Stony Brook, NY, December 11, 2013 - Many Canada Geese no longer migrate south for the winter, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Milder temperatures here create better nesting grounds for the geese, so they feel more comfortable staying put.
 
New York Sea Grant Water Quality Specialist Eileen Keenan, Manager of the New York Nonpoint Source Education for Municipal Officials (NEMO) Program, discusses the issue with Long Island Report. As Keenan explains in the YouTube clip below, the effects residential geese can have on the community and the environment.



"In some areas, Canada Geese may be contributing to water quality impairments due to the waste they leave behind," said Keenan. "Their waste can result in excessive levels of nitrogen and also higher levels of disease-causing pathogens. Such concerns may necessitate closings beaches and shellfishing areas. Some municipalities have begun various efforts to control Canada Geese populations in a humane manner," such as chasing the geese away from a particular spot.

Keenan added that "it's preferable that people not feed geese, as these waterfowl need to follow their natural migratory patterns and they also need to be able to find and consume natural sources of food. We don't want to encourage wildlife to stay in a given area, as that may be detrimental to them for any number of reasons. It can also results in water quality issues depending upon how many of a given species congregate, how long they stay and whether or not it contributes to long-term problems."

This past summer, Keenan was a moderator at the Second Annual Long Island Green Infrastructure Conference & Expo hosted at Brookhaven National Laboratory, for which NYSG was a co-sponsor.

“This event helped bring attention to how we should select, implement and fund green infrastructure practices with the benefit of recent US EPA performance research and with tools developed by Drexel University that enable estimation of their  effectiveness,” she said.

For more, see NYSG's pre-event press release, "NYSG a Sponsor of 2nd Annual LI Green Infrastructure Conf & Expo."


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New York Sea Grant (NYSG), a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York, is one of 33 university-based programs under the National Sea Grant College Program (NSGCP) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The NSGCP engages this network of the nation’s top universities in conducting scientific research, education, training and extension projects designed to foster science-based decisions about the use and conservation of our aquatic resources. Through its statewide network of integrated services, NYSG has been promoting coastal vitality, environmental sustainability, and citizen awareness about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources since 1971.

For updates on Sea Grant activities: www.nyseagrant.org has RSS, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube links. NYSG also offers a free e-list sign up via www.nyseagrant.org/coastlines for NY Coastlines, its flagship publication, and Currents, its e-newsletter supplement, each distributed several times a year.