Stinks almost as much as this:
"Invasive seaweed leaves Massachusetts towns, tourism industry helpless" by Martine Powers and Christine Legere | Globe Staff and Globe Correspondent, June 27, 2012
An aggressive red seaweed that hails from Japan has invaded the Massachusetts shoreline, threatening native wildlife, jeopardizing tourism, and causing a stink for beachfront residents.
At least we aren't getting the full flower of radiation like the left coast and Pacific, even though the diluted spew has gone by and continues to go by every day.
From Cape Ann to Cape Cod, beaches have been blanketed in recent weeks with thickly packed red fibers resembling matted hair, and the odor can at times be overpowering.
Related: Several beaches reopen after bacteria counts are found to be safe
Shark spotted off Rye, N.H., beach
RI officials: Charlestown beach safe for swimming
Reports of gangs lead police to close beach in Conn.
I guess I'll have to go out of state.
“I wake up with nightmares I’m in a sewer system,” said Beth Bisson, a summertime resident of Manomet, a part of Plymouth.
Local officials are scrambling to clean beaches, spending thousands of dollars for dump trucks and composting fees.
Scientists fear the seaweed could harm the coastal ecosystem by growing over native seaweed, starving it of light and nutrients and damaging a habitat and food source for many marine animals.
“I don’t want to sound dramatic, but it scares the hell out of me,” said Steven Kenney, the public works director for Manchester-by-the-Sea, adding that he worries the foul smell will discourage visitors. “This might wipe out everything on the coastline, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.”
It's like the Asian Carp.
****************************
Meanwhile, towns are trying to find the best way to get rid of the stinky mass.
Collect it in dump trucks? Pay shipping fees to compost it? Leave it to rot? Or use a tractor to push it back into the ocean?
Ellen Simpson of Manchester-by-the-Sea said a resident used a tractor to plow the seaweed back into the water after it covered the entire beach in a foot of gunk. Town officials said that was not allowed....
--more--"
Related: Great white sighting at Nauset Beach deters few
Kayaker’s first foray ends after close shark encounter
Think I'll just stay on the beach:
"As piping plovers rebound, more of Revere Beach is off limits" by Matt Woolbright | Globe Correspondent, July 03, 2012
Eighteen piping plovers have commandeered some 500 feet of Revere Beach, an encouraging sign for the birds’ champions but an annoyance for some residents.
The little sparrow-sized guys have commandeered the beach?
Growing numbers of the endangered birds, which have nested on this beach for years, mean more areas deemed off-limits to beachgoers, riling some residents and potentially deterring some of the beach’s more than 2 million annual visitors.
Can't we all get along?
“It was at first a small area, and no one objected,” said Revere city councilor John Powers, who heard resident complaints at a meeting in June. “Ever since it has been growing and growing — they’re going to take over the whole beach, it seems. It just got to be a little too much.”
Well roll me over in the plover!
*****************************
Because the piping plovers mostly claim rocky areas with vegetation, they are not in competition with beach-goers, said Mike Pietrello, 46, as he scoured the sand with his metal detector. “Who comes to the beach to lay on piney grass and rocks,” Pietrello said. “Nobody.”
Just a bunch of chirping, 'eh?
Gene Giardima, a beach regular, said the southern area where the birds are nesting is usually not sought after. “That’s the last place people would set up,” Giardima, 69, said....
Even if the nesting areas are not attractive to beach-goers, restrictions could deter prospective tenants and cost Revere economically in the long run, Powers said.
“People that are buying a condo are buying because they want access to the water,” said Powers. “They don’t want to come out and have to walk 400 to 500 feet to get to the water.”
Oh, the poor babies would have to walk a few more feet!
--more--"
Related:
"Beachgoers urged to help protect birds
Connecticut officials have issued a public plea to beachgoers to beware of vulnerable birds nesting near some busy shoreline parks and islands. Some of the birds, including the piping plover, are endangered or threatened. The state Department of Environmental Protection says beachcombers and sunbathers can accidentally trample the nests. It says eggs and hatchlings will die if the birds abandon the disturbed sites (AP)."
More: See If You Can Swallow This Post
Birds Blinded By the Lights
Boston Hates Birds
A true genocide.
Massachusetts' Treasure Island
Globe Walks Gulf Coast Beaches
Also see: Boston Globe Day at the Beach
Boston Globe Beach Patrol
Boston Globe Back to the Beach
Obama Administration Abandons Beaches
No Day at the Beach in France
West Bank Day at the Beach
And don't go in the river:
"Potentially toxic algae bloom starts early in Charles River" by Carolyn Y. Johnson | Globe Staff, June 23, 2012
A sudden bloom of blue-green algae that has the potential to release toxins harmful to people and dogs has turned portions of the lower Charles River a scummy greenish color, and it has started several weeks earlier than in previous years.
People and pets should avoid contact with water that looks green and should not ingest it, state public health officials warned. Toxins that can be produced by the algae may cause skin rashes or stomach problems, and can seriously sicken or kill pets....
A clump of the algae was found near a boat dock not far from the Longfellow Bridge.
That looks gross!
--more--"
Think I'll just go the pool:
"New safeguards in place for swimming pools after drowning" by Peter Schworm | Globe Staff, June 23, 2012
The summer after a Fall River woman drowned in nearly opaque water, state officials have overhauled operations at swimming pools, closing slides, hiring more lifeguards, and filling in deep ends.
With a new swimming season set to begin Saturday, the state’s recreation department has made broad changes to improve safety at its two dozen deepwater pools, following recommendations from a scathing internal review that found “systemic deficiencies” in their management.
Marie Joseph, 36, who could not swim, drowned last June after going down the slide and slipping under the water without notice. Her body lay unseen on the bottom of the Fall River pool’s 12-foot-deep end for two days, shrouded by the cloudy water.
Related: Sunday Swim
Body apparently was in state pool 3 days
Was it two or three?
Four state employees, including a regional director and district manager, lost their jobs after investigators found that water quality flagrantly violated safety guidelines. Two men were sentenced to probation after being charged with reckless endangerment....
--more--"
I guess I'll just see if I can go swimming in the pool of someone I know.
Made it back to the beach before sunset, too. If you look far enough you can see the wind turbines:
"Wind farms on land grow with few critics" by Erin Ailworth | Globe Staff, July 09, 2012
Despite controversy that has slowed the Cape Wind project in Nantucket Sound, land-based wind farms are expanding rapidly in the region.
One company alone, First Wind Holdings LLC of Boston, has installed enough turbines in the Northeast over the past few years to generate nearly as much power as the long-awaited offshore wind farm. Other companies, too, have developed wind projects in New England states.
Driving this growth are technological advances reducing the cost of wind turbines and increasing their efficiency, making wind power more competitive with traditional power sources — particularly in the Northeast, where electricity costs can run as much as 60 percent above the national average....
That's weird because I was told shale was making things cheaper, but whatever....
--more--"
Hey, that's where I'm looking for a sunset.
Also see: NStar Passes Wind On To Customers
That's rude!