Introduction
Fishing is a beloved pastime in New Jersey, pursued for various motivations. Among these, obtaining food stands out prominently. With numerous trout-stocked streams across the state, discerning where it’s safe to consume the catch becomes crucial. What specific regions pose risks to the safety of fish consumption, and what environmental elements influence this? To address these inquiries, I have curated a map aimed at shedding light on these concerns.
Data
The map here displays New Jersey’s trout-stocked streams (denoted by dark blue lines) from the NJDEPGIS, ideal fishing locations (NJDFW), fishing consumption advisories (NJDEPBGIS), as well as locations that have harmful algal blooms (NJDEPBGIS).
Results
In Morris County, 45% of popular fishing locations within 100-500 feet from trout-stocked streams are within 1000 feet or less of a fish consumption advisory, and of 50% of advisories in Morris county are within less than 900 feet of locations where there is harmful algal growth.
Conclusion
Based on the data, the closer a fishing location is to a harmful algal bloom, the more likely there is to be a fish consumption advisory, meaning the government warns whoever fishes in that area that the fish are likely not safe to eat due to known contaminants and poor water quality. Algal bloom is often an indicator of poor water quality and often indicates elevated levels of nitrate, which depletes oxygen levels in the water, causing fish to die or become ill.
High levels of nitrate are often the result of runoff or leakage from fertilized soil, wastewater, landfills, animal feedlots, septic systems, or urban drainage. Observing this data can help strengthen accountability and environmental policies such as N.J. Admin. Code § 8:26-6.5 to dispose of waste water safely.
About the Data
Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) Locations 2019 in New Jersey was created by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEPBGIS). County Boundaries of NJ, Hosted, 3857 was created by the New Jersey Geocode Service (NJOGIS). Madison NJ Boundary was created by the New Jersey Office of Information Technology (NJOIT). NJ – Trout Stocked Streams was created by Jesse Weber and NJDEPGIS, Division of Fish and Wildlife Edition 20220228. NJDEPGIS Fish Advisory Locations of New Jersey / Fish Consumption Advisories was created by the NJDEPGIS. Envr_admin_DFW_places_to_fish / Great Fishing Close to Home in NJ was created by the NJDEPBGIS.
