Results of Seine the Bay Day June 11, 2017

June 15, 2017

On Sunday, June 11 from 10am to 3:30pm, the annual “Seine the Bay Day” event took place. Juvenile fish and shellfish and other small fish were the stars of the show for the spring edition of Seine the Bay Day along the southern shore of New York Harbor, downstream from New York City.

For the past several years, the all-volunteer Bayshore Watershed Council has been conducting a seining survey of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook Bay in Monmouth County, NJ at the start of the summer season to find out what species survive in these rich tidal waters. The catch included many juvenile and young-of-the-year fish (species that were born or emerged from eggs this past spring). Each young sea creature provides hope for the future.

As in years past, surveys were conducted at four locations: Cliffwood Beach in Aberdeen Township, the beach along Front Street in Union Beach, the beach in Port Monmouth near the mouth of Pews Creek , and the beach near the mouth of Many Mind Creek in Atlantic Highlands.

A 50-foot-long net with buoys on top and weights on the bottom was hauled by watershed volunteers through the water and pulled towards the shore. Caught in the net was anything swimming or walking along the shallow edge of the bay.

Juvenile River Herring

If herring disappear, their larger predators such as striped bass, blue herons, and osprey also become at risk. Seining along the shores of Raritan Bay show that the area of Cliffwood Beach to Union Beach is an important springtime nursery for juvenile river herring.

The catch of the day were huge schools of juvenile river herring, which is a collective term that refers to alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) and blueback herring (Alosa aestivalis). River herring are anadromous fish. They spend most of their lives in the ocean, but come spring they return to freshwater to spawn in tributaries of both the Hudson and Raritan rivers. Commercial and recreational anglers prize both the Alewife and Blueback Herring as baitfish for larger fish, including Striped Bass, and to make pickle herring for later consumption. Many larger birds and fish also rely on herring as a food source. If herring disappear, their larger predators such as striped bass, blue herons, and osprey also become at risk. Seining along the shores of Raritan Bay show that the area of Cliffwood Beach to Union Beach is an important springtime nursery for juvenile river herring.

There is no doubt the more watershed members conduct these public seining events, the better picture people get of the estuary. Seining is a method of taking the pulse of a local ecosystem. It's a way to gain an insight into the health of the near shore environment where many people swim and enjoy the bay.

All fishes, crabs, and other aquatic creatures were identified, cataloged, and returned to the water. In addition to seining, water temperature, salinity, and turbidity information were documented by volunteers at each site.

Below are the details of the event. Species found and data collected are listed beneath each seine location. The weather was mostly sunny with an air temperature reaching into in the low 90s. Winds were light out of the south 5 to 10 mph.


10am - Aberdeen Township/Cliffwood Beach
High tide. Water temperature 70 degrees F.
Visibility was good at nearly 3 feet.
Salinity = 27 ppt

1000+ juvenile Blueback or Alewife river herring
1000+ Salps
10+ Lion’s mane jellyfish
20+ Bay anchovies
20+ juvenile Bluefish or snappers.


11:30am - Union Beach/Conaskonck Point
Outgoing tide. Water temperature 72 degrees F.
Visibility was good at 3 feet.
Salinity = 23 ppt

1000+ juvenile Blueback or Alewife river herring
1000+ Salps
20+ adult Spearing or Atlantic Silversides
20+ Bay anchovies


1:00pm: Middletown Township/Port Monmouth - Pews Creek
Outgoing Tide. Water temperature 72 degrees F.
Visibility was good at 3 feet.
Salinity = 23 ppt

500+ juvenile Blueback or Alewife river herring
100+ Shore Shrimp
10+ juvenile Windowpane flatfish
10+ juvenile winter flounder
10+ juvenile Bluefish or snapper
Masses of Mud Snail eggs attached to debris


2:30pm: Atlantic Highlands/Mouth of Many Mind Creek
Outgoing tide. Water temperature 75 degrees F.
Visibility was good at around 3 feet
Salinity = 22 ppt

100+ Salps
50+ Shore Shrimp
30+ juvenile Blueback or Alewife river herring
10+ juvenile winter flounder
10+ isopods or aquatic insects
5 juvenile Bluefish or snappers
1 juvenile Blue-claw crab
1 adult pipefish
Masses of Mud Snail eggs attached to debris

THANK YOU!
Thanks and special appreciation goes to Jen, Neil, Melanie, Brenda, Cait, Elizabeth, the Martin family, and the Sheridan family; and other volunteers with the Bayshore watershed council for all their wonderful help and time. No one person can ever seine alone. It’s truly a team effort.

Bayshore Watershed Council: Help Needed to Install Osprey Platforms Sunday, March 29

Greetings all,

The Bayshore Watershed Council is seeking volunteers to help repair and install new osprey platforms in the Borough of Union Beach on Sunday, March 29, 2015. We will meet at 9am in the gravel parking lot at the western end of Front Street.

Date: Sunday, March 29, 2015
Time: 9:00am
Meeting Location: Gravel parking at the western end of Front Street in Union Beach, NJ

We need at least 10 to 15 volunteers to help carry nesting platforms, carry tools, dig holes, or take pictures and video. Please bring knee boots, hip or chest waders to wear and a pair of work gloves. Please bring a post-hole digger, shovels, and rope.

Heavy rain or snow will cancel.

If you would like to help, please RSVP at the bayshorewatershed@comcast.net or just show up.

Ospreys are returning and in need of nesting platforms. Nesting platforms are critical for attracting Ospreys into new areas to spread out the distribution so they're not all concentrated in one part of the state.

These majestic raptors with their distinctive stick-built nests on nesting platforms depend on a healthy and abundant food supply. Since their diet consists primarily of fish, Osprey activities in the Bayshore region provide a good indication of water quality and the general health of Raritan Bay & Sandy Hook Bay.

So far, the Bayshore Watershed Council has had great luck with installing Osprey platforms. Nearly all platforms have been active and have produced young. New sites will hopefully provide Ospreys the best chance for successfully raising young downstream from NY City.

Statement From Democratic County Chairman Calls For Resignation of Union Beach Mayor

For Immediate Release:

The following is a statement from Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Vin Gopal regarding the recent comments by Union Beach Mayor Paul Smith, as highlighted in today's Asbury Park Press

http://www.app.com/story/news/local/monmouth-county/2015/03/09/facebook-posts-put-monmoth-gop-officials-hot-water/24664635/


"Union Beach Mayor Paul Smith's bigoted and blatantly false comments have no place in our political discourse and raise serious questions about his ability to uphold his oath of office. His comments show a complete lack of respect for the people of Monmouth County and for the President of this country. They are beneath the office he holds and undermine our confidence in his ability to fairly represent people of different ethnic and religious backgrounds. For that reason, the Mayor should resign and I urge Republican Party Chairman Shaun Golden and the Republican Freeholder Board to join me in asking Mayor Smith to resign."

Jersey Shore Insider: Monmouth GOP Leaders Display Racist Posts On Social Media; When Will They Learn??

The blog Jersey Shore Insider created quite a stir the other day when it reported on a pair of
Monmouth County GOP members, Union Beach Mayor Paul Smith and Marlboro Board of Education Vice President Victoria Dean, who's husband is Marlboro GOP Municipal Chair Chris Dean, posted rather questionable and to some, offensive racist material to their Facebook pages.

Union Beach's Smith and Marlboro's Dean each had posted and or "liked" racists and offensive anti-President Obama on their Facebook pages; Smith an insulting meme  calling President Obama “A Communist, a Muslim, and an Illegal Alien.” and Dean "who displayed and “liked” a post on her Facebook page stating “America isn’t America anymore! It’s run by foreigners including this RAG HEAD PRESIDENT!”, according to the Jersey Shore Insider.

This little story by the Insider has been made even bigger today by the fact that  the Asbury Park Press picked up on it last night and has posted an article dressing it.

In light of the recent Facebook flap created by Stafford Township Mayor John Spodofora, who launched a police probe against a critic who questioned his military service you would think that public officials would be a little more careful about what the post or have others post on their Facebook pages.

This story also brings to mind Middletown's own Facebook controversy that I posted about last September concerning Tony Fiore, who was seeking reelection to the Township Committee. If you remember Fiore had an offensive anti-woman meme posted to his Facebook account on which he "liked' and commented on.

 Fiore tried to deny that the post existed but later admitted it on social media before deleting it and turning his personal Facebook setting to "private" so that his posts couldn't bee seen by those that weren't his "friends".

Pallone Statement to Mark Two-Year Anniversary of Hurricane Sandy

LONG BRANCH, NJ – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. released the following statement today on the second anniversary of Hurricane Sandy making landfall on the New Jersey coastline. Earlier today, Pallone joined with New Jersey Senators Bob Menendez and Cory Booker for a roundtable in Union Beach with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro:

“As we look back on the two years since Hurricane Sandy changed the lives of so many in New Jersey, I am filled with hope but also focused on how there is so much more work to be done to achieve a full recovery.

From my first moments on the ground touring the damage Sandy wrought in New Jersey, I have remained committed to helping our communities rebuild and better prepare for future storms like Sandy. But I know that hundreds of residents in my Congressional district are still struggling to rebuild their homes, while towns are facing issues finding the funding to rebuild local infrastructure.

We are making progress, but the recovery is not happening as quickly and efficiently as it should be. I am encouraged to see that many of our beaches have been replenished with Sandy aid money and homes up and down the coast are being repaired and rebuilt, but more remains to be done.”

Pallone to Volunteer for Union Beach Day of Caring

UNION BEACH, NJ – On Sunday, April 13, 2014, at 8:30am, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) will join Starbucks employees and families from Monmouth &beach clean Middlesex County, to volunteer for the Union Beach Day of Caring sponsored by Starbucks to mark National Volunteer Week. Volunteers will be able to participate in several activities, including painting homes, removing debris, rebuilding homes, and cleaning up local beaches and parks. Congressman Pallone will also be joined by Union Beach Mayor Paul Smith.

This Day of Caring is part of Starbucks’ fourth annual Global Month of Service, where employees and customers work together to lead community service projects focused on the individual needs of the neighborhoods where they live and work.


WHO:
Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06)
Union Beach Mayor Paul Smith

WHAT:
Participating in the Union Beach Day of Caring activities

WHERE:
650 Poole Avenue
Union Beach, NJ 07735

WHEN:
Sunday, April 13, 2014
8:30am-9:30am

Monmouth Disaster Recovery Centers to Remain Open Until April 1st.

LONG BRANCH, NJ—Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced today that the Disaster Recovery Centers (DRCs) located in Leonardo and Union Beach, which were scheduled to close February 28th and March 5th, respectively, will remain open until April 1st. Pallone sent a letter to Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator (FEMA), Craig Fugate yesterday calling on him to halt the planned closure of the DRCs, citing the needs of many Monmouth County residents still requiring assistance registering with the agency and making claims with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

“I called on FEMA to keep the DRCs open because I have talked to too many families that still need help to justify shutting them down,” said Pallone. “I’m pleased to learn that FEMA has agreed to my request and will continue to provide vital services that will help residents get back on their feet from Sandy’s devastation.”

Pallone Meets with Union Beach Sandy Victims; Calls on FEMA to Stop Delays of Flood Insurance Claims

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) met with Union Beach Sandy victims to hear their stories of delays and complications faced when filing insurance claims with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

Pallone, who represents Union Beach, one of the hardest hit areas on the Jersey Shore during Superstorm Sandy, listened to residents who have experienced bureaucratic holdups with NFIP and the claims process. He has been outspoken about the importance of rebuilding the Shore and has called on FEMA to step in and remedy the obstruction and delays faced by Sandy victims when filing flood insurance claims.

“I was moved and disturbed to hear the stories relayed today and the frustration people have experienced when they attempted to file flood insurance claims,” said Pallone. “Union Beach residents have suffered enough from Sandy. They certainly don’t deserve to have to contend with miles of red tape just to file claims for insurance they already paid for.”

Pallone issued a letter to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Craig Fugate on February 6, 2013 drawing his attention to the difficulties and challenges faced by residents filing claims with NFIP.

“We need to get New Jersey up and running again and we cannot suffer needless delays when people are trying to rebuild their homes and put their lives back together,” said Pallone. “These delays and complications are unacceptable and the process must be fixed. I will continue to call on FEMA for an explanation and to resolve the problems that too many New Jerseyans are facing when they file claims with NFIP.”
The following is the body of the letter sent by Pallone to Administrator Fugate:



February 5, 2013

W. Craig Fugate
Administrator
Federal Emergency Management Agency
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
500 C Street SW
Washington, DC 20472



Dear Administrator Fugate,

I write today regarding the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and to bring attention to issues residents of New Jersey are having with the prolonged timeframe by which these claims are being processed. As you know, Superstorm Sandy devastated my district and a large portion of New Jersey. Many homeowners and businesses in the damaged areas have flood insurance policies through NFIP and are relying on these claim payments as they prepare to rebuild and repair their homes and businesses.

That is why I am troubled to learn that residents of New Jersey are facing myriad problems that are delaying processing of their NFIP claims. Since NFIP has no time frame by which claims adjusters must complete the proof of loss required to process payments and these adjusters are facing a workload of up to 150 cases each, New Jersey homeowners and businesses have been left waiting for a resolution for an unacceptable period of time.

I have also been told that homeowners are being required to fill out lengthy forms to provide receipts, serial numbers and photographic evidence of losses, which is difficult for many homeowners who lost everything they own. NFIP-required audits are also slowing down this process and making it difficult for adjusters to process claims quickly. While I certainly support ensuring that overpayment and fraud is avoided, we must make certain the residents of New Jersey receive the payments they deserve without unnecessary bureaucratic delay.

According to Governor Chris Christie, the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance is receiving more than 3 NFIP complaints for every homeowner insurance complaint. They have also notified me that over 85 percent of homeowner insurance claims have been processed compared to only 30 percent of flood claims.

It is simply unacceptable for residents of New Jersey, who have faithfully paid flood insurance premiums for years, to be left in the lurch when they need this assistance the most. It has now been 101 days since the storm and recent reports in the press state that thousands of people in the area are still in hotels. It must be assumed that many of them are there because they are unable to repair their homes to date without this critical assistance. I respectfully request that you take necessary steps within your power to cut the red tape and expedite the NFIP claims process so that New Jersey homeowners and businesses can begin the path to recovery.

Sincerely,



FRANK PALLONE, JR.
Member of Congress

Thank you, Congressman Pallone

While surfing through Blue Jersey earlier today, I happened to come across a post written by a friend of mine, Vincent Solomeno.

Vincent has been a very active and successful Democrat in the bayshore for almost a decade. He got his start in 2000 when he managed his first successful Democratic campaign for Borough Council in Union Beach in over a decade. He then served as Executive Director of the Union Beach Democrats. Afterwards he moving to Hazlet to manage several campaigns, including Mayor Kevin Lavan and Committeeman Jim DiNardo's.

 Vincent penned the following piece in support of Congressman Frank Pallone's efforts to ensure that uninsured children have access to quality healthcare:

"The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped."
- Vice President Hubert Humphrey

In Washington, Congressman Frank Pallone (NJ-6) is fighting for the progressive agenda. On Wednesday the House of Representatives approved, by a 289 to 139 margin, a record expansion of the State Childrens Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Capitol Hill watchers expect the bill to easily pass through the Senate and reach President-Elect Obama's desk within days of his inauguration. In addition to reauthorizing a program that presently covers seven million children, yesterday's expansion will provide four million more with access to basic medical care.

This victory has been long coming. Both Democrats and a minority of Republicans attempted in the previous Congress to pass similar legislation, only to have their work vetoed twice by a President more interested in providing corporate welfare than extending health care to the children of the poor.

New Jerseyans should take pride in the knowledge that Congressman Pallone has led the House's efforts toward passage of the expansion. As Chair of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, he helped draft the legislation and went to the floor to shepherd it through to final approval. Pallone's work is consistent with his progressive principles and a reflection of his long held commitment to providing access to health care for all Americans.

The child health bill provides $32 billion to insure a total of 11 million children whose families lack the resources to pay for preventative and emergency care. Moreover, the legislation removes the discriminatory clause that excluded the children of legal immigrants - first generation Americans - from coverage.

With the economy entering recession, more than 2.6 million people lost their job last year alone - the highest one year loss since 1945. Experts estimate that for every 1 percent increase in the number of jobless, 1.5 million people lose health coverage. 47 million Americans are uninsured. Sadly, 9 million are children, and according to a recent report, 273,000 of them are from New Jersey.

Thanks in large measure to the work of Congressman Pallone, our country is one step closer to reducing that number. In doing so, we guarantee access to basic medical care for those who need it the most: our children.

Vincent Solomeno