On a wet, foggy morning on the mouth of the Bronx River, the Ecology Team conducted the final sampling trip of 2020 for the Unified Water Study. As raindrops filled their eyes and wrinkled the datasheets, the Ecology Coordinator and members of the Conservation Crew made their way out to the six sampling sites in the lower river and the estuary, passing schools of leaping fish and flocks of herons, egrets, and cormorants. After a delayed start due to the pandemic, the Ecology and Recreation teams managed a successful sampling season through the summer and into the fall. Led by Save the Sound, the Unified Water Study joins together more than 20 organizations from around the Long Island Sound to sample water quality, measuring water temperature, dissolved oxygen, salinity, turbidity (cloudiness), and chlorophyll – a chemical produced by algae. These measurements provide a picture of the health of the Long Island Sound and its tributaries like the Bronx River, as well as highlight the work that still needs to be done to restore this incredible habitat. Having now participated in this study for two years, we are looking forward to sampling again in 2021!
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