Sea turtles are fascinating creatures. Learn some facts about these much-loved marine reptiles.

1. In many parts of the world, hawksbills are threatened by hunting for their beautiful shell.

Also known as “tortoise shell,” it is used by craftspeople to create many types of jewelry and trinkets. The historical hunting and killing of hawksbills for their shell nearly drove the species to extinction. Today, the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species forbids the trade of any turtle products on the international market, including hawksbill tortoise shell. Illegal hunting and trade continue to threaten the species in many parts of the world.

Learn more about the hawksbill turtle

2. Leatherbacks are the only species of sea turtle that don’t have a hard shell.

Their shell (carapace) consists of small, interlocking bones beneath the skin that overlie a supportive layer of connective tissue and fat and the deeper skeleton. The carapace has seven distinct keels and the front flippers are proportionally longer than other sea turtles and their back flippers are paddle-shaped. Both their streamlined carapace and their large flippers make the leatherback uniquely equipped for long distance foraging migrations. Some swim more than 10,000 miles a year between nesting and foraging grounds.

Learn more about the Pacific leatherback turtle, a NOAA Fisheries Species in the Spotlight

3. Sea turtle diet varies depending on the species.

Loggerheads are carnivores, only occasionally consuming plant material. Juveniles and adults in coastal waters eat mostly bottom dwelling invertebrates such as whelks, other mollusks, horseshoe crabs, and other crabs. Their powerful jaws are designed to crush their prey. Hawksbill turtles use their sharp beak to reach into small holes and crevices in coral reefs to find their preferred food source—sponges. Leatherbacks have spiny “papillae” lining their mouth and esophagus—these spines help them trap and consume their main prey species, jellyfish. Green sea turtles are unique among sea turtles in that they are primarily herbivores, eating mostly seagrasses and algae. This diet is what gives their cartilage and fat a greenish color (not their shells), which is where their name comes from.

4. Ridley sea turtles have unique nesting habits.

The two species of ridley sea turtles – Kemp’s ridleys and the olive ridleys—primarily nest in groups—this phenomenon is called an “arribada,” which is Spanish for “arrival.” Hundreds to thousands of turtles come ashore across several hours or days and lay thousands to hundreds of thousands of eggs. This nesting behavior is designed to swamp natural predators which ensures that enough eggs and hatchlings will survive to keep the population stable. Kemp’s ridley and olive ridleys are the two smallest species of sea turtles.

Learn more about the Olive Ridley turtle

Learn more about the Kemp’s Ridley turtle

5. All sea turtles are threatened by pollution and marine debris. 

Pollution of nearshore and offshore marine habitats threatens all sea turtles and degrades their habitats. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill was the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history and affected all life stages and species of  sea turtles inhabiting the Gulf of Mexico. Ingestion of marine debris is another threat to all species of sea turtles. Turtles may ingest marine debris such as fishing line, balloons, plastic bags, floating tar or oil, and other materials they can mistake for food. Microplastics are an increasing threat to sea turtles, especially young turtles living and feeding near the surface. 

See what you can do to help sea turtles

6. Sea turtles lay about 100 eggs per nest.

During the nesting season, females of most species of sea turtles will nest about every 2 weeks over several months and lay multiple nests before leaving the nesting area and returning to their foraging grounds. Every 2 to 5 years they undertake reproductive migrations and return to nest on a beach in the general area where they hatched decades earlier. Over her lifetime, a female will produce thousands of eggs and hatchlings.

7. Sand temperature is very important. 

The sex of sea turtles, like many other turtles, is determined by the temperature in the nest. Cooler incubation temperatures produce primarily male hatchlings and warmer incubation temperatures produce primarily female hatchlings. Temperatures that fluctuate between the two extremes will produce a mix of male and female hatchlings. Watch the video below to learn about research on alarming trends as global temperatures rise, and fewer male turtles are hatching from the nesting beaches. 

Sea Turtles: Is the Future Female?

Are sea turtles destined to turn all female? This video documents cutting edge research that discovers alarming trends as global temperatures rise, and fewer male turtles are hatching from the nesting beaches.SharePlay Video

More Information

• Sea Turtle Week 2021

WTOP – The number of blue crabs in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries is on a downturn, according to the results of the 2022 Blue Crab Winter Dredge Survey.

This year’s survey estimated total crab abundance at 227 million, which is the lowest in the survey’s 33-year history, according to a news release. It is down from 282 million in 2021. The survey is compiled annually by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Adult female and male crab populations both decreased, with males at record lows and the number of juvenile crabs continuing a troubling three-year below average trend.

“The results of this year’s survey continue a worrying trend for blue crabs in the Chesapeake Bay region,” said Chesapeake Bay Foundation Senior Regional Ecosystem Scientist Chris Moore. “The continued low abundance of juveniles and adult males indicates the urgent need for action to protect these segments of the population.”

He said the survey underscored a need to protect adult females in order help ensure better numbers in the future.

“It is likely that the loss of grasses is contributing to the blue crab’s decline, along with water quality challenges and predation by invasive blue catfish,” Moore said.

“Fisheries regulators and scientists must work quickly to identify the key ecosystem factors influencing blue crab recruitment and survival so that they can be mitigated to ensure a healthy blue crab population in the future.”

According to the Xerces Society, Monarch butterflies east of the Rocky Mountains used to number in the hundreds of millions but the population has declined by approximately 80%. Loss of habitat due to genetically modified crops, overuse of herbicides and insecticides, urban, suburban, and agricultural development, disease, and overwintering site degradation are the leading causes of monarch decline.

Growing the right flowers, shrubs, and trees with overlapping bloom times is the single most effective course of action to support pollinators from spring through fall.

These butterflies will seek out habitats along roadsides, the edges of farm fields, prairies, meadows, and city gardens. The butterflies that leave the overwintering sites soon breed and die, with successive generations moving north until they reach southern Canada, the limit of milkweed growth. Along the way, the adults feed on nectar-rich flowers and lay eggs on milkweed.  

To help offset the loss of monarch breeding habitat, the North American Monarch Conservation Plan (published in 2008 by the tri-national Commission for Environmental Cooperation) recommends the planting of regionally appropriate native milkweed species. However, a scarcity of milkweed seed in many regions of the United States has limited opportunities to include the plants in regional restoration efforts.

A simple and beautiful way to help all pollinators is to create a rich, pollinator friendly yard and garden:

• Use a wide variety of plants that bloom from early spring into late fall.
  Help pollinators find and use them by planting in clumps, rather than single plants. Include plants native to your region. Natives are adapted to your local climate, soil and native pollinators. Do not forget that night-blooming flowers will support moths and bats.
• Avoid modern hybrid flowers, especially those with “doubled” flowers.
  Often plant breeders have unwittingly left the pollen, nectar, and fragrance out of these blossoms while creating the “perfect” blooms for us.
• Eliminate pesticides whenever possible.
  If you must use a pesticide, use the least-toxic material possible. Read labels carefully before purchasing, as many pesticides are especially dangerous for bees. Use the product properly. Spray at night when bees and other pollinators are not active.
• Include larval host plants in your landscape.
  If you want colorful butterflies, grow plants for their caterpillars. They WILL eat them, so place them where unsightly leaf damage can be tolerated. Accept that some host plants are less than ornamental if not outright weeds. A butterfly guide will help you determine the plants you need to include. Plant a butterfly garden!
• Create a damp salt lick for butterflies and bees.
  Use a dripping hose, drip irrigation line, or place your bird bath on bare soil to create a damp area. Mix a small bit of table salt (sea salt is better!) or wood ashes into the mud.
• Spare that limb!
  By leaving dead trees, or at least an occasional dead limb, you provide essential nesting sites for native bees. Make sure these are not a safety hazard for people walking below. You can also build a bee condo by drilling holes of varying diameter about 3 to 5 inches deep in a piece of scrap lumber mounted to a post or under eaves.
• You can add to nectar resources by providing a hummingbird feeder.
  To make artificial nectar, use four parts water to one part table sugar. Never use artificial sweeteners, honey, or fruit juices. Place something red on the feeder. Clean your feeder with hot soapy water at least twice a week to keep it free of mold.
• Butterflies need resources other than nectar.
  They are attracted to unsavory foodstuffs, such as moist animal droppings, urine and rotting fruits. Try putting out slices of overripe bananas, oranges and other fruits, or a sponge in a dish of lightly salted water to see which butterflies come to investigate. Sea salt provides a broader range of micronutrients than regular table salt.
• Learn more about pollinators
  Get some guidebooks and learn to recognize the pollinators in your neighborhood. Experiment with a pair of close-focusing binoculars for butterflies, bees and hummingbirds.

For More Information

• Attracting Pollinators to Your Garden Using Native Plants (Eastern United States) (PDF, 3.5 MB) – developed and published by the USDA Forest Service providing a guide to providing habitats for pollinators in the eastern United States.
• Attracting Pollinators to Your Garden Using Native Plants (PDF, 3.2 MB) – developed and published by the Lolo National Forest, Missoula, Montana, providing a guide to providing habitats for pollinators primarily in the western United States.
• Gardening for Native Bees in Utah and Beyond (PDF, 3,9 MB) – a Utah Pests Fact Sheet published in January 2013 by Utah State University Extension and Utah Plant Pest Diagnostic Laboratory. This fact sheet provides guidance for plant selection to garden for pollinators, including some 200 garden plant genera nationwide and a table of their flowering phenologies (in northern Utah).
• Honeybee Conservancy – Plant a Bee Garden – By planting a bee garden, you can do your part to help the bees by adding to the shrinking inventory of flower-rich habitat in your area. In return, the bees will pollinate your flowers, providing a bountiful harvest of fruits, seeds and vegetables as well as the joy of watching them up close.
• Plants for Pollinators in the Inland Northwest (PDF, 3.1 MB) – a USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Technical Note, TN Plant Materials No. 2B, October 2011. This technical note provides guidance for the design and implementation of conservation plantings to enhance habitat for pollinators including bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds. Plant species included in this document are adapted to the Inland Northwest, which encompasses northern Idaho, northeastern Oregon and eastern Washington.

Milkweed Practitioner’s Guide

This comprehensive publication covers milkweed seed production methods, offers guidance on incorporating milkweeds into restoration and revegetation efforts, and highlights milkweeds’ unique characteristics and value to wildlife.

NY In last summer, big chunks of the Peconic Bay scallops died…almost every adult scallop died. Of course, climate change was blamed, but in reality, nobody knows what happened. Is the same thing happening in Elephant Trunk? Why are scallop fisheries along the Trunk experiencing die-off?

There are some watermen that blame windmill companies such as US Wind, Maryland’s offshore developer. They currently have two contracts with the state. Crews have been out in the ocean for several months, as part of a federal requirement. Vessels tow equipment to map the seafloor to determine where to put turbines. The company uses what is known as ‘AIS’ tracking, which is an Automatic Identification System.

There is considerable concern that human-produced (anthropogenic) sounds added to the environment could have damaging effects on marine life. While much of the interest has focused on marine mammals, such as dolphins and whales, there is growing interest in the effects of these sounds on fish.

Arthur N. Popper, biology professor at the University of Maryland and expert in fish hearing, and Michele Halvorsen, Ph.D., University of Maryland Research Associate, conducted research on systems used by the Navy, such as  Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System (SURTASS) Low Frequency Active (LFA) sonar, which uses frequencies from 100 to 500 hertz, the range of best hearing of many fish species. The research found that exposure to high intensity, low-frequency sonar did not kill rainbow trout used for testing, nor did it damage the fishes’ auditory systems, other than for a small and presumably temporary decline in hearing sensitivity. However, Popper says the findings “should not be extrapolated to other fish species or the effects of other sound sources.”

The effects of sound on fish could potentially include increased stress, damage to organs, the circulatory and nervous systems,” says Popper. “Long-term effects may alter feeding and reproductive patterns in a way that could affect the fish population as a whole.”

Groups such as the  Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA), along with many other commercial fishing associations and businesses across the country issued recommendations to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) for reducing impacts from offshore wind energy development to fishing, coastal communities, and sustainable domestic seafood production. They believe strong mitigation requirements must be standardized to protect marine resources and existing uses of the Outer Continental Shelf.

What happened to scallops in Peconic Bay and now in Elephant Trunk is still not confirmed. The disruption caused by so much high-intensity sonar work, and how it is affecting the marine environment needs closer inspection.

Annapolis, MD – On Thursday, March 10, 2022, Congress passed an omnibus appropriations bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022. The annual federal spending package provides funding for several programs important to conservation in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

Chesapeake Conservancy’s Manager of External Affairs Reed Perry applauded the federal FY 22 omnibus bill, stating,

“The federal FY 22 omnibus appropriations bill is a big win for conservation in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The Chesapeake Bay is our nation’s largest estuary and home to more than 18 million people. The health of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed impacts the health and economic prosperity of all residents in the Bay watershed. These conservation investments are investments in the health of our lands and waters, the health of our nature and wildlife, and the health and economic well-being of our people.

“The FY 22 omnibus provides a much-needed increase in funding for the Chesapeake Bay Program, the regional partnership working to protect and restore the Bay watershed. This additional funding will boost partner efforts to meet the restoration goals of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement by 2025.

“This bill also provides $4 million to the Chesapeake WILD program, a new U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service program established by Congress in 2020. Chesapeake WILD is dedicated program for conservation in the Chesapeake Bay and will support on the ground efforts across the watershed such as species conservation and wetland restoration. Importantly, this is the first year that the program will receive funding, which is badly needed to enhance conservation efforts for fish and wildlife in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

“We are thrilled that thanks to the support of Senator Ben Cardin, the FY 22 spending bill also includes $2 million in congressionally directed spending to the City of Annapolis, Maryland for an important cultural and historic site for Black Americans in the Chesapeake known as Elktonia Beach. This funding will provide critical support for a state and local partnership effort to establish and develop a park at Elktonia Beach, the last remaining undeveloped area of Annapolis waterfront land originally owned by the Carr’s family that included Carr’s, Sparrow’s and Elktonia Beaches. These once-popular beach destinations and concert venues welcomed Blacks during the time of segregation. While most of this area has been sold off and developed, a 5-acre parcel at Elktonia Beach remains undeveloped and ready for purchase.

“In addition, we are thrilled that thanks to the support of Senator Tom Carper, the FY 22 spending bill includes $1.2 million in congressionally directed spending to the City of Seaford in Delaware to relocate a sewer line. In July 2021, Chesapeake Conservancy celebrated with the City of Seaford and many partners on the completion of Phase 1 of the Seaford Oyster House Park, which features a new Riverwalk along the Nanticoke River. The critical next step in Oyster House Park is the relocation of a sewer line, and this funding will allow Seaford to complete Phase 2 of the project.

“Lastly, this bill includes $2 million in Land and Water Conservation Funds to protect Fones Cliffs in the Rappahannock River National Wildlife Refuge. Overlooking the Rappahannock River in Virginia, Fones Cliffs is a treasure and an important part of the ancestral lands of the Rappahannock Tribe. This funding will help to protect this iconic and endangered landscape and preserve a vital part of the Chesapeake’s history and culture.

“Chesapeake Conservancy thanks the members of the Chesapeake Bay watershed delegation for their support for these important conservation investments in FY 22.”

Highlights for Chesapeake Bay conservation and restoration in the Omnibus Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Include:

· $88 million for the Chesapeake Bay Program, an increase of $500,000 over FY 21 appropriations. The Chesapeake Bay Program is a regional partnership of federal agencies, states, local governments, universities, and non-governmental organizations that work together to restore and to protect the Chesapeake Bay.

· $3 million for the Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails program. The Gateways Program is run by the National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Office and provides financial and technical support to communities and organizations throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed for public access, educational programming, and interpretation of the Bay’s natural, cultural, and historical resources. The bill also includes an increase of $500,000 for the National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Office to support operations and programming in the Chesapeake Bay.

· $4 million to the Chesapeake WILD program, a new U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service program supporting on the ground conservation efforts in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

· $2 million in congressionally directed spending to the City of Annapolis, Maryland to support the development of a park at the historic Elktonia Beach property in Annapolis. The earmark secured by Senator Ben Cardin (D – MD) complements current state and local efforts to preserve the last remaining parcel of the historic Annapolis waterfront land originally owned by the Carr’s family that included Carr’s, Sparrow’s and Elktonia Beaches.

· $1.2 million in congressionally directed spending to the City of Seaford, Delaware to relocate a sewer line. The earmark secured by Senator Tom Carper (D – DE) will support Phase 2 of the development of Seaford’s Oyster House Park on the Nanticoke River.

· $2 million for the Rappahannock River Valley National Wildlife Refuge in Land and Water Conservation Funds (LWCF), and $900 million for the national LWCF program. The LWCF program provides funding to protect land for national parks, national forests, and other public lands, as well as state and local parks.

· $150 million for the Department of Defense’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) program. The REPI program supports partnerships between branches of the U.S. military, local conservation groups, and local and state governments to conserve land near military installations in order to protect the continued and future operation of military installations. REPI has supported to conservation of more than 32,000 acres in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

Are you or your organization involved in environmental education on Virginia’s Eastern Shore? Do you need funds to help provide these opportunities? You might want to apply for the Billie Fitzgerald Memorial Conservation Grants through the ESSWCD. Schools, teachers, scouts, community groups and other organizations in Accomack and Northampton Counties are eligible to apply.

Funding up to $400 is available for projects such as outdoor classrooms, nature trails, storm drain stenciling, recycling programs, butterfly gardens, birdfeeders, worm composters, rain gardens, or other environmental projects. We do not fund beautification projects, food, or textbooks.

Conservation Grants Now Available!

2022 Spring Grants & Contests

Applications can be found on the ESSWCD website under the education tab or by clicking here. You may also contact Julie Head at 757-302-4433 or julie.head@esswcd.org.

USDA – Article by By Angela R. Allen, NRCS, Kansas. This is part of the Fridays on the Farm Series

Max and Eweleen Good, the first landowners in Kansas to voluntarily participate in a USDA wetland restoration program in 1994. The Goods live on 40 acres northeast of Oswego, Kansas, in Labette County.

Their land likely started as tall grass prairie scattered with ponds before being used as farmland. By the time the Goods acquired the land, it was a successional tree stand with seasonal ponding. As curious naturalists, Max and Eweleen wanted to improve and restore their land to a natural state.

“Our goal was to hopefully replace what we took from earth, to educate others with examples by sharing our research and experiences,” Max Good said.

Conservation Practice Implementation

In order to maximize the restorative impact, the Goods had to seasonally time the implementation of each conservation practice. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began earthworks by immediately putting a dike and water control structure in place, followed by seeding with native grasses.

Adjacent land successional species and noxious weeds had a strong foothold on the land in and around the easement, so a regimen of periodic chemical and mechanical pest management treatment was necessary to remove unwanted species and to mitigate future colonization. These initial efforts quickly laid the foundation for a palustrine emergent wetland addition. Palustrine wetlands include all nontidal wetlands dominated by trees, shrubs, persistent emergent plants, or emergent mosses or lichens, as well as small, shallow open water ponds or potholes.

By January 1996, restoration was complete, making their wetland the very first to be protected and restored in Kansas. Early on Max and Eweleen could see the program benefits and encouraged friends and neighbors to participate. In 1995 there were 11 contracts and that grew to 26 contracts by 1996.

A Haven for Wildlife

The Goods participated in the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Wetland Reserve Program, which is part of the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program. Wetland Reserve Easements provide habitat for fish and wildlife, improve water quality by filtering sediments and chemicals, reduce flooding, recharge groundwater, protect biological diversity, provide resilience to climate change, and provide opportunities for educational, scientific, and limited recreational activities.

From the start of the project, Max and Eweleen have journaled, documented, photographed, and meticulously identified all flora and fauna present whether permanent or simply passing through.  

“Species records were kept from the beginning revealing an incredible migration stop,” Max said. “We had no idea this water addition brought creatures never before seen on this ground.”

Species sightings included ibis, black rail, eagles, pelicans, and osprey. Waterfowl numbers were in the thousands at prime time. River otter have been sighted along with nesting hooded mergansers, wood ducks, geese, and serval types of herons. Amphibians arrived seemingly from nowhere. Mammal, bird, and reptile predators came to live and chase prey. Plants had a new niche to grow in with pollinators and consumers following. Biodiversity as a complete system created a place for wildlife to live or rest during travel. The species counts doubled and then tripled.

This explosion in species diversity may be the reason Max and Eweleen spent many years working towards publishing a detailed picture book describing more than 300 species adorning this wetland and their adjacent lands. For the last 27 years, the Goods have studied the area and helped educate others by sharing their research and experiences.

“Build it and they will come has been the case for attracting waterfowl in our wetland project experience,” Eweleen said. “Seems we have a really inviting bed and breakfast for locals and migrators.”

The Goods never know what species will stop by next. Their most surprising visitor was a feral emu.

The Bureau of Ocean Management (BOEM) has been engaging commercial and recreational fishing communities to get feedback on a very broad, general draft of a new Wind Lease Planning Area in virtual meetings January 5-6, 2022. The actual lease areas to be designated will have a smaller footprint than this initial planning area. Below is a map of the proposed areas:

At the final meeting, Jim Benning of BOEM stated that they are “focusing” on the wind leases first but that the lease areas and this public process is also designated for Oil, Gas, and Mineral Mining.

A concern from commercial and rec fisherman is that these locations are where the majority of the larval crab population in the Bay first develops.

There are four proposed/ongoing activities in and around the Virginia Wind Energy Area (WEA), which are listed below.

• Commercial Lease (OCS-A 0483) Offshore Virginia
• Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project (CVOW)

Environmental Studies

BOEM has funded or considered numerous studies to collect information about the marine environment to support decisions concerning offshore renewable energy development. For more information, please visit: http://www.boem.gov/VA-Environmental-Studies/.

Reader submitted article by Jeremy Cox, Bay Journal News Service

A sand and gravel mine on the Eastern Shore of Maryland spilled so much sediment-loaded wash water that waterways up to 11 miles away turned a milky green color for at least two days.

A Maryland Department of the Environment investigation found that a subsidiary of Chaney Enterprises was responsible for the Dec. 2–4 incident. During that period, water overflowed from the Caroline County plant’s settling pond into a ditch, which carried the pollution into a stream and eventually into Tuckahoe Creek.

Aerial photographs captured by the Choptank Riverkeeper show greenish water flowing down the freshwater portion of the Tuckahoe. The creek is a tributary of the Choptank River and is considered an important breeding habitat for several fish species, including white and yellow perch, hickory shad and river herring.

“Heavy discharges of sediment like the one seen here have a tendency to destroy fish habitat, cloud the water and otherwise alter the water quality conditions,” said Choptank Riverkeeper Matt Pluta, “which is concerning for the species of fish that depend on healthy water quality and overall good habitat conditions in order to spawn.”

The color of the water was so vivid that Pluta said he initially mistook it for a rare cold-weather algae bloom.

The MDE received a complaint about the discolored water Dec. 2 and sent inspectors to the Chaney Enterprises mine the following day. Officials ordered the plant’s managers to shut down the wash plant until the settling pond could be pumped down enough to receive wastewater again without spillage, said agency spokesman Jay Apperson. The company reported Dec. 4 that it had stopped the discharge.

The MDE will continue to monitor the site and plans to meet with the company to ensure pollution-control regulations are met, Apperson added. The MDE also has proposed a $20,000 fine against the company.

A Chaney Enterprises official blamed the episode on the mechanical failure of a pump used to maintain the water level of the settling pond.

“We really care about the communities we do business in,” said Jan Holt, chief customer officer for the company, based in Gambrills, MD. “We are very sorry for the incident. It’s unfortunate and we are at fault.”

The company has since installed a second pump at the pond in case the first one breaks down again, she added.

Maryland officials have closed a section of the Potomac River to shellfish harvesting, after a second sewage spill in the area in recent weeks. Earlier this month, 34 people were sickened after eating oysters apparently contaminated by sewage

Maryland state officials did close the fishery for more than two weeks after a sewage spill.

The current closure affects 180 acres of Potomac waters in St. Mary’s County, adjacent to St. George Island. The second sewage spill was reported to the Maryland Department of the Environment on Sunday, and the closure was announced late Monday evening.

According to MDE, a sewer line break caused 2,500 gallons of sewage to spill into the Potomac, and 11,000 gallons were vacuumed up from roadside ditches before it could flow into the river. However, the sewer authority responsible for the spill disputes the assertion the sewage made it into the river. “It was a small sewer line break that we were able to to stop as soon as it was reported to us,” says George Erichsen, executive director of the the sewer authority, the St. Mary’s County Metropolitan Commission, known as MetCom.

The spill likely began on Nov. 24, Erichsen says, though MetCom was only alerted by a resident on Nov. 28. Erichsen says MetCom immediately notified MDE.

The earlier spill occurred Oct. 28-30. Roughly 25,600 gallons spilled from the sewage treatment facility, though Erichsen says it was “primarily tidal water mixed with a small amount of residential sewage.”

Days after the October spill, health officials on the other side of the Potomac, in Loudoun County, Va., started receiving reports of gastrointestinal illness from people who had dined at pop-up raw oyster bars by the company Nomini Bay Oyster Ranch, held at two Loudoun breweries and a winery in Fauquier County. Health officials traced the source of the oysters to an oyster farm in St. Mary’s River, a tributary of the Potomac, near where the sewage spill occurred.

MetCom put up “No Water Contact” signs in the affected area, and posted about the spill on Facebook. Erichsen says they also notified MDE on Oct. 28.

However, there was a breakdown in communication within the department, and no closure was implemented.

“The information was not conveyed at that time within MDE to our shellfish program who would have then temporarily closed the nearby harvesting area,” said MDE spokesperson Jay Apperson, in an email to DCist. “To our knowledge, this is the first time something of this nature has happened. We are now working on improving our coordination within programs, through retraining and building redundancies into our process as a safeguard to prevent this from happening in the future.”

The spills resulted from different causes: the October spill was caused by high tides that overwhelmed pumps in the sewer system, filling the system with river water and causing an overflow. The November spill resulted from a broken sewer pipe, which has since been repaired.