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Nitrogen coming off the mainland from any number of sources, including fertilizer, private septic systems, and even sewer treatment plants that discharge effluent, mostly treated to acceptable standards and sometimes not, directly into the water. Three rivers drain into the estuary, the Thames, Housatonic, and the Connecticut, while creeks and bays funnel in pollutants from every direction. Algae feeding off an overabundance of Earth’s seventh element proliferates, causing brown, red, mahogany, and various other colors of blooms, which starve the sound of the oxygen necessary for all other life.
The latest effort to save the sound comes from the federal government in the form of a $325 million cleanup bill labeled the Long Island Sound Restoration and Stewardship Act. The measure, pushed by officials representing the 20 million people living within 50 miles of the sound, actually renews funding from programs that started back in the 1980s. According to the bill’s proponents, government efforts have reduced the amount of nitrogen entering the sound from sewage plants by 70.3%, and at least 2,239 acres of coastal habitat have been restored. The federal largesse has also funded 570 conservation projects. An infusion of $325 million more will go for continued sewer upgrades and the restoration of shorelines and coastal wetlands.
The Long Island Sound and its coastal beaches are an economic engine generating $9.4 billion annually for the regional economy. Millions of people come here to enjoy the waters and bask in the views; fishermen continue to eke out a living. Hopefully, $325 million is enough to keep the engine going.