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PROTECTING BARNEGAT BAY Throughout 2009, our efforts to protect the Barnegat Bay and its watershed have been at an all time high. We"re busy monitoring development proposals in communities throughout Ocean County including Lakewood, Toms River, Berkeley and Waretown just to name a few. Since special legislative hearings were held this summer, we"re happy to report that there has been a flurry of activity surrounding the protection and restoration of Barnegat Bay. We"re pleased that the following actions that took place were part of our "10 Steps to a Healthier Bay": Passage of public ballot question #1 allows 2 years of continued funding for the Green Acres Clean Water Act so we can preserve more natural lands to help clean up the bay; regulating fertilizers and their application is on the radar screen at all levels of government so we can reduce the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus in stormwater pollution to help clean up the bay; and a public hearing took place on proposed legislation that would require the installation of cooling towers at the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating facility in Lacey Township to help limit the impacts of the plant"s operations on the bay . An excerpt from an article in the Asbury Park Press, December 15th 2009 Senator: Oyster Creek must change cooling methodsBy KIRK MOORE • STAFF WRITER • December 14, 2009
TRENTON — The operators of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station must look to alternative cooling methods -- whether cooling towers, geothermal exchange or even an ocean outfall line -- to lessen its ecological impact on Barnegat Bay, the chairman of the state Senate Environment Committee says.Barnegat Bay has been described by scientists as “the second most polluted and deteriorated bay in America. That‘s not a title you want to have,” Sen. Bob Smith, D-Middlesex, said as he opened this afternoon’s hearing on bill S-3041, his measure to require a new cooling system at the Lacey plant. Download our fact sheet to legislators and read our Executive Director"s testimony on this important issue. Stay tuned! The legislature will continue hearings in Febrary 2010. Ten Steps to a Healthier Bay 
Over the summer (July 30th) the New Jersey Senate and Assembly Environment Committees held a joint legislative hearing in Lacey Township, Ocean County to hear testimony focused on the ecological health of Barnegat Bay. Representatives from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the Barnegat Bay National Estuary Program, academic institutions, and leaders of the environmental community testified on behalf of the Bay"s health. The American Littoral Society provided a "10 Steps to a Healthier Bay" Action Plan aimed at proactively planning for the Bay"s future, reducing current pollution inputs, and preventing new ones. The "10 Steps" included actions that State, County, and Local governments can implement to protect Barnegat Bay from further harm: 1) Enact comprehensive watershed-based planning to control growth 2) Increase open space protection to offset overdevelopment 3) Establish nutrient reduction targets (both interim and overall) 4) Evaluate, prioritize and retrofit existing stormwater basins for improved water quality 5) Aggressively implement existing environmental programs and regulations to protect water quality 6) Create a “tributaries protection program” - All waterways must have protective buffers to improve water quality 7) Require that new development not increase pollution (no net increase in nutrient loads) to the Bay 8) Require cooling towers at the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station 9) Pinelands and inland community growth plans must consider overall Bay water quality impacts 10) Enact a County-wide Fertilizer Ordinance These ten items articulate the work the Society has been doing in the Barnegat Bay watershed at the grass roots, municipal, county and state levels. To learn how each of these actions will improve the health of Barnegat Bay and what it will take to implement them you can download our Action Plan Document. Download pdf How can individual citizens help? You can support our work to make these ten important actions a reality by following the progress of our work on this page and by signing up to get e-mail alerts about actions you can take to help Barnegat Bay. You can do this by clicking on Get Our Newsletter at the top of this page. After you input your name and e-mail address, you will have the option to select “I want to get news about Barnegat Bay” in addition to the Coastal Reporter that you are already receiving. You can protect Barnegat Bay in your own backyard or community by becoming a Barnegat Bay "Shore Steward" and bayscaping for Barnegat Bay. Visit our Shore Steward page or contact our Atlantic Coast Project Manager, Helen Henderson at helen@littoralsociety.org.
Improving water quality in Barnegat Bay will take the cooperation of all who live and work in the watershed. There are a surprising number of actions that individuals can take. To achieve the level of change needed will require us to think differently and adjust how we live and manage our homes and gardens in the watershed. To help get the word out about how our behavior on land impacts the health of the bay and how we can be better stewards, the American Littoral Society is creating a traveling display called Barnegat Bay and You. We will partner with Jenkinson’s Aquarium in Point Pleasant Beach, who will host our display during the 2009 summer season. Once the busy summer season is over, we will take our display on the road to public venues such as libraries, schools, and municipal buildings throughout the watershed. If you would like to bring Barnegat Bay and You to your facility, contact Helen at helen@littoralsociety.org. Now - December 28th you can visit the display at the Toms River branch of the Ocean County library. Join our Atlantic Coast Project Manager, Helen Henderson, at the library from 6:00 - 8:30 on Thursday, December 17th and share your concerns or ask questions about how you can help protect Barnegat Bay! This project has been funded in part by the Barnegat Bay Environmental Grant Fund, administered by the Trust for Public Land. New Legislation to Clean Barnegat Bay
On April 23rd, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation introduced by Congressman John Adler, representing New Jersey’s 3rd Congressional District, that directs federal agencies to develop the technologies and practices needed to clean Barnegat Bay. “Barnegat Bay is the very heart of Ocean County,” Congressman Adler said. “I want to save clamming, fishing, and our quality of life. This legislation will give us the tools and the science to save our Bay.”
With input from American Littoral Society policy experts, Congressman Adler was successful in including an amendment to the National Water Research and Development Initiative Act of 2009. This legislation is essential to restoring Barnegat Bay. Tim Dillingham, the Society’s executive director and member of the Barnegat Bay National Estuary Program’s Advisory and Science and Technical Committees, said “Barnegat Bay is an estuary of national significance which is critically ill from overdevelopment and pollution,” Mr. Dillingham said. “It is the most pressing environmental issue facing the 3rd district. We need to find answers to restoring the Bay’s health, and that means focusing research efforts on practical, workable answers. Congressman Adler’s amendment puts supporting the restoration of Barnegat Bay at the forefront of federal research priorities. It will direct federal dollars to helping the Bay back to full health, something that is desperately needed as we fight to save the Bay.”
Congressman Adler’s amendment will help improve the health of many different types of water bodies, including Barnegat Bay. It will require the interagency committee established in the bill to implement a plan to develop technologies and practices that would treat eutrophic bodies of water, including estuaries.
The bill must now be passed by the U.S. Senate before it can be signed into law. We will be tracking it’s progress and reporting to you in these pages or you can track progress at htttp://thomas.loc.gov/
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Get ready for spring by planning a Bayscape in your back yard. Help reduce polluted runoff going into Barnegat Bay by replacing high maintenance lawns and other exotic species with beautiful native plants that require little water and no fertilizers and pesticides. We have adapted the garden designs from our coastal native plant demonstration garden on Long Beach Island (see below) for general use. Each of the six gardens is designed to appeal to different tastes, to meet the needs of specific location types, and to attract different types of wildlife. You can follow these designs exactly or use them to inspire your own variations. (Note: on March 19 we updated the Bayscape plans to correct the contact number for our garden designer. If you downloaded your plans before March 19, please note that the correct number is 609-693-4430. We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused.) BayScape No. 1: Butterfly Garden download pdf BayScape No. 2: Seacoast Florals download pdf BayScape No. 3: Summertime Blues download pdf BayScape No. 4: Cool Colors download pdf BayScape No. 5: Going Coastal download pdf BayScape No. 6: Golden Garden download pdf Where to Buy Plants Pinelands Nursery
323 Island Road
Columbus, New Jersey 08022
Tel: (609) 291-9486,(800) 667-2729
Fax: (609) 298-8939
This native plant wholesaler opens for retail business during the spring and fall plantings seasons. http://www.pinelandsnursery.com/ Russell Gardens (Wholesale) PO Box 702
Richboro, PA 18954
215 322-4799 Cicconi Farms 1005 Farm Road Jackson, NJ 08527 732 363-1420 Toadshade Wildflower Farm 53 Everittstown Road Frenchtown, NJ 08825 908 996-7500 Barnegat Bay Festival 2010 American Littoral Society Native Plant Sale AND Workshop Workshop and Garden Planting Demonstration: Saturday, June 5th Festival: Sunday, June 6th Details to follow NJ Native Plant Society Maintains an extensive list of retail and wholesale native plant vendors view their list
Society Efforts to Protect Barnegat Bay and the Coast Highlighted Read more about troubling developments here. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ American Littoral Society Coastal Native Plant Demonstration Garden at the Maris Stella Retreat and Conference Center in Harvey Cedears on Long Beach Island 
We need volunteers to help maintain this garden as a teaching tool for residents of the Barnegat Bay watershed. If you would like to help, contact helen@littoralsociety.org.
Hear Our Public Service Announcements Throughout the summer of 2008, we broadcast public service announcements on WOBM 92.7 FM to help the public learn about the problems facing Barnegat Bay and how individuals can help. You can download the audio files below--share them with your friends. Even one year later, the message still comes through loud and clear. Nitrogen Pollution in Barnegat Bay Restore the Bay Preserve Land for the Bay "Bayscape" for the Bay
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