From Snails to Whales: clinky

Thursday, August 6, 2009

clinky

Wednesday, August 5, 2009
2pmish
hot.
crazy hot.
humid as all get out.
ebbing tide
Spectacle Island, Boston

Today we took a test. The end.

No...wait...there was more to the day than that.... AFTER the test...we met at Long Wharf and hopped on a ferry to go to Spectacle Island. The purpose of this trip was to observe, sort and document the remnants of the island's illustrious history...as a dump. We set foot on the island and immediately took off towards the beach. We wandered down the waterfront, careful to take note of the different materials that made up the beach face. One thing I noticed was the abundance of rocks and glass and ceramics, and the apparent absence of shells. Oh sure, there were shells here and there, but nothing like any of the other islands we had visited. It seemed as though this island was like that of the Staten variety...a floating pile of rubbish. Beautiful rubbish.

As instructed, we broke into teams, (myself, Han and Alexandra) and we found a place to sort and catalogue the different types of materials found. We chose a place just below the last high tide swash all the way at the far end of the beach. We marked out a 6'x6' rough square and got to work.

First we took note of what we saw on the superficial level. If you look closely (click photo for larger image) you can see that most, if not all, the pieces on the surface were large and pretty well sorted. By well sorted, I mean that they are all of a fairly uniform size. There is little variation between size and shape...colour we will look at a bit later. We then set out to begin picking out the different colour variants we could readily see. We started by finding all of the brown, green, white/clear, and ceramic pieces. We then moved on to brick and blue and any other possible mystery items we may come across. From what we could observe, there seemed to be an almost equal number of pieces of brown, green, white/clear, and ceramic...with brown and ceramic tipping the scales a bit. This may not be indicative of original distribution of glass types, but more the appeal of certain colours.

We also picked up some brick pieces, and a few blue pieces as well. We had quite a difficult time finding blue glass. Again, not indicative of original distribution, as this is quite a popular color for collectors.

Next we decided to dig a bit deeper...literally..and we dug a hole about 6-8 inches below the surface. What we discovered was right in line with the 'Brazil-nut theory' which has been presented to us on multiple occasions. What we saw was a steady decline in the size of the particles of glass and rock the deeper we went down.

But not only did we notice a variance in size, the shape and surface texture of the glass in particular was different. What we observed was that the rocks and glass below were not as 'tumbled' as the surface rocks. That left those pieces more jagged and less frosted as their surface counterparts. We concluded that the relative protection they got from the larger rocks hastened the weathering process of the glass. Without the tides and waves rolling and crashing the glass around, it stayed in a relative state of stasis. Below is an example of a piece of green glass found on the surface versus a piece of green glass found about 8 inches deep.

As you can tell, the difference is quite apparent. The above ground glass (top photo) is quite frosted, and has an organic shape and feel to it. The glass that was deeper down in the rocks (second photo) is nearly translucent and jagged. We were satisfied with our finds at the top of the shore, but we thought it would be interesting to investigate a bit closer to the low tide mark. We found a space that was nearer to the water and did the same plotting of a 6'x6' (ish) square and we made our initial observations.

Wow...a square full of rocks. I know. Stunning. The biggest difference we noticed between the upper part of the beach and the lower part was the lack of larger artifacts. The shoreline below the last high tide swash was lacking in really large stones, glass, ceramic or shells. This may be because when the tide ebbs, the larger rocks stay put and the smaller rocks and glass get moved. The brazil nut theory with a different application. We honestly did not find much down nearer to the water. What we did notice, was the lack of ability to 'dig deeper'...literally. The ground was so compacted and made up of such finely packed materials that it was difficult to get deeper than a centimeter or two.

We attempted to gather as much that we could find, but it proved to be most difficult. The materials just were not present. The tidal force coupled with possible human interactions may have had something to do with the lack of glass at this level. What we did find was quite pretty, even in its limited numbers.

All said and done, it was an interesting and informative visit. We witnessed the tidal effects on beaches and how they can influence the landscape. We also got to observe how time and weather can erode and transform a singular object. I felt rather humbled today. Thank you for that. p.s. big ups to my team!

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From Snails to Whales

Welcome to Snails to Whales, Bruce Berman's blog focused on both the little and the big things that make Boston Harbor such an interesting and extraordinary place to live, work and play.

With 50 miles of protected water, four sheltered bays, seven river systems, 34 islands and a nine-foot average tide, Boston Harbor is one of the most diverse urban ecosystems in America.

This blog focuses on the flora and fauna of Boston Harbor and Massachusetts Bay - on the beach, the shore, and the harbor islands, and in the cleaner waters of Boston Harbor and Mass Bay - including this ecosystems most important species - people.

During the summer, it is also a place for my Boston University Students and my colleagues at Save the Harbor / Save the Bay to share their work and experiences.

Where I am coming from...

Love that clean(er) water
Learning about the Boston Harbor Cleanup from the waterway’s eyes, ears, and mouthpiece

By Brian Fitzgerald, BU Bridge

On Georges Island, Bruce Berman talks with his students about the history of the Boston Harbor Cleanup,
which is largely complete. Photo by Vernon Doucette

Bruce Berman, aboard a ferry from Boston’s Long Wharf to Georges Island, poses a question to his students: “How clean is clean enough?”

He’s talking about the water below.

It’s a brilliant July day, with the smell of salt spray in the air. The sky is clear, and so is the ocean. But there was a time when Boston Harbor wasn’t so clean, when the stench of sewage assaulted the nostrils of anyone who went near it.

Berman is the communications director for Save the Harbor/Save the Bay, a public-interest environmental advocacy organization whose mission is to help restore and protect the harbor and Massachusetts Bay. He also teaches a Metropolitan College summer course called Politics, Public Relations, and Public Policy: The Boston Harbor Cleanup.

“The Boston Harbor Cleanup is an amazing success story, and I just love to share it with students,” says Berman, noting that the harbor’s “bad old days” weren’t that long ago. Those were the days when untreated human waste, syringes, condoms, and tampon applicators routinely washed ashore. The antiquated sewage treatment plants on Deer Island and Nut Island were so poorly designed and maintained that they flooded during even mild rainstorms, sending millions of gallons of untreated waste directly into the harbor.

Since then, bacteria counts in the water have decreased by more than two-thirds. Now the harbor teems with plants and animals, and people can legally dig for clams on Carson Beach in South Boston, which was unheard of in the 1980s.

“It was one of the filthiest harbors in America, and now it’s one of the cleanest,” says Berman. “What I’m trying to impress upon students is how this incredible comeback occurred, and how business, advocacy groups, environmentalists, and government can affect the outcome of large projects such as the Boston Harbor Cleanup through negotiation.”

Paradise regained

Berman points to the left as the boat cruises by the cleanup’s centerpiece: the gargantuan white egglike tanks of the Deer Island waste treatment plant, which in 1995 replaced the antiquated facility. The plant treats an average of 350 million gallons of sewage a day.

“And what comes out of the Deer Island treatment plant?” he asks. Berman, his booming baritone competing with the roar of planes taking off from Logan Airport, has a habit of putting students on the spot to see if they’re paying attention.

“The outfall pipe,” say several simultaneously. “Treated water,” chime in a few more.

“That’s right,” he says with a smile. “The plant separates the solid and liquid waste, and it pumps the treated water through the 9.5-mile outfall pipe, which empties into Massachusetts Bay. The resulting sludge is converted to high-grade fertilizer.”

Now Berman returns to his original question: “How clean is clean enough?” There’s no quick and clear answer to this one. “It’s a question that at the end of the day the federal courts had to decide.”

In 1985, a landmark federal court case required that the harbor’s beaches be made swimmable and fishable by 2000. Save the Harbor/Save the Bay was formed the next year to raise public awareness of the $4.5 billion Boston Harbor Cleanup. Sewer ratepayers in the 43 cities and towns financing the project cried foul over the prospect of astronomically rising bills, but because of the determination of environmental advocacy groups such as Berman’s, the cleanup was largely completed on schedule.

Berman says it isn’t finished, however. There are still frequent beach closures because the counts of Enterococcus bacteria exceed the federal and state standard for swimming. The culprit: filthy storm water and sewage, much of it from leaky pipes and illegal hookups emptying into storm sewers, and then into the harbor.

“So is the harbor clean enough,” the Springfield native asks his students, “when you can’t swim in it one out of five days in the summer?”

Work to be done

Berman and his class look out from Georges Island to Gallops Island (left) and the white tanks of the waste treatment plant on Deer Island (right). Photo by Vernon Doucette

This summer the state approved one of the last parts of the cleanup: the construction, by 2011, of a 2.1-mile tunnel near the Dorchester and South Boston shorelines that will hold sewage and storm water during bad weather. It then will be pumped to Deer Island for treatment.

Berman is ecstatic over this development, the result of “tireless negotiation and consensus-building,” he says. “After 2011, we’re looking at beach closings once every five years, when there is a major storm, instead of once every five days.”

But he is not about to let his guard down. To say that he is a man obsessed with the harbor cleanup would be an understatement. Berman is also Save the Harbor/Save the Bay’s “Baywatcher,” and he lives on his 40-foot trawler Verandah. Polluters beware: if you’re discharging oil or sewage into Boston Harbor, the Baywatcher just might be watching.

He is quick to point out that his zealotry is not just on behalf of the harbor’s flora and fauna. “The harbor is for everyone,” he says. “If you’re from a working class or poor family in Boston, and you can’t afford a Cape Cod getaway in the summer, a clean harbor is important. The same is true if you’re a tourist vacationing in Boston or you happen to live in a pricey waterfront condo.”

Accordingly, Berman, who was a political consultant and contributing editor to the Phoenix newspaper before joining Save the Harbor/Save the Bay nearly 10 years ago, also teaches his students about the harbor’s role in the city’s economy. He points out that in the early 1990s, just a few ferries cruised the harbor’s waters. Today, more than 100,000 people visit its islands each summer, discovering their ecological and historic treasures.

“The best way to protect the harbor cleanup,” Berman tells his students, “is to make sure that the public has access to the resources and can see a return on its investment.”

Trevor Kosmolsick (MET’05) has lived in Boston for seven years, but until taking Berman’s course, he had never been to the waterfront. “I’ve also wanted to go camping in the area, but I never knew that you could camp on a few of the islands,” he says. “Bruce Berman is not only a great professor, but the ultimate tour guide.”

He also backs up his words with actions. Sometimes he takes off his shirt and dives in the water to demonstrate to passing boaters that it’s safe to swim. To show people on ferries that fishing is safe, he’s been known to grab one of the bluefish or striped bass he’s caught and (very carefully) plant a wet kiss on it.

“What I want everyone to understand is that investment in the environment really does pay off,” says Berman. “We’re willing to pay for a clean Boston Harbor, so we should enjoy it.”

From Snails to Whales

Thursday, August 6, 2009

clinky

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