Turtles

Dredge spoils could become terrapin nursery in Cape May County
By BRIAN IANIERI Staff Writer, (609) 463-6713
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Sunday, July 29, 2007

AVALON — Researchers are experimenting with sand dredged from the ocean floor to determine whether diamondback terrapins will use it to lay eggs.
Their aim is to find places for turtles to nest other than road embankments — with their four-wheel hazards. But the idea has sparked interest in more than turtle researchers. Another use for the materials may prove fruitful when officials search for places to stock the spoils after dredging waterways.

The Wetlands Institute in Middle Township, Cape May County, received a $100,000 grant from the state Department of Transportation’s I BOAT NJ program. The Richard Stockton College Coastal Research Center is also involved.

Wood said the research involves looking at potential dredge materials for nesting as well as potential sites for it to be placed to draw turtles away from the highways.

“This is really early preliminary stuff. Who knows what’s going to happen?” said Roger Wood, director of research at the Wetlands Institute and a zoology professor at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey in Galloway Township

Over the years, development on barrier islands and construction of roads through salt marshes changed the habits of diamondback terrapins. As humans developed the land over the past century, terrapins developed different nesting habitats: seeking road embankments to lay their eggs above the high-water line.

The Wetlands Institute is close to documenting its 7,000th confirmed road kill in almost 20 years of recordkeeping, Wood said.

Their efforts also include extracting eggs from crushed turtles and incubating them, as well as erecting mesh fencing along some roads to keep the turtles from crossing during nesting season.

But the experiments with alternate nesting habitats seek to remove roads from the equation.

The concept sparked Avalon’s interest.

The borough plans extensive dredging of its harbors, lagoons and bays over the next decade.

Dredging produce large quantities of materials, said Stewart Farrell, of the Coastal Research Center.

“The problem is, where do you put it?” he said.

Avalon is proposing to the state Department of Environmental Protection transforming a dredge disposal island it owns and building a road to it.

The road, Avalon Borough Engineer Tom Thornton said, would make it easier and more cost effective to remove dredge materials from the island once they dry.

As a result, it could be used as a recycling center for dredge materials. Otherwise, the island would be almost stocked to capacity after dredging this fall, Thornton said.

But their plan involves disturbing three acres of wetlands to build the road and then reducing the size of the existing dredge disposal island to compensate for the environmental impact.

The proposed project will also require environmental and wildlife studies, officials said.

Avalon Mayor Martin Pagliughi said proposing the area on Macchia’s Island as turtle nesting habitat is part of their application to the DEP to make the project more appealing.

“How are they going to say no to turtles?” he said.

Macchia’s Island is a pear-shaped island and existing dredge-disposal site located between Avalon and Middle Township.

Middle Township has also supported the idea for dredging it plans near Avalon Manor, which is in Middle Township.

To e-mail Brian Ianieri at The Press:BIanieri@pressofac.com