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**August 21, 2008**

**Testimony of John Torgan**

**Narragansett Baykeeper**

**Save The Bay**

**To:** **The Honorable United States Senate Committee on Environment &
Public Works**

**At: A Special Briefing on Climate Change and its Impacts on
Narragansett Bay**

Madam Chair, Senator Whitehouse and members of the Committee,

Thank you for this unique opportunity to testify on an issue that is
critically important to Rhode Island and all coastal states of our
nation. It is an honor to speak before you today.

Save The Bay recognizes that scientific and political disagreements
continue over the extent of human influence on climate change. I will
not address those today. More pertinent and relevant to this Committee
and the people of Rhode Island are the manifestations of warming on the
coastal and regional ecosystem and identifying the steps we can and must
take immediately to protect and restore these precious resources into
the future.

We know for certain that Narragansett Bay is warmer on average than at
any other time in recorded history. Over the past 30 years, the average
mean temperature of the Bay has gone up two degrees Fahrenheit; the
average mean winter temperature has increased four degrees. These may
seem like small increases, but in nature, it is not the averages, but
the extreme events that shape the distribution and assemblage of plant
and animal species and determine the very basis of life in the Bay.

Warmer temperatures have caused dramatic changes at many levels and most
have a negative environmental and economic impact on the Bay's living
resources and on people. Normal and natural plankton cycles- the
currency of life in the Bay-are out of balance. The Bay's animal and
plant communities are fundamentally shifting; critical habitats are
threatened; environmental quality and even public health and human life
and property are jeopardized.

Storm-related coastal erosion and sea level rise are accelerating the
deterioration of Rhode Island's Southern coast. Erosion washes away
beaches, coastal property, and destroys water and wastewater
infrastructure. It deposits sediments that choke our salt ponds and
coastal wetland systems, shutting them off from the cleansing influence
of the tide and breaking the vital connections to the larger ecosystem.

As state and federal fisheries scientists have documented, we have seen
a major shift in fish populations, with severe declines of the classic
cold-water species like winter flounder, cod, and other bottom fish. We
have seen increases in fish that tolerate warmer water like striped
bass, summer flounder, and menhaden. Lobsters and scallops are down,
while squid and various species of crabs are up. Eelgrass, while
beginning a comeback in recent years, is still way down from historic
levels and high temperatures are a primary culprit in its disappearance.

Oyster and quahog diseases, once a scourge only of more southern
estuaries, now affect shellfish here in Rhode Island and threaten the
historic and culturally-important fishing industry. Excessively warm
water temperatures (greater than 75 degrees Fahrenheit) allow dangerous
bacteria like Vibrio to infect shellfish at levels great enough to
sicken or kill people.

Pollution from sewage and stormwater exacerbates water quality problems
by causing algae blooms that cloud the water and accumulate on the
bottom and on our shorelines. These algae decompose, robbing the water
of vital dissolved oxygen and contributing to large-scale dead zones and
fish and clam die-offs. It causes foul stenches that ruin Bay beaches at
the peak of tourist season and drive people from their waterfront homes
in mid-summer.

So what can we do to address and mitigate these threats today?

We may not be able to reverse climate change in the short-term, but we
can and must take strong action to bolster the Bay's natural resilience
and protect its ecology and critical habitats.

Let us act now to reauthorize the Coastal Zone Management Act and
include funding for coordination and regional ecosystem-based
management.

Let us work to further reduce sewage, stormwater, and nutrient pollution
by investing in advanced treatment technologies and infrastructure in
our coastal communities.

Let us invest in clean, sustainable, and renewable energy sources and
crack down on old dirty power plants.

Let us fill the information gaps by ensuring that LIDAR and other data
we collect give us the information we need to adequately plan for and
manage coastal development.

Let us formulate and implement a comprehensive habitat protection and
restoration plan for Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island's Southern Coast
that integrates habitat restoration, dredging, sediment management and
coastal development planning.

Let us embrace regional, ecosystem-based, and adaptive management
strategies that look at the big picture and eliminate duplicative
efforts by the many local, state, and federal agencies charged with
managing these common resources.

Let us protect the integrity of the Clean Water Act and other benchmark
environmental legislation in Congress.

By taking these steps, we will be doing all we can to combat the effects
of climate change to ensure the healthy future of Narragansett Bay, both
for the environment and the people. I am happy to take any questions.