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The Conservancy Stocks Great South Bay with 1 Millionth Clam and Receives $1 Million for Shellfish Restoration Efforts

July 26, 2006

Suffolk County in New York has awarded the Conservancy $1 million for the restoration of depleted shellfish—specifically hard clams—in the Great South Bay. The funding will further the organization’s unprecedented effort to restore the once-abundant clam and to improve water quality in the Great South Bay.

For the past three years, the Conservancy has been involved in restocking its 13,000-acre underwater holdings in the Great South Bay with adult clams in the hopes that they will reproduce, and ultimately restore, this depleted water body to its former glory. A milestone in this effort was recently reached as the one millionth clam was dropped into the Bay.

"Suffolk County has a distinguished national reputation on environmental matters. This generous grant is a substantial and powerful demonstration of Suffolk County's commitment to improving water quality and shellfish habitat," said Nancy Kelley, executive director of The Nature Conservancy on Long Island.

Hard clams and other shellfish play a critical role in the bays, filtering water and serving as an important link in the food web. Without native shellfish, water quality suffers and the entire ecosystem is affected. During the 1970s, there were enough hard clams to filter 40 percent Great South Bay every day. Today, only one percent of the Great South Bay is filtered daily. Restoring native shellfish populations is a cornerstone effort of the Conservancy's marine conservation work on Long Island.

"Great South Bay is a vital part of Suffolk's economy and recreation," said Steve Levy, Suffolk County executive.

"Restoring the Great South Bay not only has important benefits to our economy, environment and quality of life. We aim to restore the Great South Bay so that future generations can also enjoy the bounties this valuable resource has provided."

"At no other point in history has there been an opportunity of this magnitude to make the Great South Bay great again," said Carl LoBue, Great South Bay project director for the Conservancy. "Since we acquired the Bluepoints property in 2004, we have worked with a number of like-minded citizens and organizations determined to restore the Great South Bay."

For More Information:

• Where We Work: The Nature Conservancy in New York
  The Nature Conservancy has helped protect 420,000 acres in New York State and manages 170 preserves across the state.
• Places We Protect: Atlantic Ocean Beaches & Bays
  From Montauk to New York City, the Atlantic Ocean Beaches & Bays (AOBB) include near-shore ocean, sandy beaches, dunes, very shallow bays with salt marshes, eelgrass meadows, sand and mudflats, and upland swamps and forests.
• Conservation Partnerships: Community-based Restoration in the Great South Bay
  In 2004, the Conservancy formed a coalition of partners including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), state and local resource managers, scientists and fishermen—the Bluepoints Bottomlands Council—to help guide management activities on the Bluepoints parcel.
• How We Work: Nature Conservancy Partnerships
  The Nature Conservancy pursues non-confrontational, pragmatic, market-based solutions to conservation challenges. This makes it essential for us to work collaboratively with partners – communities, businesses, government agencies, multilateral institutions, individuals and other non-profit organizations.
• How We Work: Global Marine Initiative
  Across the Conservancy, our Global Marine Initiaitive works to establish new tools for the conservation of estuarine and coastal ecosystems, including leasing, purchasing and restoring submerged lands.
• Archive of our Saves of the Week and Success Stories
  Read more about The Nature Conservancy's work to save the last great places on Earth.