Cities by the coast

Even native New Yorkers sometimes need to be reminded that our city really is a city of water. With the Hudson River, Long Island Sound, and the New York Bight bathing our four island boroughs and one peninsular borough, we are an urban archipelago.  All of these highly urbanized waters have a long history of misuse, followed by partial recovery. Major problems have included chemical and sewage contamination, tributary dams and other habitat modifications, and a high incidence of invasive species. However, governmental regulation and societal forces have greatly improved the condition of these waters and shores.

Beyond regulation and a new found interest in revitalizing these water ways, climate change poses a significant disruption to the improvements made. Warmer waters and nutrient loading will lead to a loss of certain species and over all changes to our waterways. ISC works to understand the place in history that we now stand with regard to our waters and what the future holds for them.

Program Leader: Prof. John Waldman of the Department of Biology at Queens College.