New York Harbor: Resilience in the face of four centuries of development

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2016.06.004Get rights and content

Abstract

New York Harbor is a large, iconic and complex body of water that has been extensively modified to support the development of a megacity. These modifications have affected the shorelines, water flow, water quality, habitats and living resources of the harbor. Changes in topography and bathymetry have altered the landscapes and seascapes of the region, largely to support an active shipping port and intense human settlement. New York Harbor has been transformed from a region dominated by marshy shorelines, extensive submersed oyster beds and obstructed entrances to the present-day harbor with hardened shorelines, dredged shipping channels and remnant oysters that are unsafe to consume. However, improvements in water quality, largely due to sewage treatment upgrades, combined with the natural flushing ability of the harbor, have served to help restore or improve the ecological resilience of New York Harbor. Social resilience of the region has been tested with both terrorist attacks and the widespread inundation associated with Superstorm Sandy. Both ecological and social resilience will need to be enhanced to sustain the future development of New York Harbor.

Introduction

It is no coincidence that the New York–New Jersey Harbor Estuary is home to one of the most vibrant and economically important metropolitan areas in the United States, and the world (NYNJHEP, 2012). The rich resources of the estuarine environment and the intricate shoreline, islands and protective harbors made this region ideal for human settlement (NYNJHEP, 2012). New York Harbor, with its iconic skyline, is one of the most recognizable ports globally, due to its long history as an economic and cultural hub for commerce and trade. Given the extent of development and exploitation of the harbor over this extended period of time, it is not surprising that it has experienced severe environmental degradation. The urban context of the NYNJ Harbor Estuary makes it one of the most challenging restoration and conservation environments in the nation (Boicourt et al., NYNJHEP 2015). However, significant progress has been made over the last few decades in establishing conservation and restoration plans for the harbor, including improvements in water quality, with the overall health of the ecosystem now much better than it was 30 years ago (NYNJHEP, 2012). New challenges have presented themselves as well, including climate change, especially the impacts of inundation due to sea level rise, and potential increase in severe storm activity. The effects that can occur were clearly made evident in October 2012 with the landfall of Superstorm Sandy, which revealed the vulnerability of the surrounding community and infrastructure to such events. This review highlights some of the major features and challenges that face New York Harbor as a global partner in the World Harbour Project.

Section snippets

Geomorphology

New York Harbor is in a unique geographic setting, adjacent to a large bight of the Atlantic Ocean between the states of New York and New Jersey and situated at the mouth of a major river (Hudson River), as well as several smaller rivers (Hackensack, Passaic, Rahway, Raritan Rivers). The Harbor is technically referred to as the ‘New York–New Jersey Harbor Estuary’; however, for simplicity sake we will refer to it as ‘New York Harbor’. New York Harbor comprises a large outer harbor (Lower Bay,

History

New York Harbor was originally settled by the Lenape Native Americans. Europeans explored the region as early as 1524 (Giovanni Verrazano) and 1609 (Henry Hudson), with the initial European settlement beginning in 1624 by the Dutch (New Amsterdam), followed by English settlement. New York City has been a key entry point for immigration into the United States, both as an immigration center (e.g., Ellis Island), and as a settlement area (e.g., tenements) (Kurlansky, 2006).

When the early European

Pollution

New York Harbor is one of the most well-researched, monitored, and documented harbors in the World Harbour Project. The wealth of information about the types and extent of pollution that this estuary has been subjected to over the last century began to be compiled over a century ago, with the realization of the obvious depletion of its resources. By the beginning of the 20th century New York City residents and business owners saw the harbor as a ‘noxious eyesore’, beaches were often closed and

The Billion Oyster Project

The Billion Oyster Project is a combined ecosystem restoration and education project spearheaded by the New York Harbor Foundation, which is based on Governors Island in New York Harbor. The goal of the project is to restore one billion live oysters to the waters of New York Harbor. The project lifecycle begins with students at Urban Assembly New York Harbor School, a NYC Department of Education public high school specializing in marine science and technology, which produce aquaculture oyster

Conclusion

New York Harbor is an iconic region due to its complex natural ecosystems and intense human development. Present-day New York Harbor conditions, depicted with conceptual cross sections, are a result of a long history of environmental challenges, including fisheries depletions, shoreline modifications, dredging and water quality degradation. In spite of historic environmental degradation, a variety of activities are taking place to make New York Harbor the 6th borough of New York City, including

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the P. Steinberg and J. Banks of the World Harbour Project, Sydney Institute of Marine Science, for organizing this series of papers. We thank T. Saxby for help with scientific illustration of CCERS-curriculum (STEM C) structure diagram; National Science Foundation Division of Research on Learning Award #1440869. This is UMCES Contribution # 5201.

References (108)

  • L. Airoldi et al.

    Loss, status and trends for coastal marine habitats of Europe

    Oceanogr. Mar. Biol. Annu. Rev.

    (2007)
  • Army Corps of Engineers. 2015. Army Corps announces contract award for maintenance dredging in Newark Bay, NJ. Accessed...
  • Army Corps of Engineers. 2016. FACT SHEET—New York and New Jersey Harbor (50 ft. deepening). at:...
  • A. Arrigoni et al.

    Predicting carbon and nutrient transformations in tidal freshwater wetlands of the Hudson River

    Ecosystems

    (2008)
  • Asplund, T.R., 2000. The effects of motorized watercraft on aquatic ecosystems. Wisconsin Department of Natural...
  • R.U. Ayres et al.

    An Historical Reconstruction of Major Pollutant Levels in the Hudson-Raritan Basin: 1880–1980, Volume 1: Summary, Vol. 43

    (1988)
  • R.U. Ayres et al.

    Patterns of pollution in the Hudson–Raritan Basin

    Environ. Rep

    (1986)
  • M. Bain et al.

    Target Ecosystem Characteristics for the Hudson Raritan Estuary: Technical Guidancefor Developing a Comprehensive Ecosystem Restoration Plan. A report to the Port Authority of NY/NJ

    (2007)
  • Boicourt, K., Baron, L., Pirani, R., 2015. Restoring the New York—New Jersey Harbor Estuary: Ensuring Ecosystem...
  • K. Boicourt et al.

    Connecting with Our Waterways: Public Access and its Stewardship in the New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary. Report of The New York-New Jersey Harbor & Estuary Program

    (2016)
  • Bone, E.K., 2015. Urban Shorelines Assessment Protocol Piloting Final Report. Webinar presented at Hudson River...
  • R.F. Bopp et al.

    Contamination of the Hudson River, the sediment record

  • R.F. Bopp et al.

    Contamination of the Hudson River ecosystem compilation of contamination data through

    “Hudson River Natl. Res. Damage Assess.

    (2013)
  • C.M. Brandon et al.

    How unique was Hurricane sandy? Sedimentary reconstructions of extreme flooding from New York harbor

    Sci. Rep.

    (2014)
  • C.M. Brandon et al.

    Evidence for elevated coastal vulnerability following large-scale historical oyster bed harvesting

    Earth Surf. Process. Landf.

    (2016)
  • Brosnan, T.M., 1991. New York Harbor Water Quality Survey 1988–1990. NTIS No. PB91-228825. New York City Department of...
  • T.M. Brosnan et al.

    Sewage abatement and coliform bacteria trends in the lower Hudson-Raritan Estuary since passage of the Clean Water Act

    Water Environ. Res.

    (1996)
  • T.M. Brosnan et al.

    Long-term improvements in water quality due to sewage abatement in the Lower Hudson River

    Estuaries

    (1996)
  • M.A. Brown et al.

    Ecologically informed engineering reduces loss of intertidal biodiversity on artificial shorelines

    Environ. Sci. Technol.

    (2011)
  • M.S. Bruno

    Offshore disposal results of the 106-mile dumpsite study

    Environ. Eng.

    (1996)
  • F. Bulleri et al.

    The introduction of coastal infrastructure as a driver of change in marine environments

    J. Appl. Ecol.

    (2010)
  • Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). 2015. Economic and Employment Projections, 2014-2024....
  • Bybee, R.W., Taylor, J.A., Gardner, A., Van Scotter, P., Powell, J.C., Westbrook, A., Landes, N., 2006. The BSCS 5E...
  • J.T. Carlton

    Introduced marine and estuarine mollusks of North America: an end-of-the-20th-century perspective

    J. Shellfish Res.

    (1992)
  • Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF). 2016. Eastern Oyster....
  • J.F. Clark et al.

    Dissolved oxygen in the lower hudson estuary: 1978–93

    J. Environ. Eng.

    (1995)
  • J.J. Cole et al.

    Primary production and its regulation in the tidal-freshwater Hudson River

  • Collie, M., Russo, J., 2000. Deep-Sea Biodiversity and the Impact of Ocean Dumping. NOAA Undersea Research Program....
  • M. Elliot et al.

    Estuarine, coastal and marine ecosystem restoration: confusing management and science—a revision of concepts

    Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci.

    (2007)
  • EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2002. Record of Decision on Hudson River PCBs Site. Region 2, United States...
  • Fears, D., 2016. This New York storm barrier could have slowed down Sandy. But European settlers ate it.’ Energy and...
  • Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). 2012. Hurricane Sandy: timeline;2012. Washington, Dc: US Department of...
  • S.E.G. Findlay et al.

    Response of hyporheic biofilm bacterial metabolism and community structure to nitrogen amendments

    Aquat. Microb. Ecol.

    (2003)
  • S. Findlay et al.

    Sources of dissolved organic carbon supporting planktonic bacterial production in the tidal freshwater Hudson River

    Ecosystems

    (1998)
  • T. Fujii et al.

    Sea-level rise, expected environmental changes, and responses of intertidal benthic macrofauna in the Humber estuary, UK

    Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

    (2008)
  • B.W. Gottholm et al.

    Toxic Contaminants in the Hudson-Raritan Estuary and Coastal New Jersey Area. Draft Report

    (1993)
  • N.M. Hill et al.

    A hydrological model for predicting the effects of dams on the shoreline vegetation of lakes and reservoirs

    Environ. Manag.

    (1998)
  • Hua, S., 2006. Oyster and Oyster Reef Restoration in the East River. In: Danoff- Burg, J.A. (Ed). Restoring New York...
  • T.P. Hurst et al.

    Interannual and long-term variation in the nearshore fish community of the Mesohaline Hudson River Estuary

    Estuaries

    (2004)
  • Kaysen, R., 2012. A $650 Million Expansion of Port Newark Spurs Interest in its Environs. New York Times, New York. at:...
  • Cited by (8)

    • Soft detection of 5-day BOD with sparse matrix in city harbor water using deep learning techniques

      2020, Water Research
      Citation Excerpt :

      To reduce such dire impacts on the environment, city managers have devoted considerable effort to control and improve harbor water quality. For example, New York City has invested more than $12 billion in the last decade to upgrade the city sewer system and reduce the environmental impact on harbor water (O’Neil et al., 2016). San Francisco has appropriated over $50 million to the San Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund since 2008 (Beck et al., 2018).

    • Water quality gradients and trends in New York Harbor

      2020, Regional Studies in Marine Science
      Citation Excerpt :

      Central to the city’s history of cultural and economic development are the complex waterways that comprise New York Harbor and the associated estuarine rivers that surround it. Given the extent of development over a period of four hundred years and exploitation of the harbor’s resource over this time, it is not surprising that its waterways have experienced severe environmental degradation (O’Neil et al., 2016). However, significant progress has been made over the last few decades in establishing conservation and restoration plans for the harbor including steps to improve water quality and to improve the overall health of the ecosystem.

    • Using urban harbors for experiential, environmental literacy: Case studies of New York and Chesapeake Bay

      2020, Regional Studies in Marine Science
      Citation Excerpt :

      The obvious degradation of natural habitats reached a critical point in the 1970s, which saw the beginning of the environmental movement that has slowly changed the population’s perception and appreciation of their urban waterways (Sekovski et al., 2012). As a result, over the last few decades, we have seen an increase in accessibility and recreational activities on these urban waterways and many cities are reclaiming access to their harbors, rivers, and creeks (Healthy Waterways, 1998; Boicourt et al., 2016; O’Neil et al., 2016). With these changes has come the recognition that these waterways are not devoid of life, and can still be diverse and productive habitats (Levinton and Waldman, 2006).

    View all citing articles on Scopus
    View full text