health hazards, especially with the rise of cases of a flesh-eating bacteria hosted in Suffolk’s brackish, warm water, such as Beaver Dam Creek,” she said. “This cleanup is best left to professionals, but who will do it?”

However, town officials said the issue falls under the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation jurisdiction and reached out to both NYS officials and the DEC for help.

Upon hearing of the situation, NYS Sen. Dean Murray said he immediately contacted former Legis. Rob Calarco at the NYS DEC for help. Together, they determined the issue was due to a reduction of oxygen and perhaps blue fish chasing the smaller fish into the bay. The oversaturation to one area likely caused suffocation, he said.

“According to the DEC, there was no indication of a problem or chemicals; it was a natural occurrence,” he added.

However, he said that the Suffolk County Department of Health has been informed to help determine a definite cause. At that time, he added, they will figure out the proper channels to remediate the dead fish.

On Saturday, the health department conducted testing and validated that the fish were killed due to lack of oxygen from too many bunker. The BVA is currently working with Cornell Cooperative Extension on how to have the fish removed from residents’ properties that washed up from the creek along Bay Road and Fire Place Neck Road.

“According to the DEC, there was no indication of a problem or chemicals; it was a natural occurrence,” he added.

According to the NYSDEC, after review, it appears as if the impacted fish species is primarily Atlantic menhaden (bunker), numbering in the thousands. 

“Adult Atlantic menhaden (bunker) have been abundant in the waters of New York State in recent years. The menhaden involved in this fish kill are juveniles, born this year, often referred to as peanut bunker, that have made their way into many bays and creeks along the coast of Long Island and New York City,” a NYS DEC spokesperson explained.

According to the NYS DEC, the recent heat wave led to increases in water temperatures in these areas, setting up the potential for fish kills. Warm water can hold less dissolved oxygen (D.O.) than cool water. Bunker is particularly vulnerable to low dissolved oxygen content in confined water bodies since they travel in large, dense schools. Low D.O. or hypoxia, can often kill bunker while other fishes and marine organisms are stressed but survive.  

Improvements to habitat, sewage, runoff, and fertilizer use, the NYS DEC said, can all improve local water quality and make fish kills less frequent, but little can be done once large numbers of fish are trapped in a small warm water body and dissolved oxygen levels drop.

As for cleanup, the DEC said they do not clean up fish from large mortality events. Murray said, the Suffolk County Department of Health was also informed, hoping they will figure out the proper channels to remediate the dead fish.

On Saturday, the health department conducted testing and also validated that the fish were killed due to lack of oxygen from too many bunkers. The BVA is currently working with Cornell on how to have the fish removed from residents’ properties that washed up from the creek along Bay Road and Fire Place Neck Road.

However, DEC recommends treating fish kill events the same as with any dead wild animal and avoid collecting or handling these fish. If coming in contact with dead fish to clean them up, make sure to wear appropriate protective equipment, including gloves.

Additional information about precautions to take when handling dead fish and other animals can be found at https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6957.html.

Report Marine Fish Kills

Mortality events, or fish kills, are not unusual for some marine fish species, and particularly for fish that swim in large schools. There are various naturally occurring causes that are typically responsible for these events which may include low dissolved oxygen, changing environmental conditions, and pathogens. Report observations of a fish kill to DEC's Marine Life Incident Report online survey.

For questions or more information about fish kills, contact fishkillmarine@dec.ny.gov or call 631-444-0714 for marine waters or 845-256-3199 on the Hudson River.