Water Quality in the Long IslandNew Jersey Coastal Drainages

New Jersey and New York, 1996–98

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Circular 1201
POINTS OF CONTACT AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Front Cover: Based on the power of the Great Falls of the Passaic River at Paterson, N.J., Alexander Hamilton founded his 

Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufactures. Supported by private investors, this business venture was an 18th-century industrial park that Hamilton hoped would demonstrate the ability of the United States to be successful in manufacturing. 

It grew into one of the first centers of heavy industry in the United States (modified from: A biography of Alexander Hamilton, 

1755–1804 at http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/B/hamilton/hamilxx.htm, July 2000). (Photograph by Timothy Reed.)

Opposite Page: False color, thematic mapping satellite image of the study area, 1992. (Digital image provided by Stephen 

Howard, Land Cover Applications Center, Raytheon, USGS EROS Data Center, Sioux Falls, S.Dak.)

Back Cover: Photograph lower left, sampling the fish community on the Saddle River at Ridgewood, N.J., with a barge electrofisher; and lower right, sampling a ground-water monitoring well in southern New Jersey. (Photographs by Mark Ayers.)

The companion Web site for NAWQA Study Unit summary reports:

http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/

Long Island–New Jersey Coastal 

Drainages contact and Web site:

LINJ Project Chief

U.S. Geological Survey

Suite 206, 810 Bear Tavern Road

West Trenton, NJ 08628

e-mail: mayers@usgs.gov

http://nj.usgs.gov/nawqa/linj.html

River Basin Assessments

Albemarle-Pamlico Drainage Basin (Circular 1157)

Allegheny and Monongahela River Basins (Circular 1202)

Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin (Circular 1164)

Central Arizona Basins (Circular 1213)

Central Columbia Plateau (Circular 1144)

Central Nebraska Basins (Circular 1163)

Connecticut, Housatonic and Thames River Basins (Circular 1155)

Eastern Iowa Basins (Circular 1210)

Georgia-Florida Coastal Plain (Circular 1151)

Hudson River Basin (Circular 1165)

Kanawha–New River Basins (Circular 1204)

Lake Erie–Lake Saint Clair Drainages (Circular 1203)

Las Vegas Valley Area and the Carson and Truckee River Basins

(Circular 1170)

Lower Illinois River Basin (Circular 1209)

Lower Susquehanna River Basin (Circular 1168)

Mississippi Embayment (Circular 1208)

Ozark Plateaus (Circular 1158)

Potomac River Basin (Circular 1166)

Puget Sound Basin (Circular 1216)

Other NAWQA summary reports:

National NAWQA Program:

Chief, NAWQA Program

U.S. Geological Survey

Water Resources Division

12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, M.S. 413

Reston, VA 20192

http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/

Red River of the North Basin (Circular 1169)

Rio Grande Valley (Circular 1162)

Sacramento River Basin (Circular 1215)

San Joaquin-Tulare Basins (Circular 1159)

Santee River Basin and Coastal Drainages (Circular 1206)

South-Central Texas (Circular 1212) 

South Platte River Basin (Circular 1167)

Southern Florida (Circular 1207)

Trinity River Basin (Circular 1171)

Upper Colorado River Basin (Circular 1214) 

Upper Mississippi River Basin (Circular 1211)

Upper Snake River Basin (Circular 1160)

Upper Tennessee River Basin (Circular 1205)

Western Lake Michigan Drainages (Circular 1156)

White River Basin (Circular 1150)

Willamette Basin (Circular 1161)

National Assessments

The Quality of Our Nation‘s Waters—Nutrients and Pesticides (Circular 1225)
U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR

Water Quality in the Long Island–

New Jersey Coastal Drainages,

New York and New Jersey, 1996–98

1201

By Mark A. Ayers, Jonathan G. Kennen, and Paul E. Stackelberg
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publications Data

The use of firm, trade, and brand names in this report is for identification purposes only and

does not constitute endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Free on application to the

U.S. Geological Survey

Information Services

Box 25286 Federal Center

Denver, CO 80225

Or call: 1-888-ASK-USGS

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

BRUCE BABBITT, Secretary

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

Charles G. Groat, Director

2000

Ayers, M. A. (Mark A.)

Water quality in the Long Island-New Jersey coastal drainages, New Jersey and New York, 1996–98 / by

Ayers, Mark A., Kennen, Jonathan G., and Stackelberg, Paul E.

p. cm. -- (U.S. Geological Survey Circular ; 1201)

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 0-607-95410-8 (alk. paper)

1. Water quality--New York (State)--Long Island. 2. Water quality--New Jersey. 3. Watersheds--New York 

(State)--Long Island. 4. Watersheds--New Jersey. I. Kennen, Jonathan G. II. Stackelberg, Paul E. III. Geological Survey (U.S.) IV. Title. V. Series.

TD224.N7 A94 2000

363.739’42’0974721--dc21

00-049457
CONTENTS

Contents III

NATIONAL WATER-QUALITY ASSESSMENT PROGRAM ............................................................... IV

SUMMARY OF MAJOR FINDINGS.................................................................................................... 1

Stream and River Highlights ......................................................................................................... 1

Ground-Water Highlights .............................................................................................................. 2

INTRODUCTION TO THE LONG ISLAND–NEW JERSEY STUDY AREA ....................................... 3

Environmental Setting and Hydrologic Conditions........................................................................ 3

Water-Quality Issues..................................................................................................................... 4

MAJOR FINDINGS ............................................................................................................................. 5

Stream Conditions for Fish Have Improved Since the 1970s........................................................ 5

Aquatic Invertebrate Communities Differ Naturally Across the Study Area .................................. 6

Fish and Aquatic Invertebrate Communities Are Impaired in Urban Areas .................................. 7

Characteristics of Urban Landscapes That Affect Aquatic Communities...................................... 8

Organochlorine Compounds Were Detected in Streambed Sediment and in Fish Tissue ........... 9

Trace-Element Concentrations Were Elevated in Streambed Sediment, Fish Tissue, 

and Ground Water...................................................................................................................... 10

Nutrients Were Detected in Streams and Ground Water.............................................................. 15

Predicting Changes in Nitrate Concentrations in Streams and Wells ........................................... 16

Pesticides Were Detected in Streams and Ground Water ............................................................ 18

Pesticide Detections Vary by Season and in Response to Land Use........................................... 18

Pesticide Detections in Ground Water Are Related to Pesticide Properties ................................. 20

Organochlorine Insecticides Were Detected in Streams and Ground Water................................ 20

Pesticide Metabolites Were Frequently Detected in Ground Water .............................................. 21

VOCs Were Detected in Streams and Ground Water................................................................... 21

VOC Detections Vary by Season and in Response to Land Use.................................................. 22

Public-Supply Wells in Surficial Aquifers Are Vulnerable to VOCs................................................ 24

VOCs and Pesticides Occur Together in Ground Water ............................................................... 25

Implications of Findings for the Management of Water and Ecological Resources ...................... 26

NATIONAL PERSPECTIVES ON WATER-QUALITY CONDITIONS—

Aquatic-Community Status in a National Context ......................................................................... 11

Mercury Concentrations in Fish Tissue Were Related to 

Methylmercury Concentrations in Water.................................................................................... 13

History of Chemical Use Is Evident in Lake-Sediment Cores....................................................... 14

DESIGN OF THE LONG ISLAND–NEW JERSEY STUDY ................................................................ 28

GLOSSARY........................................................................................................................................ 30

REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................... 32

APPENDIX—WATER-QUALITY DATA FROM THE LONG ISLAND–NEW JERSEY COASTAL 

DRAINAGES IN A NATIONAL CONTEXT ....................................................................................... 34
NATIONAL WATER-QUALITY ASSESSMENT PROGRAM

IV National Water-Quality Assessment Program 

1991—95

1994—98

1997—2001

Not yet scheduled

High Plains Regional

Ground Water Study, 

1999—2004

NAWQA Study Units

Assessment schedule

Long Island-New Jersey

Coastal Drainages

THIS REPORT summarizes major findings about water quality in New Jersey and on Long Island, N.Y., that 

emerged from an assessment conducted between 1996 and 1998 by the National Water-Quality Assessment 

(NAWQA) Program. Water quality is discussed in terms of local and regional issues and compared to conditions 

found in all 36 NAWQA study areas, called Study Units, assessed to date. Findings also are explained in the context of selected national benchmarks, such as those for drinking-water quality and the protection of aquatic organisms. The NAWQA Program was not intended to assess the quality of the Nation’s drinking water, such as by 

monitoring water from household taps. Rather, the assessments focus on the quality of the resource itself, thereby 

complementing many ongoing Federal, State, and local drinking-water monitoring programs. The comparisons 

made in this report to drinking-water standards and guidelines are only in the context of the available untreated 

resource. Finally, this report includes information about the status of aquatic communities and the condition of 

instream habitats as elements of a complete water-quality assessment.

Many topics covered in this report reflect the concerns of officials of State and Federal agencies, water-resource 

managers, and members of stakeholder groups who provided advice and input during the LINJ assessment. Long 

Island and New Jersey residents who wish to know more about water quality in the areas where they live will find 

this report informative as well. 

THE NAWQA PROGRAM of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) seeks to improve scientific and public 

understanding of water quality in the Nation’s major river basins and ground-water systems. Better understanding 

facilitates effective resource managment, accurate identification of water-quality priorities, and successful development of strategies that protect and restore water quality. Guided by a nationally consistent study design and shaped 

by ongoing communication with local, state, and Federal agencies, NAWQA assessments support the investigation 

of local issues and trends while providing a firm foundation for understanding water quality at regional and 

national scales. The ability to integrate local and national scales of data collection and analysis is a unique feature 

of the USGS NAWQA Program.

The Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages (LINJ) is one of 51 water-quality assessments initiated since 

1991, when the U.S. Congress appropriated funds for the USGS to begin the NAWQA Program. As indicated on 

the map, 36 assessments have been completed, and 15 more assessments will conclude in 2001. Collectively, these 

assessments cover about one-half of the land area of the United States and include water resources that are available to more than 60 percent of the U.S. population.
Summary of Major Findings 1 

SUMMARY OF MAJOR FINDINGS

Nitrate

Pesticides

Volatile

organics

Insecticides, herbicides, and pesticide metabolites, sampled in water.

Total phosphorus, sampled in water.

Nitrate (as nitrogen), sampled in water.

Solvents, refrigerants, fumigants, and gasoline compounds sampled

in water.

Small streams Major rivers

Urban Agricultural

Selected indicators of stream-water quality

Mixed land uses

Percentage of samples with concentrations equal to or 

greater than a health-related national guideline for drinking 

water or aquatic life; or above a national goal for preventing 

excess algal growth

Percentage of samples with concentrations less than a 

health-related national guideline for drinking water or aquatic

life; or below a national goal for preventing excess algal 

growth

Percentage of samples with no detection

Phosphorus

1

2

3

4

1

2

3

4

Stream and River Highlights

Human activities associated with 

urban and agricultural land use are 

the primary factors that affect the 

quality of streams and the health of 

aquatic life throughout Long Island 

and New Jersey (see map on right). 

Although concentrations of most 

chemical constituents detected in 

stream samples generally meet 

Federal and State water-quality 

guidelines, current guidelines do 

not address many of these chemicals nor the combinations (mixtures) of pesticides, fertilizers, and 

industrial and fuel-related compounds (volatile organic compounds, or VOCs) that were 

commonly detected in all streams. 

Concentrations of trace elements 

and organic compounds in streambed sediment in urban 

areas commonly failed to meet guidelines for protection 

of aquatic life, but sediment quality did not appear to be 

as influential as other human-related factors in affecting 

aquatic community health. Rather, study findings indicate that urban and suburban development, especially 

when it replaces forest and wetlands, results in changes 

in the natural flow of streams, habitat degradation, 

reduction in biological diversity, and a shift toward species more tolerant of disturbance. These factors 

together likely have a greater effect on impairment of 

aquatic life than on drinking-water quality in highly 

urbanized areas.

• Impaired aquatic communities in urban areas were related 

to increases in impervious surfaces, in the amount and fluctuation in storm runoff, and in chemical use; impairment 

also was related to decreases in base flow, in forest and 

wetland area, and in stream-habitat quality (p. 8).

• Widespread historical use and environmental persistence 

of chlordane, dieldrin, DDT, polychlorinated biphenyls 

(PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), 

particularly in urban areas, have resulted in frequent detection of these compounds in streambed and lake sediments 

and, except for PAHs, in fish tissue (p. 9 and 14). 

• Concentrations of most trace elements in streambed and 

lake sediments were elevated in urban watersheds relative 

to those in less developed watersheds (p. 10).

• Concentrations of nitrate generally were lower in streams 

than in ground water (p. 15). Modeling analysis indicates 

that this is a result of microbial, physical, and (or) chemical 

processes in or near the stream (p. 16).

• Elevated concentrations of 

nitrate and widespread low 

concentrations of pesticides were detected in 

streams in agricultural and 

urban areas (p. 15 and 18). 

• Concentrations of pesticides in some agricultural 

streams during periods of 

high runoff in late spring 

and early summer, soon 

after crop application, 

exceeded drinking-water 

guidelines (p. 18).

• Nonpoint urban contaminant sources, especially in 

commercial and industrial 

areas, were major contributors to the widespread 

presence of VOCs at low 

concentrations in streams 

(p. 21).

Trends in Stream Quality

• Stream quality, as indicated by fish-community measures, 

improved from the 1970s to the 1990s largely as a result of 

wastewater-treatment-plant upgrades implemented under 

provisions of the Clean Water Act (p. 5).

• Concentrations of lead, DDT, PCBs, chlordane, and dieldrin in lake-sediment cores have declined since regulatory 

actions discontinued their production and use; however, 

Urban

Agriculture

Wetlands

Forest

Water

Land use, 1992 to 1995

EXPLANATION

NY CT

PA

MD

DE

Study 

area

NJ

New Jersey

Long Island

Philadelphia

New York City

74

75

41

73

40

39

41

0 20 MILES

0 20 KILOMETERS

Atlantic

City

Land use is a primary factor affecting the quality of water 

resources in the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal 

Drainages study area.
2 Water Quality in the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Selected indicators of ground-water quality

Shallow ground water Supply wells

Urban Agricultural Domestic Public

Nitrate

Pesticides

Volatile

organics

Undeveloped

Insecticides, herbicides, and pesticide metabolites, sampled in water.

Solvents, refrigerants, fumigants, and gasoline compounds in water.

Percentage of samples with concentrations equal to or greater than

health-related national guidelines for drinking water

Percentage of samples with concentrations less than health-related 

national guidelines for drinking water

Percentage of samples with no detection

1

2

1

2

concentrations of zinc and PAHs in urban lake-sediment 

cores have steadily increased over time as a result of their 

association with increasing vehicular traffic and fossil-fuel 

use, respectiviely (p. 14).

Major Influences on Stream Quality

• Increased human activity/density and paved surfaces

• Increased surface runoff and chemical use

• Decreased base flow, forested area, and wetlands

Ground-Water Highlights

About 40 percent of the domestic (household) and 

public drinking-water supply in the study area is 

obtained from ground water that is replenished by precipitation that infiltrates the soil and drains to the watertable (surficial) aquifer. Elevated concentrations of 

nitrate and the frequent detection of pesticides and 

VOCs in water samples from surficial aquifers indicate 

that the aquifers are vulnerable to chemicals used in 

agricultural and urban areas. 

Concentrations of nitrate in samples of shallow 

ground water underlying agricultural areas in southern 

New Jersey and agricultural and suburban areas on 

Long Island frequently exceeded drinking-water guidelines. The use of nitrogen fertilizers to support crop production and the use of septic systems in these areas, 

combined with the presence of well-drained and aerated 

soils, favor the formation of nitrate and its movement to 

ground water. Pesticide and VOC concentrations in 

water samples from surficial aquifers in New Jersey 

generally were low and rarely exceeded drinking-water 

guidelines; concentrations generally were greater in 

samples from the Long Island surficial aquifer system. 

Drinking-water standards or guidelines have been 

established for only 29 and 34 percent of the pesticides 

and VOCs detected, respectively.

Although human activities associated with agricultural and urban land uses are the principal sources of 

contaminants in ground water, factors other than land 

use can affect ground-water quality. For example, some 

pesticides that are known to be used extensively were 

not detected in ground water because they degrade 

readily or are not mobile. Additionally, some constituents, such as arsenic and radium, were detected in water 

where surficial sediments or geologic formations are 

known to contain these elements. 

• Arsenic was frequently detected in samples from domestic 

wells in the Piedmont Physiographic Province (p. 12).

• Radium concentrations in one-third of 177 water samples 

from the surficial aquifer system in southern New Jersey 

exceeded the Federal drinking-water guideline (p. 13).

• The median concentration of nitrate in samples of shallow 

ground water underlying agricultural areas in the Coastal 

Plain of New Jersey was the highest nationwide among 47 

similar ground-water surveys conducted to date by the 

NAWQA Program (p. 15). 

• The most frequently detected pesticide compounds were 

herbicides and their breakdown products (p. 18); however, 

the most commonly used pesticides were not necessarily the 

most frequently detected in ground water (p. 20).

• VOCs were detected more frequently, and at higher concentrations, in samples of shallow ground water underlying 

urban areas than in those from agricultural or undeveloped 

areas (p. 23), and in samples of untreated water from public-supply wells than in those from shallow monitoring or 

domestic wells (p. 24).

• Nearly all samples from public-supply wells contained two 

or more pesticides and (or) VOCs (p. 25). Drinking-water 

guidelines do not address exposure to multiple compounds.

Trends in Ground-Water Quality

• A computer model study of the surficial aquifer system in 

southern New Jersey indicates that the concentration of 

nitrate in streams and public-supply wells is related to the 

type of land use in the recharge area and the time required 

for the recharge water to reach the stream or well (p. 16).

• Model results also indicate that years or even decades will 

be required before reduction in nitrate use will produce substantial decreases in the concentrations of nitrate in streams 

and ground water. If nitrate use remains at current levels, 

nitrate concentrations in streams and ground water in agricultural and urban parts of the study area will continue to 

increase for several decades (p. 17).

Major Influences on Ground-Water Quality

• Agricultural and urban land use

• Use and properties of chemicals

• Properties of soil and aquifer materials
INTRODUCTION TO THE LONG ISLAND–NEW JERSEY STUDY AREA

Introduction to the Long Island–New Jersey Study Area 3 

8

0

2

4

6

NEW JERSEY

0

8

2

4

6

LONG ISLAND

1900 1950 2000 1900 1950 2000

POPULATION,

IN MILLIONS

Environmental Setting and 

Hydrologic Conditions

The study area covers 6,000 

square miles (mi2) of the LINJ 

Study Unit plus an additional 

3,300 mi2

 in western New Jersey (fig. 1). About 15 million 

people (fig. 2) live in the study 

area, which includes some of 

the most densely populated 

metropolitan centers of the 

Nation. For more than two centuries, a prosperous commercial and industrial economy has 

centered on the seaports of New 

York City and Philadelphia. In 

the early 1970s, 22 percent of 

the study area was developed 

as urban residential, commercial, or industrial. By the mid1990s, urban land use had grown to 

33 percent of the area (fig.1), with 

a corresponding 11-percent 

decrease in forest and agricultural 

land. Population growth for the 

same period was about 8 percent 

overall, despite a slight population 

decline on Long Island (fig. 2). 

The cost of land and the pressure 

for development have reduced agricultural activities in the area. For 

example, agriculture constituted 

nearly 60 percent of the land use in 

1900. By the mid-1990s, agriculture accounted for only 14 percent 

of the land use. The more intensive 

agricultural areas that still remain 

are in eastern Long Island and in 

western and southern New Jersey. 

The remaining 53 percent of the 

study area in the mid-1990s was 

undeveloped land, principally forest (31 percent), wetlands (16 percent), and water (6 percent). As 

demonstrated since the 1970s, 

however, agricultural and undeveloped areas are rapidly becoming 

urbanized. 

About two-thirds of the study 

area is in the Coastal Plain (fig. 1), 

which is characterized by flat to 

gently rolling topography developed on unconsolidated sedimentary (New Jersey and Long Island) 

and glacial deposits (Long Island 

only). The other one-third, north of 

the Fall Line, is characterized by 

rolling to hilly topography of 

weathered bedrock with glacial 

deposits in the northernmost part. 

As much as 80 percent of the 

streamflow in the Coastal Plain is 

derived from ground-water discharge, whereas response to rainfall in northern New Jersey is 

dominated by surface runoff. Most 

of western Long Island, northeastern New Jersey, and the corridor 

between New York 

City and Philadelphia 

consists of heavily 

urbanized and thus 

relatively impervious 

areas that yield runoff 

rapidly. Ground-water 

pumping considerably reduces base 

flow in streams on the 

western part of Long 

Island. 

Water-supply systems in the study area 

are highly connected, 

and transfer of water 

across drainage 

divides and among 

basins is common. For 

example, about 100 

million gallons per day (Mgal/d) is 

transferred from the Delaware 

River Basin to the Raritan River 

Basin in the Delaware and Raritan 

Canal. The Kirkwood-Cohansey 

aquifer system and the outcrop of 

the Potomac-Raritan-Magothy 

aquifer system are the principal 

surficial aquifers in the New Jersey 

Coastal Plain. Glacial deposits of 

sand and gravel overlie most of 

Long Island and form the surficial 

aquifer. To a large extent, the surficial aquifer is underlain by and 

hydraulically connected to the 

deeper Magothy aquifer, the principal source of water for Long 

Island. 

Total freshwater withdrawals in 

the study area for all uses in 1995 

were greater than 1,600 Mgal/d 

(Clawges and others, 1999). 

Almost 80 percent of that amount 

was either from surface-water 

sources (streams, canals, or lakes) 

or from surficial ground-water 

sources (fig. 3); all of these 

sources are highly vulnerable to 

contamination (Clawges and others, 1999). Most of the waterFigure 2. The population of Long 

Island and New Jersey is more than 

four times larger than it was in 1900.

New York City

Valley

and 

Ridge

New England

Province

Piedmont

Coastal Plain

Fall Line

Philadelphia

Atlantic City

Urban land in 1973

Urban growth 1973 to 1995

Physiographic boundary

Western extent of Study 

Unit boundary

EXPLANATION

74

75

41

73

40

39

41

0 20 MILES

0 20 KILOMETERS

Figure 1. Urban land and associated human activities have a 

major influence on water quality and aquatic life.
4 Water Quality in the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

30

10

20

DEPTH TO WATER,

IN FEET BELOW 

LAND SURFACE 

Monthly, (surficial aquifer)

Mean (1960–99)

0

10

5

PRECIPITATION, 

IN INCHES

Total monthly

Mean (1960–99)

Oct–95

Dec–95

Feb–96

Apr–96

June–96

Aug–96

Oct–96

Dec–96

Feb–97

Apr–97

June–97

Aug–97

Oct–97

Dec–97

Feb–98

Apr–98

Jun–98

Aug–98

8

0

2

4

6

RUNOFF, IN INCHES

Total monthly

Mean (1960–99)

Table 1. Precipitation and runoff (in 

inches) during the 1996–98 sampling 

period were above the 40-year means

40-year

 mean 1996 1997 1998

Precipitation 47.4 59.9 52.0 48.8

Runoff 20.6 28.5 26.6 20.8

supply 

sources in 

the study 

area, therefore, are 

highly vulnerable to 

contamination 

from overlying and 

upstream 

human 

activities. 

Annual 

precipitation and runoff during the 

NAWQA water-quality sampling 

years (1996–98) were above normal compared to their 40-year 

mean (table 1). The months of 

higher than normal precipitation 

and runoff, however, were mainly 

from October 1995 through 

December 1996. Precipitation and 

runoff were generally near normal 

after December 1996, except for 

the summer months in 1997 and 

1998 (fig. 4).

Water-Quality Issues

The advisory committee for the 

LINJ NAWQA study identified two 

major water-quality concerns: (1) 

the effects of nonpoint-source runoff on streams, lakes, and estuaries, 

including aquatic biological communities, and (2) the vulnerability 

of public and domestic water supplies to contamination resulting 

from urban and agricultural activities. A wealth of data was available 

on contaminants such as VOCs, 

pesticides, nutrients, and trace elements, which are known to be 

related to high population density, 

urban and industrial development, 

and agricultural activities. Information on the processes governing 

contaminant occurrence, movement, and biological effects, however, was limited. Therefore, the 

LINJ study design (p. 28–29) 

focused on collection of data that 

would help describe these processes as well as add to the current 

knowledge of contaminant occurrence. Modeling approaches were 

used to help in the design of data 

collection and analyses of environmental factors and trends. 

 Although hydrology and geology differ among parts of the 

study area, analyses of available 

chemical and biological data 

indicate that land use is the primary differentiating factor for 

much of the water-quality variability across the study area. The 

LINJ study design, therefore, 

focused considerable attention 

toward understanding the specific aspects of land use that control observed water quality and 

aquatic biological communities. 

New information derived from 

the LINJ study is presented here to 

increase the understanding of (1) 

the effect of changing landscapes 

on stream aquatic life, (2) the 

occurrence of trace elements, 

nitrate, pesticides, and VOCs and 

other organic compounds in 

streams and aquifers, especially 

those used for drinking-water supply, and (3) implications of potential trends in water quality and 

aquatic biological communities in 

urban and agricultural areas.

Figure 4. Hydrologic conditions during the study period (water years 1996–98). 

Water-level data are for a monitoring well in the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer 

system; precipitation and runoff are for the Raritan River Basin.

Unclassified 

8% 38%

Surface water,

NJ only

39%

Surficial aquifers,

LINJ

15%

Confined

aquifers,

LINJ

Figure 3. Nearly 80 percent 

of the study-area drinkingwater supply is from a 

vulnerable surficial aquifer 

or surface-water source.
Major Findings 5 

MAJOR FINDINGS

the highly contaminant-tolerant 

white suckers made up a greater 

percentage of the fish communities 

in all basins during the 1970s than 

in the 1990s, especially in streams 

in the Delaware River Basin. In 

addition, during the 1990s, darters, 

of which many species (for example, the shield darter) are highly 

intolerant of human disturbance 

and habitat modification, increased 

Table 2. The mean Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) scores for streams of the Delaware, Passaic, and Raritan River Basins have increased significantly from the 

1970s to the 1990s. [n, the number of stream sites assessed; * indicates a significant change in mean IBI score (Chang and others, 2000)]

Index

Delaware River 

(n=32)

1970s 1990s

Passaic River 

(n=24)

1970s 1990s

Raritan River

(n=32)

1970s 1990s

Mean Index of Biotic 

Integrity score 34 40* 30 35* 33 36*

Condition rating fair good fair fair fair fair

Stream Conditions for Fish 

Have Improved Since the 

1970s

Fish are useful indicators of 

environmental changes in drainage 

basins because they are sensitive to 

a wide variety of stresses including 

changes in water chemistry and 

flow, modifications in habitat and 

food, and landscape alterations 

resulting from urbanization and 

other human-related activities. 

Moreover, fish accumulate certain 

contaminants within their tissues 

over their entire life span (Fausch 

and others, 1990; Karr and others, 

1987, Chang and others, 2000). 

One way to identify environmental 

changes in watersheds is to assess 

changes in stream condition by use 

of an Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI; 

blue text box below). On the basis 

of IBI results, conditions for fish 

in streams of the Delaware, Passaic, and Raritan River Basins 

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI)—Ten 

community measures (often called 

biometrics) based on the number of 

fish species, feeding habits, abundance, and health are used to evaluate the biological integrity of 

streams. A score of 1, 3, or 5 is assigned to each community measure 

on the basis of overall similarity to an 

appropriate regional reference site, 5 

indicating most similar and 1 indicating least similar to reference conditions. Scores for individual 

community measures at each sampling location are then summed to 

produce a total score, which is assigned a condition category. The 

maximum score a site can receive is 

50 and the minimum is 10. The four 

condition categories are excellent 

(44–50), good (37–43), fair (29–36), 

and poor (10-28) (Kurtenbach, 

1993). The IBI serves as an integrated analysis because individual biological measures provide differing 

levels of sensitivity to changes in biological condition (Barbour and others, 1999).

have improved since 

the 1970s (fig. 5; 

table 2) (Chang and 

others, 2000).

Of the 88 sites 

assessed, stream condition improved at 46 

percent, worsened at 

only 13 percent, and 

remained the same at 

41 percent from the 

1970s to the 1990s 

(fig. 5). Many factors, especially the 

improved treatment 

of wastewater discharges during the 

1980s and changes in 

land-use practices, 

may have contributed to the statistically significant 

increase in IBI 

scores in all three 

basins (table 2). 

Nonpoint sources 

were less of a factor 

than were pointsource improvements; but as discussed on pages 7 

and 8, urban nonpoint influences 

are still significant. The Delaware 

River Basin reflected the greatest 

improvement in stream condition, 

moving from a condition category 

of fair up to good (table 2). 

A change in stream condition 

also can be assessed by comparing 

the percentage composition of the 

fish families (fig. 6). For example, 

Improved

EXPLANATION

Physiographic Province

Change in stream condition

No change

Degraded

Valley and Ridge

New England

Piedmont

Coastal Plain

Drainage-basin

boundary

0 10 20 MILES

0 10 20 KILOMETERS

75 74

41

40

39

Upper

Delaware

River

Basin

Passaic 

River 

Basin

Raritan 

River 

Basin

Atlantic

Coastal

River

Basins

Lower 

Delaware

River 

Basin

Atlantic

City

New York City

Trenton

A T

L

A

N

T I C

O

C

E

A

N

Figure 5. Stream conditions for fish communities have 

improved from the 1970s to the 1990s at 41 of 88 sites 

in northern New Jersey.
6 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Table 3. Differences in aquatic-invertebrate communities in reference streams 

between northern and southern (Coastal Plain) New Jersey can be explained by 

natural differences in environmental conditions

Northern New Jersey Southern New Jersey

Most abundant 

aquatic invertebrates

Mayflies, stoneflies, caddisflies, and riffle beetlesWorms, freshwater clams, 

black flies, midges, caddisflies, and stoneflies

Environmental 

characteristics

Steeper channels and higher 

dissolved oxygen content

Low pH and low dissolved 

solids and nutrient content

Streambed 

characteristics 

Mainly rock and cobble Mainly sand and other fine 

sediments

in abundance in streams in the Passaic and Raritan River Basins and 

remained unchanged in streams in 

the Delaware River Basin. 

Many minnow species are indicators of good stream condition 

because they rely directly on the 

availability of aquatic insects for 

survival. Thus, as streams become 

degraded and insects and their larvae become scarcer, the numbers of 

insect-eating minnows often 

decrease. Minnows made up 

greater than 42 percent of the community during the 1970s and 1990s 

in all three river basins (fig. 6). The 

percentage of minnows increased 

in Delaware River streams. Minnows decreased slightly in the Passaic and Raritan River streams, 

however, an indication that these 

two basins may still reflect some 

degree of impairment. 

These differences, perhaps, may 

explain why the mean IBI score for 

streams in the Delaware River 

Basin increased slightly more than 

that for streams in the Passaic or 

Raritan River Basins (table 2). 

Other fishes (such as eels) were not 

mark sites whose drainage basins 

have been minimally disturbed by 

human activity. A comparison of 

these sites indicates that the 

aquatic invertebrate communities in the southern New Jersey 

Coastal Plain are distinctly different from those in the north as 

a consequence of natural differences in environmental and physical conditions (table 3). Thus,

natural variability in aquatic invertebrates needs to be taken into 

account when assessing communities across the entire study area. 

This finding helped focus our datacollection efforts toward gaining a 

included in this comparison 

because they are found over a large 

range in water-quality and habitat 

conditions, thus limiting their use 

as aquatic indicators (Kurtenbach, 

1993). Chang and others (2000) 

provide information on collection 

methods, fish taxonomy, and variability between the 1970s and 

1990s collections.

Aquatic Invertebrate 

Communities Differ Naturally 

Across the Study Area

The New Jersey Department of 

Environmental Protection (1994b) 

established 43 reference or benchFigure 6. Changes 

in the percentage of 

fish families (that is, 

a decrease in 

suckers and a 

general increase in 

darters) captured in 

streams of the 

Delaware, Passaic, 

and Raritan River 

Basins during the 

1970s (top) and the 

1990s (bottom) 

indicate that stream 

conditions have 

improved.

Suckers

9%

Minnows

51%

Eels

13%

Darters

10% Sunfishes 

8%

Other 9%

Minnows

42%

Sunfishes

15%

Suckers

14%

Darters

10%

Eels

12%

Other 7%

1970s

1990s

Eels

9%

Darters

10%

Sunfishes

13%

Suckers

19%

Minnows

43%

Other 6%

Delaware River Basin

Eels 2%

Minnows

45%

Suckers

24%

Sunfishes

16%

Darters

5%

Other 8%

Minnows

43%

Darters

16%

Sunfishes

17%

Suckers

17%

Other 6%

Eels 1%

Passaic River Basin Raritan River Basin

Minnows

49%

Suckers

16%

Sunfishes

19%

Darters

6%

Eels

4%

Other 6%
Major Findings 7 

better understanding of urban influences on northern New Jersey communities. In addition, analysis of 

LINJ NAWQA data indicates that 

aquatic-invertebrate communities 

on Long Island closely resemble 

New Jersey Coastal Plain communities because of similar physiographic and habitat conditions. 

Fish and Aquatic Invertebrate 

Communities Are Impaired in 

Urban Areas

Despite some overall improvements in stream condition (p. 5),

fish and aquatic-invertebrate 

communities are commonly 

impaired in the urbanized parts 

of New Jersey (figs. 7 and 8; see 

also fig. 1 on p. 3 for a comparison 

with urban area). Communityimpairment scores at more than 

150 fish-sampling sites (Kurtenbach, 1993) and more than 700 

aquatic-invertebrate sampling sites 

(for example, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, 

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Ambient Biomonitoring Network (AMNET) is a statewide network of more than 700 aquaticinvertebrate sampling sites that was designed to monitor the condition of aquatic-invertebrate communities in five water-management areas on a 5-year rotational basis. This sampling frequency is considered to be realistic for evaluating 

long-term environmental changes. Sampling locations (fig. 7), which were chosen in a stratified-random design to monitor all nontidal streams at approximately 3-mile intervals, include 43 reference sites. In addition, this network was 

designed to incorporate, wherever possible, existing USGS and NJDEP cooperative water-quality monitoring stations to maximize the integration of water-quality and biological information. Level of community impairment (non-impaired, 

moderately impaired, and severely impaired) is based on a modification of the 

USEPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocol II (Plafkin and others, 1989).

75 74

41

40

39 0 10 20 MILES

0 10 20 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION

MacroinvertebrateNon impaired

Drainagebasin boundary

Moderately impaired

Severely impaired

community impairment

and sampling site

Upper

Delaware

River

Basin

Passaic 

River 

Basin

Raritan 

River 

Basin

Atlantic

Coastal

River

Basins

Lower 

Delaware

River 

Basin

Atlantic

City

New York City

Trenton

A T

L

A

N

T I C

O

C

E

A

N

0 10 20 MILES

0 10 20 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION

Fish-community

Excellent

Drainage-basin

condition and

sampling site

Good

Fair

Poor

boundary

Upper

Delaware

River

Basin

Passaic 

River 

Basin

Raritan 

River 

Basin

Atlantic

Coastal

River

Basins

Lower 

Delaware

River 

Basin

Atlantic

City

New York City

Trenton

A T

L

A

N

T I C

O

C

E

A

N

75 74

41

40

39

Figure 7. Aquatic-invertebrate-community data at more 

than 700 New Jersey AMNET sites (blue text box above) 

commonly indicate moderate to severe impairment in 

higher density urban areas (gray areas in fig. 1, p. 3).

Figure 8. Fish-community data at more than 150 sampling 

sites in northern New Jersey indicate that streams in urban 

areas are in poor to fair condition (based on IBI scores; 

blue text box on p. 5).
8 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

1994a) in New Jersey were examined with respect to land use and 

other basin characteristics. The 

northwestern part of the State is 

less developed and consequently 

was least likely to reflect moderately or severely impaired aquatic 

communities (figs. 7 and 8). 

The percentage of urban area 

in the drainage basin and the 

amount of treated wastewater 

flows upstream from sampling 

sites were the primary factors 

related to a severely impaired 

aquatic-invertebrate community

(Kennen, 1999). Total amount of 

forest land in the basin, however, 

was a strong mitigating factor 

and increased the likelihood of 

an unimpaired aquatic-invertebrate community. Similarly, total 

population in proximity to the 

sampling site and the amount of 

urban land in a basin were found 

to be most highly related to poor 

fish-community conditions.

The following section describes 

an extension of these analyses of 

available data through an integrated study of the specific factors 

that affect biological communities 

in urban environments.

Characteristics of Urban 

Landscapes That Affect 

Aquatic Communities

More than 400 landscape and 

environmental variables were 

aggregated for comparison with 

data describing fish, invertebrate, 

and algal communities at 36 

streams in New Jersey and Long 

Island. Sites were chosen with 

drainage basins that ranged from 3 

to 96 percent urban land.

Analyses of these data indicated 

that increasing impairment of fish, 

aquatic-invertebrate, and algal 

communities was statistically 

related to components of the urban 

gradient (table 4; refer also to 

“Glossary,” p. 31). Environmental 

factors such as annual peak discharge, amount of impervious 

road area, and population density were related to impairment 

in all three types of aquatic communities (negative in table 4). 

Some environmental factors such 

as point-source flow, urban growth 

during 1986–95, and impervious 

nonroad area were related to 

impairment in the aquatic-invertebrate community only (negative in 

table 4). In addition, 

total urban area in 1986 appeared 

to be important only for the fish 

community. Other studies have 

found that historical changes in 

land use may have significant 

implications for longer-lived 

organisms such as fish.

The presence of cobble substrate was a factor contributing to 

healthier fish and aquatic-invertebrate communities (positive in 

table 4). Degradation of cobble and 

other stream habitat in urban systems likely is related to increases in 

Table 4. Environmental factors that were highly related to impairment of fish, 

aquatic-invertebrate, and algal communities along an urban land-use gradient. 

Green shading indicates factors that were more favorable to healthy aquatic communities and red shading indicates factors that were less favorable. [NS, No statistically significant effect on aquatic community]

Response of aquatic community

Watershed characteristic Fish Aquatic 

invertebrates Algae

Area of forest and wetlands NS Positive NS

Ability to maintain base flow NS Positive NS

Percentage of cobble substrate Positive Positive NS

Median sulfate concentration NS Positive Positive

Median total phosphorus concentration Negative NS Positive

Mean annual flood Negative Negative Negative

Flashiness of streamflow Negative NS NS

Impervious area, road area only Negative Negative Negative

Impervious area, nonroad area only NS Negative NS

Population density Negative Negative Negative

Total urban area in 1986 Negative NS NS

Urban area growth from 1986 to 1995 NS Negative NS

Commercial and industrial area in 1986 NS Negative Negative

Total point-source flow NS Negative NS

Figure 9. Unregulated 

impervious-area runoff 

directly affects water 

quality, habitat, and 

aquatic communities in 

streams and is 

exemplified by a stormsewer pipe (left) that 

drains directly into the 

Saddle River at 

Ridgewood, N.J.
Major Findings 9 

flow, channel erosion, and sedimentation common to minimally 

controlled urban stormwater runoff (fig. 9). In fact, changes in 

hydrologic factors (such as 

decreases in base flow and 

increases in peak discharge and 

the flashiness of streamflow) play 

a major role in influencing the 

types and condition of aquatic 

communities present in a stream

(table 4, fig. 10), in large part, by 

the way these changes in flow 

affect stream habitat. As a result, 

stream communities are continually stressed and rarely reach stable 

population levels in urban systems. Conversely, reductions in 

base flow resulting from changes in 

water-use and wastewater distribution practices greatly influence the 

suitability of a stream for many 

types of organisms (Klein 1979). 

The area of forest and wetlands 

in the drainage basin was a positive 

factor in the health of aquaticinvertebrate communities (tables 4 

and 5). Forests and wetlands play a 

major role in maintaining a healthy 

supply of water, food, and habitat 

for disturbance-intolerant and 

highly desired species. Thus, forest 

and wetlands are able to help mitigate the undesirable effects of other 

human-induced landscape alterations.

Organochlorine Compounds 

Were Detected in Streambed 

Sediment and in Fish Tissue

Even though the use of many 

organochlorine compounds has 

been discontinued, the widespread 

historical application and the environmental persistence of compounds such as chlordane, dieldrin, 

DDT, and PCBs have led to frequent detection in streambed sediment and in whole-fish tissue 

samples in Long Island and New 

Jersey (Stackelberg, 1997; Long 

and others, 2000). Analyses of 

available bed-sediment chemical 

data for nearly 300 sites (Stackelberg, 1997) indicate that chlordane 

and dieldrin concentrations in bed 

sediments were highest in urban 

areas, reflecting their past use for 

termite control. Concentrations of 

DDT and PCBs were highest in 

urban and industrial areas, reflecting their principal historical use as 

an insecticide and an industrial 

chemical (in hydraulic lubricants 

and heat-resistant oils in electrical 

transformers), respectively. No 

significant relations were found, 

however, between chlorinated 

hydrocarbon concentrations in bedsediment and whole-fish samples 

(white sucker, the chosen target 

species for this analysis) or 

between those in whole-fish samples and land use (Long and others, 

2000). 

Of the eight streams sampled in 

fall 1997, one-half of all bed-sediOrganochlorine pesticides in the environment—Following discovery of the tremendous insecticidal properties of DDT in 

the 1940s, numerous organochlorine insecticides (for example, dieldrin, chlordane, heptachlor, and DDT) were developed and 

used extensively for the control of agricultural pests as well as termites in residential and commercial settings. DDT was also

used historically to control mosquito and gypsy moth populations in residential and forested areas. The use of these insecticides peaked in the 1960s, but because of concerns over their toxic effects and tendency to bioaccumulate, restrictions on 

their use began in the 1970s; all uses of these organochlorine insecticides were discontinued by the mid-1980s. The residues 

of organochlorine insecticides are, however, extremely persistent in the environment. Once introduced into the aquatic environment, the lipophilic (“fat-loving”) nature of these compounds allows them to bioaccumulate and ascend through the food 

chain, often resulting in adverse effects on many aquatic species and fish-eating birds and wildlife.

Figure 10. Reductions in 

base flow of streams 

resulting from changes in 

up stream land-use and 

water-use practices affect 

the distribution of aquatic 

species in streams. For 

example, the difference in 

wetted habitat for medianflow conditions (upper 

photograph) and low-flow 

conditions (bottom 

photograph) at Neshanic 

River at Reaville, N.J., is 

substantial, although not 

entirely related to human 

activities.
10 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Elizabeth R at Hillside, N.J. 96

Saddle R at Upper Saddle River, N.J. 95

Saddle R at Ridgewood, N.J. 88

Rahway R at Washington Park, N.J. 81

Hohokus Brook at Allendale, N.J. 76

Bound Brook at Middlesex, N.J. 71

Whippany R at Morristown, N.J. 54

Passaic R near Chatham, N.J. 47

Great Egg Harbor R near Sicklerville, N.J. 43

Passaic R near Millington, N.J. 40

Wanaque R at Pompton Lakes, N.J. 38

Whippany R near Brookside, N.J. 37

Rockaway R at Boonton, N.J. 34

Lamington R near Pottersville, N.J. 33

Raritan R at Queens Bridge 32

SB Raritan R at Arch St 32

NB Raritan R near Raritan, N.J. 32

Stony Brook at Princeton, N.J. 29

Pequannock R at Pompton Lakes, N.J. 29

SB Raritan R at Darts Mill, N.J. 27

Lamington R at Burnt Mills, N.J. 27

Beden Brook near Rocky Hill, N.J. 24

Neshanic R at Reaville, N.J. 24

Musconetcong R at Hampton, N.J. 22

Rockaway R near Longwood Valley, N.J. 22

Mulhockaway R at Van Syckel, N.J. 22

Wanaque R near Awosting, N.J. 22

Paulins Kill at Lafayette, N.J. 21

Spruce Run near Glen Gardner, N.J. 20

Wallkill R near Sussex, N.J. 19

Musconetcong R at Hackettstown, N.J. 19

Pequannock R at Riverdale, N.J. 17

Doctors Creek at Allentown, N.J. 16

Paulins Kill at Augusta, N.J. 15

Paulins Kill at Blairstown, N.J. 10

Flat Brook near Flatbrookville, N.J. 3

Invertebrate

status

Algal 

status Urban gradient Percent 

 urban Stream name 

0 20 40 60 80 100

URBAN

AGRICULTURAL

FOREST

OTHER

LAND USE, IN PERCENT

Lowest 25 percent nationally

Middle 50 percent nationally

Highest 25 percent nationally

INVERTEBRATE AND ALGAL STATUS

LAND-USE CATEGORY

[least degraded sites]

[most degraded sites]

ment samples contained concentrations of chlordane, DDT, and PCBs 

that exceeded threshold effect levels (fig. 11; blue text box on p. 12; 

Long and others, 2000). Concentrations of chlordane and PCBs in 

whole-fish samples from many of 

the sites exceeded established 

guidelines for fish-eating wildlife. 

Some of the detected compounds 

are known to pose human health 

risks; however, concentrations in 

whole-fish samples from this study 

are not directly comparable to concentrations in edible portions (fillets) that are used to establish U.S. 

Food and Drug Administration 

(FDA) action levels for human 

consumption (U.S. Food and Drug 

Administration, 1992). Nonetheless, the FDA action levels for 

human consumption of total chlordane [300 μg/kg (micrograms per 

kilogram)], total DDT (5,000 

μg/kg), and total PCBs (2,000 

μg/kg) in edible portions of fish 

were not exceeded in the wholebody samples at any of the sites. 

Organochlorine compounds in 

lake-sediment cores and in water 

samples are discussed on pages 14 

and 20, respectively.

Trace-Element Concentrations 

Were Elevated in Streambed 

Sediment, Fish Tissue, and 

Ground Water 

Human activities have accelerated the release of trace elements to 

aquatic environments through 

point- and nonpoint-source contamination (blue text box below). 

Analyses of available bed-sediment 

chemical data for nearly 300 sites 

Trace elements in the environment–Geologic weathering accounts for natural releases of trace 

elements to aquatic environments. 

Human activities, however, have accelerated the release through pointand nonpoint-source contamination. 

Historically, industrial and other 

point sources were significant, as 

were releases from fossil-fuel burning and use of trace-element-based 

pesticides. More commonly now, 

trace elements from atmospheric 

deposition, vehicular traffic, and other activities accumulate on urban 

surfaces and are subsequently carried in runoff to streams. When introduced into aquatic environments, 

trace elements adsorb to finegrained sediments (Forstner and 

Wittman, 1983). Trace elements can 

accumulate in sediments and may 

affect the health of bottom-dwelling 

(benthic) organisms and higher 

trophic-level species (fish) that rely 

on benthic organisms for food. Although some trace elements such 

as copper, iron, manganese, selenium, and zinc are vital to the metabolic processes of aquatic 

organisms, they can still be toxic at 

high concentrations.

Table 5. Comparison of biological status at 36 Long Island–New Jersey stream 

sites to 140 NAWQA sites nationwide indicates that the high scores relative to 

other NAWQA sites are associated with urban watersheds. Sites are ordered from 

top to bottom in descending percentage of urban land (urban gradient)
Major Findings 11 

Aquatic-Community Status in a National Context

Comparisons of invertebrate and 

algal status at 36 LINJ sites to their 

status at 140 selected NAWQA sites 

nationwide were made using nationally derived indicators (described in 

blue text box below). These indicators were selected because of their 

ability to discriminate, in a predictable way, human influences on the 

environment. These indicators also 

have the desirable characteristic of 

sensitivity to environmental stressors 

and a low dependency on natural 

variability such as elevation, stream 

size, and ecoregion. The results discussed in this section are for the sole 

purpose of a national comparison 

and refer only to a population of 

NAWQA Program sampling sites. 

They are not designed to be used as 

benchmarks for other State, regional 

or national studies because the 

aquatic community indicators have 

not been calibrated for such purposes.

About one-half of LINJ status 

scores ranked in the middle onethird (yellow squares, table 5) of the 

140 NAWQA sites sampled during 

1996–98. Some LINJ status scores 

(orange squares), however, were in 

the upper one-third, and a few sampling sites such as the Elizabeth 

River at Hillside, Rahway River at 

Washington Park, and Passaic River 

near Chatham, N.J., were among the 

highest scores nationally for algae 

and invertebrates. All these sites fell 

in the upper part of the urban gradient, or in basins with greater than 47 

percent urban land use. These sites 

were dominated by disturbance-tolerant aquatic invertebrates such as 

worms and midges and supported 

few if any disturbance-sensitive 

invertebrates such as mayflies, 

stoneflies, and caddisflies. In addition, highly silt-tolerant algae made 

up from 86 to 98 percent of the 

overall community abundance. The 

presence of these tolerant forms 

reflect significant levels of disturbance and highly degraded instream 

and riparian habitat.

 About 35 percent of the LINJ 

status scores were among the lowest 

one-third nationally (blue squares, 

table 5). The Rockaway River at 

Boonton (figure top right), Lamington River near Pottersville, South 

Branch Raritan River at Arch Street, 

Spruce Run at Glen Gardner, Pequannock River at Riverdale, and Flat 

Brook near Flatbrookville, N.J., had 

some of the lowest scores nationally 

for algae and invertebrates (table 5). 

Land use in the basins of these sites 

is less than 34 percent urban. These 

sites were among the most diverse 

sampled in the LINJ study; 50 to 79 

percent of the invertebrate community was composed of intolerant 

organisms such as mayflies, stoneflies, and caddisflies. In addition, 

silt-tolerant algae made up less than 

19 percent of the algal community 

abundance at all sites. 

Two sites, Beden Brook near 

Rocky Hill and Doctors Creek at 

Allentown, N.J., were among the 

sites with the highest status scores 

nationally (most degraded) for algae 

and invertebrates, respectively 

(table 5), yet corresponding basins 

had relatively little urban land (less 

than 25 percent). In addition to nonpoint-source influence, these sites 

likely reflect additional degradation 

resulting from wastewater-treatment-plant effluent. Doctors Creek 

also has a high proportion of agricultural land and far less forest than 

many of the sites on the lower end 

of the urban gradient. Agricultural 

land is known to produce high levels of sedimentation in surface 

water and high levels of nutrients in 

surface water and ground water (see 

section on nitrate concentrations, p. 

15), which have historically been 

linked to aquatic-community degradation (Culp and others, 1986).

Biological indicators of water quality 

in a national context—The selected 

biological indicators respond to changes in stream degradation. Degradation 

can result from a variety of factors that 

modify habitat or other environmental 

features such as land use, water chemistry, and streamflow. Algal status 

focuses on changes in the percentage 

of certain algae in response to increasing siltation and often appears to correlate closely with increasing nutrient 

concentrations. Invertebrate status is 

the average of 11 invertebrate biometrics that summarize changes in richness, tolerance, trophic conditions, and 

dominance associated with water-quality degradation. Fish status, which 

sums the scores of four fish metrics 

(percent tolerant, omnivorous, nonnative individuals, and percent individuals with external anomalies), was not 

used for this national comparison 

because values for the full suite of sites 

were not available. For all these indicators, higher values indicate a more 

degraded system. 

Sampling aquatic invertebrates in the 

Rockaway River at Boonton, N.J.
12 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

2 3 4 5 7 10 20 30 40 50 70 100 200 300 400500 700 1,000 2,000

0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.07 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.7 1 2 3 4

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER GRAM

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER GRAM

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER KILOGRAM

EXPLANATION

Rahway River

Neshanic River

Saddle River

Passaic River

Stony Brook

Raritan River

Great Egg Harbor River

Bound Brook

SAMPLING SITES

Greater than or equal to TEL 

less than or equal to PEL

Less than Threshold Effect 

Level (TEL)

Greater than Probable Effect 

Level ( PEL)

BED-SEDIMENT-QUALITY GUIDELINES

NONCOASTAL PLAIN BASELINE

COASTAL PLAIN BASELINE

MEDIAN

BASELINE ESTIMATES AND MEDIAN

Chlordane

Total DDT

Total PCBs

1 2 5 10 20 50 100 200 500 1,000 2,000 5,000

Selenium

Arsenic

Chromium

Copper

Lead

Manganese

Nickel

Zinc

Antimony

Cadmium

Mercury

(O'Brien, 1997) indicated that 

trace-element concentrations in bed 

sediments were generally higher in 

the northern New Jersey physiographic provinces (related to urban 

development and geologic availability) and lower in the Coastal 

Plain (related to lower organic content of sediments, geologic availability, and stream-water pH). 

Higher copper, lead, and zinc concentrations were correlated with 

increased population density; zinc 

was correlated with wastewatertreatment-plant flows; higher 

arsenic was correlated with 

increased agricultural land use; and 

higher chromium was correlated 

with certain geologic deposits 

(especially in the New England 

Physiographic Province).

All eight of the streams sampled 

during fall 1997 were found to 

have at least two trace elements 

that exceeded TELs in bed sediment (fig. 11; Long and others, 

2000; blue text box on TELs and 

PELs below). Concentrations of 

eight trace elements at Rahway 

River near Springfield (fig. 11) 

exceeded TELs; arsenic, cadmium, 

and copper also exceeded PELs. 

Copper, manganese, mercury, 

and selenium were detected in fish 

livers at all sites. No significant 

relations were found between 

trace-element concentrations in 

fish livers and those in bed sediment or between concentrations in 

fish livers and any land-use category or population density (Long 

and others, 2000).

Arsenic was detected in 17 of 22 

samples collected from domesticsupply (household) wells completed in fractured bedrock aquifers 

of the Piedmont Physiographic 

Province, where geologic formations are known to contain arsenicbearing minerals. Concentrations 

ranged from 1 to 57 μg/L. The current drinking-water standard for 

Figure 11. Concentrations of selected trace elements and organochlorine 

compounds in bed sediment commonly exceeded TEL and PEL guidelines, 

especially at urban sites. (Background concentrations were estimated using 

method of Velz (1984); see blue text box below concerning TELs and PELs.)

TELs and PELs—Currently, there are no U.S. standards for assessing the potential for adverse biological effects due to contaminated freshwater sediment. The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) modified an approach by 

Long and Morgan (1991) to develop guidelines for marine and freshwater sediments. The CCME modified approach uses two 

assessment levels: (1) the threshold effect level (TEL), representing the concentration below which adverse effects are expected to occur rarely, and (2) the probable effect level (PEL), representing the concentration above which adverse effects 

are expected to occur frequently (Ecosystem Conservation Directorate Evaluation and Interpretation Branch, 1995). Concentrations between TEL’s and PEL’s are values at which occasional adverse biological effects are expected. Adverse biological 

effects are generally defined as effects that are considered to produce a negative response in an organism (for example, 

death, reduction in growth, or reduced reproductive success).
Major Findings 13 

During summer 1998, the LINJ 

study participated with 20 other 

NAWQA studies in a national 

survey (Krabbenhoft and others, 

1999) in which bed sediment 

samples were analyzed for total 

mercury and methylmercury, and 

fish-muscle tissues (fillets) were 

analyzed for total mercury 

(assumed to be predominantly 

methylmercury). Four sites were 

sampled in the LINJ study area 

(map on p. 28).

Atmospheric deposition is the 

primary source of mercury to 

most aquatic ecosystems in the 

eastern United States; in some 

areas, however, urban, industrial, 

mining, volcanic, and (or) geothermal sources contribute to elevated concentrations of total 

mercury in bed sediment. In addition, past use of mercury-based 

pesticides on golf courses and 

certain agricultural crops are possible sources. 

Mercury is readily methylated in 

the natural environment as a result 

of bacterially mediated sulfate 

reduction. Methylmercury is 

readily bioaccumulated and biomagnified, is the primary form of 

mercury in fish, and is a potent 

neurotoxin to humans and wildlife 

(fish, birds, and mammals).

At the LINJ sites, mercury 

concentrations in fish tissue 

(pickerel fillets) normalized by 

mean weight were positively 

related to methylmercury concentrations in water and negatively related to total mercury 

concentrations in bed sediment. 

These data indicate that mercury 

concentrations in fish tissue are 

more a function of methylmercury levels in water than in the 

sediment. This is consistent with 

results found nationally in fish tissue (Dennis Wentz, U.S. Geological Survey, written commun., 

2000). The highest concentrations 

of mercury in fish tissue [near 0.5 

μg/g (micrograms per gram) wet 

weight] were from the mixed-landuse site (Great Egg Harbor River), 

where relatively high percentages 

of wetlands may enhance methylation rates. Concentrations of mercury in fish tissue were 

intermediate in urban basins and 

lowest in the agricultural basin.

Nationally, background and 

mixed (agricultural and forested) 

basins had the highest mean mercury methylation efficiencies (as 

measured by the ratio of methylmercury to total mercury) in water. 

Mixed (agricultural and forested) 

basins had the highest mean methylation efficiencies in bed sediment; methylation efficiencies in 

background, agricultural, and 

urban basins were lower.

Mercury Concentrations in Fish Tissue Were Related to 

Methylmercury Concentrations in Water

arsenic is 50 μg/L, but the USEPA 

has proposed a tenfold decrease in 

this standard to 5 μg/L. Six of the 

samples (27 percent) contained 

arsenic in concentrations equal to 

or greater than 5 μg/L.

Concentrations of radium (sum 

of Ra-226 and Ra-228) above the 

drinking-water standard were 

found in 33 percent of 170 wells 

sampled in the surficial aquifer system in southern New Jersey (Szabo 

and others, 1997). The highest 

radium levels were in areas where 

acidic waters are associated with 

surficial sediments that contain 

radium from geologic sources (primarily the Bridgeton Formation) 

and agricultural areas where use of 

nitrogen fertilizers and lime is 

heavy. The leaching and nitrification of applied fertilizers, which 

increase the dissolved-solids content and acidity of ground water, 

are likely mechanisms by which 

radium is mobilized from surficial 

sediments and transported to 

ground water. More recently, the 

short-lived isotope radium-224 was 

detected in samples from this surficial aquifer system in waters 

affected by the same chemical processes (Zoltan Szabo, U.S. Geological Survey, written commun., 

2000). 

In a 59-well subset of the 170 

wells above, mercury was detected 

at concentrations above the drinking-water standard of 2 μg/L in 

about 10 percent of the samples. 

The source is suspected to be 

linked to past use of mercury-based 

pesticides. Mercury may have 

increased mobility as a result of the 

natural acidity of waters from the 

surficial aquifer in southern New 

Jersey, as well as widespread contamination of these waters with 

chloride from road salt, septic systems, and other discharges; but the 

mechanisms are as yet not well 

understood.
14 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Lake-sediment cores were useful for discerning chemical-use history—Lakes are more representative of a stable depositional environment than streams. Differences in sediment concentrations between the lake-sediment cores are related to 

differences in sedimentation rates and to factors affecting chemical inputs such as population density, traffic density, chemical 

use, and the extent of urban land use in the watershed. For example, even though the concentrations are different, the reduction of contaminants regulated by environmental legislation (chlordane, PCBs, DDT, and lead) is clearly evident in the sedimentary record for the three urban lakes. Bed-sediment chemical data from streams, although useful for determining 

the relative effects of basin land use, had large within-site sample variability and were not particularly useful for trend 

detection, even with 25 years of data (Stackelberg, 1997; O'Brien, 1997). This finding is typical of streambed-sediment data 

because sediments of different ages and different sources are continuously being mixed by changing hydrologic conditions. 

Analyses of lake sediment cores 

are an effective method for evaluating water-quality trends. (See 

blue text box below.) Cores were 

extracted from three lakes in northern New Jersey and one on Long 

Island as part of a national lakecoring study (Callender and Van 

Metre, 1997). Sediment was dated 

by use of cesium-137, a by-product 

of nuclear-weapons testing. 

Trace elements (arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, nickel, and zinc) were 

detected throughout the cores of 

all four lakes, with concentrations of most elements elevated in 

the three urbanized basins relative to the largely forested Clyde 

Potts Reservoir basin. Until concentrations of lead peaked in the 

1970s, lead and zinc concentrations were highly correlated over 

time with the population in the 

vicinity of the lake. Population is 

an indicator of vehicular traffic, 

which in turn is an indicator of gasoline use (a probable lead source) 

and tire wear (a probable zinc 

source). Removal of lead from gasoline by the Clean Air Act resulted 

in a general decrease in sedimentary concentrations of lead since 

the mid-1970s phaseout (fig. 12); 

however, lead concentrations 

remain elevated compared to 

detections at the base of the cores. 

Zinc concentrations are generally 

increasing in the three urban watersheds in response to increasing 

population and traffic density, but 

not in Clyde Potts Reservoir, which 

is least affected by traffic.

Detectable concentrations of 

chlordane, total DDT, total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) 

and total PCBs were found in all 

lake cores; dieldrin was detected in 

only two lake cores. Generally, 

concentrations of organochlorine compounds began to decline 

after regulatory action discontinued organochlorine production 

and use in the 1970s and 1980s, 

but the persistence of these compounds may mean that a substantial amount of time must 

pass before they are purged from 

the basin. Concentrations of 

PAHs, however, are elevated and 

generally increasing over time in 

sediment cores (fig. 13), presumably as a result of increased 

vehicular and other fossil-fuel 

use associated with urban development. Concentrations of PAHs 

were lowest in Clyde Potts Reservoir (least traffic influence). Of 

particular note are the low concentrations of PAHs in Packanack 

Lake sediments in the 1930s, when 

automobiles were comparatively 

rare and before the watershed was 

urbanized. These trends have been 

observed in other urban lake-sediment cores across the United States 

(Callender and Rice, 2000).

History of Chemical Use Is Evident in Lake-Sediment Cores

1920

1930

1940

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500

LEAD CONCENTRATION, 

IN MICROGRAMS PER GRAM

Clyde Potts Reservoir

Newbridge Pond

Orange Reservoir

Packanack Lake

APPROXIMATE YEAR OF DEPOSITION

Figure 12. The mid-1970s phaseout 

of lead from gasoline as a result of 

the Clean Air Act has resulted in 

decreased basin inputs of lead 

concentrations in lake sediment.

1930

1940

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

1,000 10,000 100,000 1,000,000

TOTAL PAH, IN MICROGRAMS PER KILOGRAM

Clyde Potts Reservoir

Newbridge Pond

Orange Reservoir

Packanack Lake

APPROXIMATE YEAR OF DEPOSITION

Figure 13. Concentrations of total 

polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons 

(PAHs) are elevated and generally 

increasing in sediment cores as a 

result of increased vehicular traffic 

and fossil-fuel use. 
Major Findings 15 

Nitrate in the environment—Nitrate is a naturally occurring constituent in streams and ground water. Nitrate is 

formed by bacterial transformation of reduced (ammonia) and organic forms of nitrogen. It is introduced in 

excess of natural inputs to the environment through sources such as chemical fertilizers, manure, industrial 

wastes, sewage and septic-system effluents, and atmospheric deposition. Because nitrate is highly soluble and 

mobile, it enters streams in surface runoff and also leaches through permeable soils and recharges groundwater systems. The presence of nitrate in potable water supplies is of concern because ingestion of water with 

nitrate concentrations in excess of 10 mg/L as nitrogen (N) can sometimes lead to a blood disorder in infants 

commonly called blue-baby syndrome. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has established a Maximum 

Contaminant Level (MCL) of 10 mg/L as N for water delivered by public purveyors. 

Nutrients Were Detected in 

Streams and Ground Water

Nitrate nitrogen was the most 

frequently detected nutrient species 

in 146 samples collected from 7 

streams that drain areas with differing land-use settings (Reiser, 1999) 

and in 220 samples collected from 

108 monitoring wells, 82 domestic 

wells, and 30 public-supply wells. 

(See study design on pages 28–29.) 

Other nutrient species analyzed 

for during this study included 

nitrite, ammonia, and organic nitrogen; orthophosphate phosphorus; 

and phosphorus. These constituents 

were detected infrequently and at 

low concentrations in ground water 

(graphs on p. 36). In stream samples, these constituents were 

detected more frequently. Total 

phosphorus concentrations, for 

example, equaled or exceeded the 

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection surfacewater-quality criterion of 0.1 milligram per liter (mg/L) in nearly 40 

percent of samples from the seven 

sites (p. 36). Phosphorus has been 

identified as a limiting nutrient that 

controls eutrophication (excessive 

growth of algae and vegetation) 

(fig. 14) in most New Jersey freshwater (New Jersey Department of 

Environmental Protection, 1998). 

Although phosphorus concentrations have declined in many locations throughout the State, 

exceedences of the phosphorus criterion are still common. Additional control of phosphorus to 

prevent or reduce eutrophication is 

being evaluated by water-resource 

managers and regulators.

The highest median concentration of nitrate was for samples of 

ground water collected from 

shallow monitoring wells in agricultural settings in the Coastal 

Plain of New Jersey (fig. 15). In 

fact, the median nitrate concentration of 13 mg/L reported for 

these shallow agricultural monitoring wells was the highest of 47 

similar surveys conducted to date 

across the Nation as part of the 

NAWQA Program. Intensive use 

of nitrogen fertilizers and manure 

to support crop production and the 

well-drained, aerated soils of the 

Coastal Plain combine to favor the 

formation, leaching, and recharge 

of nitrate to ground water. Nitrate 

concentrations exceeded the drinking-water standard in 60 percent of 

these samples. The median nitrate 

concentration in streams draining 

predominantly agricultural basins 

was less than 2.0 mg/L.

The median concentration of 

nitrate in samples of shallow 

ground water underlying urban 

areas in the Coastal Plain of New 

Jersey was 2.8 mg/L as N (fig. 15). 

Again, the median nitrate concentration in streams draining predominantly urban basins was less than 

that of ground water. The median 

concentration of nitrate in samples 

of shallow ground water and 

streams in undeveloped areas of the 

Coastal Plain was less than 0.25 

mg/L as N (fig. 15), reflecting a 

general absence of human inputs of 

nitrogen in these areas. In a similar 

study of shallow ground-water 

Figure 14. Elevated concentrations 

of nutrients in streams and lakes can 

stimulate excessive growth of 

aquatic algae and vegetation and 

otherwise degrade water quality.

0 40 10 20 30

CONCENTRATION, IN

MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

EXPLANATION

Stream sample

Ground-water 

sample

Agricultural

Urban

Undeveloped

Mixed land use

Median concentration

Drinking-water

standard

Figure 15. Nitrate concentrations are 

higher in ground water than in 

streams for most land-use categories.
16 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

quality on Long Island, median 

nitrate concentrations were also 

highest in agricultural areas, intermediate in areas of suburban development, and lowest in undeveloped 

areas (Eckhardt and Stackelberg, 

1995). 

The median concentration of 

nitrate in water samples from 

domestic and public-supply wells 

in New Jersey (mixed land-use settings; fig. 15) was 1.6 mg/L as N. 

Domestic and public-supply wells 

sampled during this study are completed deeper in the aquifer than 

monitoring wells. Also, the domestic and public-supply wells are 

pumped at higher rates than the 

monitoring wells; thus, samples 

from these wells are less likely to 

have elevated nitrate concentrations 

than are samples from shallow 

monitoring wells in urban or agricultural areas.

The highest median and most 

variable concentrations of nitrate in 

streams were in large drainage 

basins that contain mixed land-use 

settings (fig. 15). These large drainage basins contain nonpoint 

sources of nitrate from agricultural 

and urban areas, as well as point 

sources such as effluent from 

wastewater-treatment plants. 

Predicting Changes in Nitrate 

Concentrations in Streams 

and Wells

Difficulties in detecting waterquality changes (trends) in streams 

and ground water are linked to (1) 

the amount of time required for 

water to move through a drainage 

basin or aquifer system and discharge to a stream or well, (2) landuse and chemical-use changes over 

time, and (3) an inability to clearly 

separate hydrologic or waterquality trends from climatic variability. One approach to gaining a 

better understanding of potential 

trends is to use a computer model 

of the hydrologic system. A threedimensional ground-water-flow 

model was developed to simulate 

the movement of nitrate from the 

water table, through the surficial 

aquifer system, to streams and public-supply wells in the surficial 

aquifer system in the Glassboro 

study area of southern New Jersey. 

The model integrates the hydraulic 

properties of the aquifer with landuse and nitrate-use changes over 

time to simulate nitrate concentrations at points of discharge 

(streams and wells). 

In general, simulated nitrate concentrations matched concentrations measured in samples from 

public-supply wells in the study 

area, verifying that nitrate moves 

conservatively (that is, persists 

without being sorbed or chemically 

degraded) through the aquifer system. Simulated nitrate concentrations in three streams during base 

flow over a 9-year period, however, 

had to be multiplied by 0.6 to 

obtain a match with measured 

nitrate concentrations. Because 

nitrate appeared to move conservatively to wells, the apparent 

loss of nitrate in streams indicates that about 40 percent of the 

nitrate in aquifer recharge is 

removed by denitrification in the 

aquifer near the streams and (or) 

by in-stream processes. This finding is corroborated by the findings 

that median concentrations of 

nitrate in shallow ground water 

were consistently greater than 

those in streams draining similar 

land-use settings.

The model was also used to evaluate the effects of various hypothetical changes in nitrogen-use 

patterns on nitrate concentrations 

in streams and public-supply wells. 

The use of manure and nitrogenbased fertilizers has been steadily 

increasing since 1950 (Modica and 

others, 1998). In the year 2000, 

nitrate concentrations in recharge 

1940 2100 1960 2000 2040 2080

0

5

1

2

3

4

NITRATE CONCENTRATION, IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

Historical input

Fixed at year

Reduced at

Reduced

1980 2020 2060

to zero

constant rate

2000 levels

Streams Public-supply wells

1940 2100 1960 2000 2040 2080

0

5

1

2

3

4

NITRATE CONCENTRATION, IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

Historical input

Reduced at

Reduced

2020 2060

Fixed at year

to zero

constant rate

2000 levels

1980

Figure 16. Simulated concentrations of nitrate in streams and public-supply wells for three hypothetical nitrogen-use patterns,

Glassboro study area, New Jersey. A decrease in nitrate concentrations to half of the concentration in year 2000 will take 10 

or more years because of the amount of time required for water introduced before 2000 to move through the aquifer system.
Major Findings 17 

resulting from the hypothetical 

changes in nitrogen-use patterns 

were assumed to be (1) fixed at 

year 2000 levels, (2) reduced at a 

constant rate to zero in the year 

2050, or (3) immediately reduced 

to zero (fig. 16). 

The model shows that the 

response of nitrate concentrations in streams and publicsupply wells differs depending on 

the nitrogen-use pattern, but that 

in each case, the concentration of 

nitrate in streams and publicsupply wells will not decline 

immediately, primarily because 

of the amount of time required 

for water to move through the 

aquifer system and discharge to a 

stream or well (fig. 16). In fact, if 

nitrate concentrations in recharge 

remain at current (year 2000) 

levels, the concentration of nitrate 

in streams and public-supply wells 

will actually continue to increase 

for several decades before leveling 

off at a concentration corresponding to the amounts of nitrate 

applied to urban, agricultural, and 

undeveloped lands in recharge 

areas. 

Even if nitrate concentrations in 

recharge are reduced at a constant 

rate to zero in the year 2050, nitrate 

concentrations in streams and 

public-supply wells will continue 

to increase for 5 to 10 years (fig. 

16). This lag in response is equivalent to the average age of water discharging to streams and publicsupply wells. Because publicsupply wells sampled for this study 

are screened near the bottom of the 

aquifer system, they withdraw 

water that is on average older than 

water discharging to streams. Thus, 

streams will respond faster to 

changes in land use or chemical use 

than public-supply wells will.

Finally, if the concentration of 

nitrate in recharge that had been 

steadily increasing since 1950 

could be immediately reduced to 

zero in the year 2000 (fig. 16), the 

concentration of nitrate in streams 

and public-supply wells would 

begin to decrease almost immediately as the result of the influx of 

young, uncontaminated ground 

water. The decrease in nitrate concentrations in streams and supply 

wells to one-half of the concentration in the year 2000, however, 

would still take 10 or more years 

because of the amount of time 

required for water introduced 

before 2000 to move through the 

aquifer system and discharge to a 

stream or well.

In addition to predicting changes 

in the concentration of nitrate in 

streams and public-supply wells 

over time, the model also was used 

to predict changes in nitrate concentrations at a depth (90 to 100 

feet below land surface) at which 

many domestic wells in the study 

area are installed (fig. 17). 

Simulation results show that 

nitrate concentrations at this 

depth will increase across the 

study area over the next 50 years 

and will likely exceed the drinking-water standard for nitrate in 

those areas where nitrogen fertilizer use is most intensive.

YEAR 2000 YEAR 2050

SIMULATED NITRATE CONCENTRATION

100 FEET BELOW LAND SURFACE, IN

MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

0.07 – 1.0

Greater than 1 – 3

Greater than 3 – 10

Greater than 10 – 14

EXPLANATION

39

30'

39

45'

75

75 15'

0 5 MILES

0 5 KILOMETERS 39

30'

39

45'

75

75 15'

New

Jersey

Study

Area

Figure 17. Domestic wells in the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer of southern New Jersey are commonly completed at a depth 

of 90-100 feet below land surface. Simulated nitrate concentrations at this depth in the Glassboro study area for the years 

2000 and 2050 indicate that ground water in areas of intensive nitrogen fertilizer use is likely to exceed the drinking-water 

standard for nitrate of 10 mg/L by 2050. This simulation assumes nitrate inputs remain unchanged from year 2000.
18 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Pesticides Were Detected in 

Streams and Ground Water

Pesticides were more prevalent 

in streams than in ground water. 

Concentrations in both water 

sources were generally low in the 

study area and rarely exceeded 

drinking-water standards 

(MCLs), drinking-water health 

advisories (HAs), or aquatic-life 

guidelines (AQLs) (fig. 18). 

MCLs, HAs, or AQLs have not 

been established, however, for 8 of 

the 41 pesticides detected in 

streams and 11 of the 38 pesticides 

detected in ground water. Overall, 

one or more pesticide compounds 

were detected in all but 1 of 146 

stream samples (Reiser, 1999) and 

in 63 percent of 220 ground-water 

samples. These findings are consistent with the national findings 

to date from the NAWQA Program 

in which low-level concentrations 

of pesticides were detected in 

almost every stream sample and in 

about one-half of all ground-water 

samples (U.S. Geological Survey, 

1999).

The five most frequently 

detected pesticides in stream and 

ground-water samples were herbicides and a herbicide metabolite (fig. 18). (Metabolites form 

when a parent compound 

degrades.) Atrazine and metolachlor are among the most heavily 

applied agricultural herbicides in 

New Jersey (fig. 19; blue text box 

below). Prometon and simazine, 

however, have little reported use by 

licensed applicators in New Jersey. 

These herbicides are available for 

purchase and use by nonlicensed 

applicators such as homeowners, 

and their frequent detection in this 

study likely reflects their use by the 

general public.

Pesticide Detections Vary by 

Season and in Response to 

Land Use

Concentrations of pesticides in 

streams vary throughout the year in 

response to seasonal patterns in 

pesticide applications (U.S. Geological Survey, 1999). Pesticide 

concentrations in samples collected 

from some agricultural streams 

during high flows soon after crop 

application (late spring to early 

summer) exceeded drinking-water 

guidelines (Reiser, 1999). For 

example, concentrations of the 

Pesticide use--A pesticide is any substance or mixture of substances used to control pests, such as insects 

(insecticides), weeds (herbicides), and fungi (fungicides). Pesticides have long been used in agricultural settings, and their use in urban and undeveloped areas has increased in the last several decades (Barbash and 

Resek, 1996). More than 10,000 products containing more than 400 major active ingredients are currently registered for use as pesticides in New Jersey (Hamilton and Meyer, 1994). Agriculture accounts for the largest use 

of pesticides; more than 1.4 million pounds of active ingredients were applied by licensed applicators in 1997 

(fig. 19). Residential lawn care accounts for the second largest use; more than 500,000 pounds of active ingredient (mostly herbicides) were applied by licensed applicators in 1998. Maintenance of golf courses and control 

of weeds in right-of-way areas account for most remaining pesticide use by licensed applicators.

Atrazine

Prometon

Metolachlor

Deethylatrazine

Simazine

0.0001 100 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10

CONCENTRATION,

IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

EXPLANATION

Stream sample

Ground-water sample

Drinking-water standard 

or health advisory

Aquatic-life guideline

0 100 50

DETECTION

FREQUENCY,

IN PERCENT

Compound detected at

0.01 microgram per liter

or greater

Figure 19. Metolachlor and chlorpyrifos are the herbicides and insecticides most 

heavily applied by licensed applicators in New Jersey, 1997-98. (Data from New 

Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Pesticide Control Program, 

Trenton, N.J.)

Figure 18. Pesticides occur more 

frequently in streams than in ground 

water, but concentrations in both 

rarely exceed drinking-water 

standards.

Metolachlor

Oil

Acetochlor

Atrazine

Glyphosate

Alachlor

Azinphos-methyl

Cyanazine

Chlorthal-dimethyl

Methomyl

Carbaryl

Chlorpyrifos

2,4-D

Paraquat

Bensulfide

Diazinon

Pendimethalin

Dicamba

Diuron

Trifluralin

Mecoprop

Imidacloprid

Trichlorfon

Triclopyr

Benfluralin

Bendiocarb

MCPA

0

120,000

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

ACTIVE INGREDIENTS APPLIED,

IN POUNDS

PESTICIDE USE

Agriculture

Lawn care, rights-of-way, and

golf course maintenance
Major Findings 19 

herbicide atrazine increased as 

much as 500 percent in samples of 

Raritan River runoff during MayJuly (fig. 20). The Raritan River 

Basin is about 30 percent agricultural land on which atrazine is 

applied during the spring.

Herbicides such as atrazine and 

metolachlor that are used primarily 

for agricultural weed control were 

detected most frequently, and at 

highest concentrations, in samples 

from streams whose drainage 

basins contained about 25 percent 

or more agricultural land (fig. 21; 

Reiser and O’Brien, 1999) and in 

samples of shallow ground water 

underlying agricultural settings in 

New Jersey (fig. 22; Stackelberg 

and others, 1997). Atrazine and 

metolachlor are also frequently 

detected in shallow ground water 

underlying agricultural settings on 

Long Island (Phillips and others, 

1999). 

The herbicide prometon was 

detected most frequently in streams 

and shallow ground water associated with urban settings in New 

Jersey (fig. 22) and on Long Island 

(Phillips and others, 1999). Prometon is used in areas where total vegetation control is desired—for 

example, along roadways, rail 

ways, and other rights-of-way. 

Although prometon is not among 

the most commonly used herbicides by licensed applicators in 

New Jersey, it is available commercially and ranked 14th nationally 

for home and garden herbicide use 

(U.S. Geological Survey, 1999). In 

New Jersey, prometon was frequently detected in streams that 

drain mixed land-use areas, a 

reflection of its use along roadways 

and around homes.

The herbicide simazine, which is 

used in agricultural and nonagricultural settings, was detected in 

MJ J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FMAM

1996 1997 1998

0.01

10

0.02

0.04

0.1

0.2

0.4

1

2

4

CONCENTRATION, IN

MICROGRAMS PER LITER

100

100,000

200

400

1,000

2,000

4,000

10,000

20,000

40,000

EXPLANATION

Daily mean streamflow Atrazine

Raritan River at Queens Bridge at Bound Brook, N.J.

DAILY MEAN STREAM FLOW, IN

CUBIC FEET PER SECOND

Figure 20. Concentrations of atrazine and other pesticides are highest during 

high streamflow in May–July following the April–June application period.

0.0002

CONCENTRATION, IN 

MICROGRAMS PER LITER 

DECREASING AGRICULTURAL LAND USE

Barren

Wetland

Forest Water

Urban

Agriculture Atrazine

Metolachlor

0

100

50

LAND USE, 

IN PERCENT

EXPLANATION

2

0.001

0.01

0.1

Land use in drainage basin Pesticide concentration, in

micrograms per liter

Figure 21. Concentrations of atrazine and metolachlor in samples from 50 stream 

sites were related to agricultural land use (from Reiser and O’Brien, 1999).

100

0

20

40

60

80

FREQUENCY OF DETECTION AT

0.01 MICROGRAM PER LITER

OR GREATER, IN PERCENT 

EXPLANATION

Streams Ground water Streams Ground water Streams Ground water

Atrazine Metolachlor Simazine Prometon Carbaryl

Agricultural Urban Undeveloped Not detected Not detected Not detected Not detected Not detected

Not detectedNot detected

Figure 22. Pesticides are detected more frequently in streams and ground water 

in agricultural and urban areas than in undeveloped areas.
20 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

streams and shallow ground water 

underlying agricultural and urban 

areas in New Jersey (fig. 22) and 

on Long Island (Phillips and others, 1999). The insecticide carbaryl, which also is used in 

agricultural and nonagricultural 

settings, was detected almost 

exclusively in samples from 

streams. During this study, carbaryl 

was the fourth most commonly 

applied agricultural insecticide and 

the fifth most commonly applied 

lawn-care insecticide by licensed 

applicators in New Jersey. Carbaryl 

is also available commercially to 

nonlicensed applicators such as 

homeowners. Despite its high rate 

of use, carbaryl was infrequently 

detected in ground water in New 

Jersey or on Long Island (Phillips 

and others, 1999). This finding 

demonstrates that high application 

rates alone do not necessarily result 

in the detection of pesticides in 

ground water. 

Pesticide Detections in 

Ground Water Are Related to 

Pesticide Properties

The most commonly used pesticides are not necessarily the most 

frequently detected in samples of 

shallow ground water. Various 

properties dictate pesticide persistence or mobility in the environment and make certain pesticides 

more likely to be detected in 

ground water and other pesticides 

less likely, regardless of the quantity applied at land surface. Vogue 

and others (1994) derived a movement rating for pesticide compounds in ground water based on 

expected persistence (soil half-life) 

and mobility or tendency to adsorb 

to soil particles (soil-sorption coefficient). Thirty-four pesticides analyzed during this study for which 

usage data are available were classified by the method of Vogue and 

others (1994) as having low to very 

low, moderate, or high to very high 

movement ratings. Pesticides with 

low to very low or moderate movement ratings were seldom detected 

(less than 5 percent) in samples of 

shallow ground water, even if 

applied in large quantities (fig. 23). 

In contrast, pesticides with high to 

very high movement ratings were 

detected more frequently (5 to 26 

percent) even if applied in relatively small quantities.

Organochlorine Insecticides 

Were Detected in Streams 

and Ground Water

Even though the use of many 

organochlorine compounds has 

been discontinued, their widespread historical application and 

environmental persistence have led 

to frequent detection in streambed 

sediments (Stackelberg, 1997) and 

in whole-fish tissue samples (Long 

and others, 2000) (see blue text box 

and discussion on p. 9). During this 

study, the organochlorine insecticide dieldrin, which was used historically to control termite 

populations in residential settings 

and, to a lesser extent, to control 

insects in agricultural settings, was 

detected in 24 to 27 percent of samples from monitoring and publicsupply wells in southern New Jersey (Stackelberg and others, 2000). 

Agricultural uses of dieldrin were 

discontinued in the 1970s, and its 

use as a termiticide was canceled in 

the mid-1980s, 10 years before the 

collection of these ground-water 

samples. Dieldrin was also detected 

in nearly 20 percent of samples 

from streams that drain agricultural 

areas during this study (Reiser and 

O’Brien, 1999).

Organochlorine insecticides 

were detected in 52 and 100 percent of samples of shallow ground 

water underlying suburban and 

agricultural areas, respectively, in a 

similar study on Long Island in the 

mid-1980s (Eckhardt and Stackelberg, 1995). Dieldrin, chlordane, 

and heptachlor epoxide (a metabolite of heptachlor) were the most 

frequently detected organochlorine 

insecticides in areas of suburban 

development where they were used 

for termite control (fig. 24). Dieldrin and heptachlor epoxide, as 

well as DDT and its metabolites 

DDD and DDE, also were frequently detected in samples from 

agricultural areas where they were 

used historically to control potato 

beetles and other agricultural pests.

More recently, three organochlorine compounds were detected in 

samples from 50 wells in the surficial aquifer system on Long Island 

(Phillips and others, 1999). The 

metabolite DDE was detected in 30 

10,000

1

1,000,000

10

1,000

100,000

TOTAL POUNDS OF ACTIVE INGREDIENT 

APPLIED BY LICENSED APPLICATORS IN 

NEW JERSEY, 1997

0

30

5

10

15

20

25

FREQUENCY OF DETECTION GREATER THAN OR 

EQUAL TO 0.01 MICROGRAM PER LITER, IN PERCENT

PESTICIDE MOVEMENT RATING

High to very high

Moderate

Low to very low

100

Figure 23. Pesticides with high to 

very high movement ratings have the 

highest detection frequency (5 to 26 

percent) in ground water even when 

applied in relatively small quantities.
Major Findings 21 

percent of these samples 25 

years after all uses of its parent 

compound DDT were canceled.

The frequent detection of 

organochlorine compounds in 

ground water 10 to 25 years 

after their use was discontinued demonstrates the environmental persistence of these 

compounds. The frequent 

occurrence of organochlorine 

insecticide metabolites such as 

heptachlor epoxide, DDD, and 

DDE also demonstrates the need 

to consider degradation products 

in assessments of pesticide 

occurrence in ground water.

Pesticide Metabolites Were 

Frequently Detected in 

Ground Water

Many pesticide compounds are 

unstable in soil and the unsaturated 

zone and thus readily degrade to 

other compounds (metabolites), 

some of which can be of equal or 

greater toxicity than the parent 

compound. Currently, Federal 

drinking-water standards and 

health advisories have not been 

established for pesticide metabolites. In southern New Jersey, 

deethylatrazine, a metabolite of 

atrazine, was the most frequently 

detected pesticide compound in 

samples from public-supply wells 

and the second most frequently 

detected pesticide in samples from 

monitoring wells (Stackelberg and 

others, 2000).

The presence of pesticide metabolites in ground water was more 

thoroughly evaluated on Long 

Island by Phillips and others 

(1999). Of the 25 pesticide compounds detected in samples from 

50 wells in the surficial aquifer system on Long Island, 9 (36 percent) 

were pesticide metabolites. Furthermore, the highest pesticide 

concentrations reported by Phillips 

and others (1999) were generally 

those of herbicide metabolites.

VOCs Were Detected in 

Streams and Ground Water

Volatile organic compounds 

(VOCs; blue text box on next page)

were frequently present in 

streams and ground water. Concentrations, however, were generally low and rarely exceeded 

MCLs, HAs, or AQLs (fig. 26). 

MCLs, HAs, and AQLs have not 

been established for 19 of the 47 

VOCs detected in stream samples 

nor for 20 of the 58 VOCs detected 

in samples of ground water. Overall, one or more VOCs were 

detected in 93 percent of 112 

stream samples (Reiser and 

O’Brien, 1998) and in 91 percent 

of 220 ground-water samples. 

These findings are consistent 

with national findings to date

from the NAWQA Program in 

which VOCs shown in figure 26 

were among the most frequently 

detected in samples of stream water 

Sources of pesticides and VOCs in the environment—Because pesticides and VOCs are commonly used in 

modern society, there are numerous potential sources from which they may enter the environment. Sources that 

introduce contaminants to localized areas are called point sources. Examples of point sources include leaking 

underground storage tanks, discharge of effluent from industrial facilities and wastewater-treatment plants, 

leachate from landfills, accidental spills, and improper or illegal disposal. Although individual point sources generally contaminate only a small area, they may introduce a wide variety of chemicals to the environment at highly 

elevated concentrations. Widespread or diffuse sources of contaminants, called nonpoint sources, generally 

result in the introduction of low-level concentrations of specific compounds to the environment (fig. 25). 

Dieldrin Chlordane

epoxide

Heptachlor DDT, DDE,

0

50

10

20

30

40

DETECTION FREQUENCY,

IN PERCENT

Suburban Agricultural

and DDD

EXPLANATION Not detected

Not detected

Land use at well

Figure 24. Detection frequency of the four 

most commonly detected organochlorine 

insecticides in shallow ground water on 

Long Island. (Data from LeaMond and 

others, 1992.)

Figure 25. Examples of 

nonpoint sources include 

widespread application of 

fertilizers and pesticides 

over agricultural and 

urban areas (left), and 

vehicular and industrial 

emissions in urban areas 

(right).
22 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

and ground water (Squillace and 

others, 1999). 

The most frequently detected 

VOCs in streams and groundwater samples are compounds 

used in gasoline or commercial 

and industrial processes, or are 

by-products of the chlorination 

of water (fig. 26; blue text box 

on p. 21). Methyl tert-butyl 

ether (MTBE) is a fuel oxygenate added to gasoline to 

enhance combustion and 

reduce atmospheric concentrations of carbon monoxide and 

ozone. Trichloromethane (chloroform) can form as a by-product of the chlorination of water, 

and it is also used as an industrial solvent, an extracting 

agent, and in the production of 

other synthetic compounds. 

Trichloroethene (TCE), 1,1,1-

trichloroethane (TCA), and tetrachloroethene (PCE) are three 

of the most extensively used 

VOCs in commercial and 

industrial applications. These 

compounds were detected in 

shallow ground water on Long 

Island and in the Glassboro 

study area. Concentrations 

were greater in samples from 

Long Island (fig. 27) because 

suburban areas on Long 

Island were already heavily 

developed in the 1960s and 

early 1970s when use of these 

chlorinated solvents was greatest. Many parts of the Glassboro 

study area, however, were not 

developed until after use of 

these compounds was restricted. 

VOC Detections Vary by 

Season and in Response to 

Land Use 

Detection frequencies of the 

VOCs most frequently detected in 

streams were higher in samples 

collected during the cool months 

than during the warm months (fig. 

28) (Reiser and O’Brien, 1998). 

This seasonal pattern may be attributable to the lower volatility and 

the greater partitioning of these 

compounds from air to water at 

cooler temperatures. Higher detection frequencies for MTBE also 

may result from increased amounts 

of MTBE added to gasoline during 

the winter in the study area. 

In contrast, concentrations of 

chloroform were higher in the 

warm months than in the cool 

months at six of the seven streams. 

This seasonal pattern is likely 

attributable to a decrease in streamflow during warm months, when 

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)—VOCs are a class of 

organic compounds that are produced in large quantities for a multitude of uses. Products containing VOCs are used extensively in 

industry, commerce, and households. VOCs are present in fuels 

and the exhaust from their combustion. They are in many manufactured products including paint, adhesives, cleaning agents, 

deodorants, and polishing products. They also are used widely in 

commercial and industrial applications as solvent degreasers and 

refrigerants, in the dry-cleaning industry, in the manufacture of 

pharmaceutical products and plastics, and in agricultural applications as active and inactive components of pesticides and fumigants. Many VOCs have properties that make them likely to be 

mobile and persistent in the environment. Many VOCs are also 

known to be carcinogenic, mutagenic, and otherwise toxic to 

humans and aquatic organisms; therefore, their use, disposal, and 

concentration in drinking-water supplies are regulated.

MTBE

Chloroform

Trichloroethene

1,1,1-Trichloroethane

Tetrachloroethene

0.001 1,000 0.01 0.1 1 10 100

CONCENTRATION,

IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

EXPLANATION

Stream sample

Ground-water sample

Drinking-water standard

or health advisory

Aquatic-life guideline

0 100 50

DETECTION 

FREQUENCY,

IN PERCENT

Compound detected at

0.1 microgram per liter

or greater

Figure 26. Volatile organic compounds 

(VOCs) occur frequently in streams and 

ground water, but concentrations are low 

and rarely exceed drinking-water standards.

0.001 100,000 0.1 10 1,000

CONCENTRATION, IN

MICROGRAMS PER LITER

EXPLANATION

Long Island, New York

Glassboro study area,

southern New Jersey

Drinking-water standard

or health advisory

Aquatic-life guideline

0 40 20

 DETECTION

FREQUENCY,

 IN PERCENT

1,1,1-Trichloroethane

Tetrachloroethene

 Trichloroethene

Figure 27. The concentrations of chlorinated 

solvents in ground water underlying urban 

areas were higher on Long Island than in 

southern New Jersey (Long Island data from 

LeaMond and others, 1992).
Major Findings 23 

inputs of chlorinated water from 

wastewater-treatment plants, swimming pools, and other outdoor uses 

of chlorinated water are less diluted 

(Reiser and O’Brien, 1998).

Fifty VOCs were detected in 

samples from 42 stream sites on 

Long Island and in New Jersey that 

drain basins with various land-use 

settings. In general, the number 

and concentration of VOCs 

detected were highest in streams 

with the highest percentages of 

urban land use (O'Brien and others, 1997; Terracciano and 

O’Brien, 1997) (fig. 29). A few 

exceptions were found at sites 

draining primarily forested land, an 

indication of unidentified point 

sources in these basins. 

Thirty-eight VOCs were 

detected in 78 samples of shallow 

ground water collected in southern 

New Jersey (Stackelberg and others, 1997). Consistent with national 

findings to date, detection frequencies and concentrations of 

the most frequently detected 

VOCs generally were highest in 

urban areas and lowest in agricultural and undeveloped areas

(fig. 30). This more frequent detection of VOCs is the result of 

increased human activity and 

greater VOC use in urban areas.

The presence of VOCs in ground 

water underlying Long Island is 

also related to urban land use. 

Nearly all samples of ground water 

underlying Kings and Queens 

Counties, which form the New 

York City Boroughs of Brooklyn 

and Queens, contained one or more 

VOCs (Spinello and others, 2000). 

MTBE was the most frequently 

detected VOC, followed by chloroform, toluene, and TCA.

In samples of ground water 

underlying Nassau and Suffolk 

Counties on Long Island, VOCs 

were detected most frequently (54 

percent detection greater than 1 

μg/L) in areas of suburban development where industry and commercial services that use VOCs are 

interspersed with residential housing, and least frequently (3 percent) 

in agricultural and undeveloped 

areas (Eckhardt and Stackelberg, 

1995).

Figure 29.The concentration of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) and the total 

number of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) generally were related to the 

amount of urban land use in the drainage basin (from O’Brien and others, 1997).

DECREASING URBAN-INDUSTRIAL LAND USE

0.01

10

0.02

0.05

0.1

0.2

0.5

1

2

5

CONCENTRATION, IN

 MICROGRAMS PER LITER

0

40

10

20

30

NUMBER OF VOLATILE ORGANIC

COMPOUNDS DETECTED

Number of volatile organic compounds detected

100

0

50

LAND USE, IN PERCENT

EXPLANATION

Barren, water, or wetland

Forest

Agriculture

Urban-residential

Urban-industrial

Land use in drainage basin Concentrationof MTBE, in micrograms per liter

MTBE Chloroform TCE TCA PCE

20

100

40

60

80

DETECTION FREQUENCY, IN PERCENT

All samples

April-September

October-March

Figure 28. The detection frequency 

of volatile organic compounds most 

commonly detected in streams was 

higher in the cool months than in the 

warm months (from Reiser and 

O’Brien, 1998).

Chloroform MTBE TCA PCE TCE

0

100

20

40

60

80

DETECTION FREQUENCY, IN PERCENT

EXPLANATION

Urban wells

Agricultural wells

Undeveloped wells

0.1 microgram per liter

VOC detection

frequency VOC concentration

or greater

Figure 30. Detection frequencies of 

volatile organic compounds (VOCs) 

generally were highest in urban 

areas and lowest in agricultural and 

undeveloped areas.
24 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Public-Supply Wells in 

Surficial Aquifers Are 

Vulnerable to VOCs

In the surficial KirkwoodCohansey aquifer system underlying the Glassboro study area, 

the number and total concentration of VOCs per sample were 

significantly greater in water 

from public-supply wells than in 

water from monitoring wells 

(Stackelberg and others, 2000) (fig. 

31). VOCs in ground water can be 

derived from both point and nonpoint sources (blue text box, p. 21). 

Within the Glassboro study area, 

however, the atmosphere was determined not to be a nonpoint source 

for most VOCs (Baehr and others, 

1999b; blue text box below). Point 

sources (such as spills) and nonpoint sources (such as urban stormwater runoff) are more common in 

urban areas and lead to spatially 

variable concentrations of VOCs 

near the water table. 

Because much larger volumes of 

water are withdrawn from publicsupply wells than from monitoring 

wells, their contributing areas are 

larger and, therefore, more likely to 

intercept water flowing from VOC 

sources, especially point sources. 

Additionally, results of groundwater-flow simulations 

indicate that public-supply 

wells in the Glassboro 

study area intercept relatively young water flowing 

along short paths, making 

the wells vulnerable to contamination by the VOCs 

that are frequently detected 

in recently recharged 

ground water. These publicsupply wells, however, also 

intercept water flowing 

along longer paths associated with longer residence 

times. This water is more 

likely than water from shallow monitoring wells to 

contain VOCs derived from 

the degradation of parent 

compounds or VOCs that 

had significant historical 

use that has recently been reduced 

or phased out. Monitoring wells 

sampled during this study were 

completed at depths near the water 

table and, thus, intercept relatively 

short flow paths. 

Evaluating the sources of VOCs in ground water—Results of work done as part of the NAWQA Program 

indicate that VOCs are frequently detected at low-level concentrations in shallow ground water in urban areas 

across the Nation (Squillace and others, 1999). Consistent with this national finding, several VOCs including 

trichloromethane (chloroform), MTBE, TCA, PCE, and TCE were frequently detected at low concentrations in 

shallow ground water underlying the Glassboro study area (Stackelberg and others, 1997). To improve understanding of the source(s) of these compounds, samples of VOCs in the atmosphere and unsaturated-zone gas 

also were collected (Baehr and others, 1999a). Atmospheric concentrations of MTBE were high enough to 

explain all but seven of the ground-water detections. In contrast, the atmosphere was ruled out as a likely 

source for all other VOCs because their atmospheric concentrations were not high enough to explain even the 

lowest detection in ground water. 

Concentrations of VOCs in unsaturated-zone gas provide further insight into the likely source(s) of these compounds (Baehr and others, 1999a). For example, at about 43 percent of the sites where MTBE was detected in 

both ground water and unsaturated-zone gas, the concentration in ground water was greater than could be 

explained by atmospheric or unsaturated-zone gas concentrations. At these sites, the movement of MTBE 

appears to be upward from ground water to the unsaturated zone. The likely source of MTBE at these sites is an 

upgradient gasoline source (such as a spill, urban runoff, or leaky underground storage tank) with MTBE migrating to the site as a solute in ground water. At 28 percent of the sites where MTBE was detected in both ground 

water and unsaturated-zone gas, the concentration in ground water was less than the water-equivalent concentration in the unsaturated-zone gas, but within the atmospheric concentration range, indicating a net movement 

of MTBE downward across the water table with the atmosphere being the likely source. At the remaining sites, 

the source of MTBE in ground water could be either the atmosphere or an upgradient source.

At sites where the other VOCs were detected in both ground water and unsaturated-zone gas, the concentration gradient indicates that these compounds are moving upward from ground water to the unsaturated zone 

and, thus, are likely derived from upgradient sources.

Chloroform

TCA

PCE

1,1-DCE

TCE

MTBE

 cis100

0

20

40

60

80

DETECTION FREQUENCY, IN PERCENT

EXPLANATION

Public-supply wells

Monitoring wells

0.1 microgram per liter

or greater

1,2-DCE

VOC detection frequency VOC concentration

Figure 31. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) 

were detected more frequently and in higher 

concentrations in samples from public-supply 

wells than from monitoring wells in the 

Glassboro study area, New Jersey.
Major Findings 25 

Figure 32. The total concentration of 

pesticides and volatile organic 

compounds (VOCs) in each sample 

increased significantly as the number of 

compounds detected in each sample 

increased.

VOCs and Pesticides Occur 

Together in Ground Water

Drinking-water standards and 

guidelines described in this report 

are based on the toxicity of individual compounds and not on 

combinations of compounds. 

Results from this and other 

NAWQA studies, however, clearly 

indicate that most pesticides and 

VOCs found in streamwater or 

ground-water samples occur as 

mixtures of two or more compounds (Stackelberg and others, in 

press; U.S. Geological Survey, 

1999; Squillace and others, 1999).

In this study, nearly all of 146 

stream samples contained 5 or 

more pesticide compounds, and 

nearly 50 percent of these samples 

contained 9 or more pesticide compounds (Reiser, 1999). In addition, 

two or more pesticides and (or) 

VOCs were detected in more than 

95 percent of samples collected 

from public-supply and monitoring wells in the Glassboro study 

area. Total pesticide and total 

VOC concentrations per sample 

increased significantly as the 

number of detected compounds 

per sample increased (fig. 32). 

Most pesticides and VOCs in samples from public-supply and monitoring wells in the Glassboro study 

area were detected at concentrations less than 1 μg/L (figs. 18 and 

26). The sum of these organic compounds, however, was greater than 

1 μg/L in 45 percent of these samples (fig. 32).

More than 400 combinations of 

pesticides and VOCs were detected 

in 20 percent or more of publicsupply well samples in southern 

New Jersey. The most frequently 

detected pesticides and VOCs constitute the most frequently occurring combinations (fig. 33). 

Although certain pesticides and 

VOCs commonly occurred together 

in samples of water from publicsupply and monitoring wells, other 

pesticides and VOCs were found to 

commonly occur together only in 

one or the other well network. As 

discussed previously, compared to 

samples from monitoring wells, 

samples from public-supply wells 

are more likely to contain constituents that (1) were used in greater 

quantities in the past, (2) were 

introduced from point sources, and 

(or) (3) were derived from the degradation of parent compounds 

along extended flow paths. For 

VOCs, samples from public-supply 

wells in the surficial aquifer system 

of southern New Jersey commonly 

contain more combinations more 

frequently than samples from monitoring wells. 

Figure 33. Certain mixtures of pesticides and volatile organic compounds were common in samples from public-supply and 

monitoring wells, Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system, Glassboro study area, New Jersey. [DEA=deethylatrazine; PCE=

tetrachloroethene; TCA=1,1,1-trichloroethane; TCE=trichloroethene; 1,1-DCE=1,1-dichloroethene]

0.001 100 0.01 0.1 1 10

TOTAL PESTICIDE AND VOC

CONCENTRATION, IN 

MICROGRAMS PER LITER

0

30

10

20

TOTAL NUMBER OF COMPOUNDS

Land use at monitoring wells

New urban—less than 

 25 years

Old urban—greater than 

 25 years

Agricultural

Public supply

 DEA

Atrazine

Simazine

Atrazine

 DEA

Simazine

Atrazine

 DEA

Metolachlor

Atrazine

 DEA

Simazine

Metolachlor

Atrazine

 DEA

Simazine

Atrazine

Alachlor

50

0

10

20

30

40

Not detected

Public-supply wells

Monitoring wells

PESTICIDES

PCE

Chloroform

PCE

 TCA

PCE

Chloroform

TCA

PCE

1,1,-DCE

TCA

MTBE

PCE

Chloroform

TCA 

PCE

1,1-DCE

Chloroform

TCA

80

0

20

40

60

DETECTION FREQUENCY,

N PERCENT

Public-supply wells

Monitoring wells

VOCs
26 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Implications of Findings for 

the Management of Water 

and Ecological Resources

Activities associated with urban 

and agricultural land use are the 

primary factors that affect the quality of streams and surficial aquifer 

systems and the health of aquatic 

life in the LINJ study area (fig. 34). 

The frequent detection of nutrients, 

synthetic organic compounds, and 

trace elements over a wide range of 

concentrations indicates a complex 

integration of the effects of current 

and historical point and nonpoint 

sources of these constituents. In 

addition, some constituents are 

present naturally in ground water in 

areas where surficial sediments or 

geologic formations are known to 

contain these constituents.

The restriction or cancellation of 

the use of some trace elements and 

synthetic organic compounds has 

been effective in reducing their concentrations in the environment, as 

evidenced by their declining concentrations in lake-sediment cores. 

Furthermore, stream quality, as 

determined by fish-community 

measures, improved from the 1970s 

to the 1990s largely as a result of 

wastewater-treatment-plant 

upgrades implemented under provisions of the Clean Water Act. In 

contrast, the concentrations of compounds whose uses have not been 

canceled, such as zinc and PAHs, 

continue to increase in urban lake 

sediments as a result of their association with increasing fossil-fuel use 

and vehicular traffic. In addition, 

findings from this study indicate 

that changes in the natural flow of 

streams, habitat degradation, reduction in biological diversity, and a 

shift toward species more tolerant of 

disturbance are associated with 

urban and suburban development.

The expected continued growth 

of population in the study area will 

likely continue to have a significant 

effect on stream- and ground-water 

quality and aquatic communities. 

Results of this study indicate that 

land development and management 

approaches that help maintain or 

increase base flow in flow-stressed 

streams and reduce flow variability 

during storms can promote 

improved water quality and stream 

health. For example, increasing 

recharge and otherwise reducing 

runoff in new or existing developments will likely increase stream 

base flow and reduce stream flashiness, both of which would benefit 

aquatic communities. Increased 

aquifer recharge also would benefit 

water supply if the quality of that 

recharge is not impaired. Furthermore, actions that prevent the loss 

of forests and wetlands, especially 

in riparian buffer areas, would also 

moderate the effects of development and provide improved habitat 

for native plants and animals.

Population growth in the study 

area has resulted in an increasing 

reliance on surface-water and surficial ground-water sources for public and domestic supply. Currently, 

60 to 80 percent of the water supply in the study area is derived 

from these sources. The Safe 

Drinking Water Act provides regulatory oversights to maintain and 

monitor the quality of these vulnerable public-water supplies. Similar 

regulatory oversights are not currently in place for domestic (household) supplies, but results from 

domestic-well surveys in this study 

indicate that these systems are also 

vulnerable to contamination.

The Glassboro ground-waterflow model indicates that nitrate 

concentrations will increase significantly over the next 50 years in 

those parts of the Coastal Plain 

surficial aquifer system that underlie areas of intensive use of manure 

and nitrogen-based fertilizers. Furthermore, the model indicates that 

likely changes in land-management 

or chemical-use practices will not 

necessarily result in immediate 

improvements in the quality of 

water discharging to streams or 

being pumped from public-supply 

wells. Rather, the model indicates 

that nitrate concentrations will 

likely increase for several years following any changes in chemical 

use or land-management practices 

because of the length of time 

required for water to move through 

the aquifer system and discharge to 

streams or wells. The success of 

monitoring strategies designed to 

measure the effectiveness of stormwater management, chemical-use 

management, and other land-management, development, and restoration activities is reliant on incorporating this understanding of the 

hydrologic system.

Actions that would help to ensure 

safe and reliable sources of drinking 

water into the future and to protect 

stream habitats and aquatic communities include (1) adequate monitoring and assessment of water quantity and quality, and biological 

resources, (2) land-development and 

watershed-management approaches 

that mitigate the effects of urbanization on these resources, and (3) a 

close linkage of water- supply planning and development with land-use 

planning and watershed-management strategies that favor improvement of water quality and quantity. 

Given the prospect for continued 

population growth in the region, an 

increased vigilance in terms of monitoring and assessment of water and 

related resources likely is warranted.
Major Findings 27 

"The need of wholesome water for household consumption, as also good water for use in the arts, has prompted 

many inquiries about the available sources from which steady and abundant supplies of such water may be had, 

and the large number of these inquiries has demonstrated the necessity of gathering all of the facts relative to the 

occurrence of waters on the surface and in the earthy and rocky beds under it... The importance of this question 

of water supply to our citizens, most of whom are dependent upon public water-supply systems, and its intimate 

relation to the general health, make it deserving of the time and space which has been allotted to it in this report. 

The subject is a growing one and the conditions are so rapidly changing that no report thereon can be considered 

final. The space here given to it is inadequate to its full discussion. It merely rounds out an epoch in the accumulation of information therein for public use." 

 (Taken from the preface by John C. Smock, New Jersey State Geologist, in Cornelius C. Vermeule, 1894, Water 

Supply—Water power, the flow of streams and attendant phenomena: Geological Survey of New Jersey Report, 

v. 3, 352 p.)

Figure 34. New urban areas commonly are displacing agricultural and (or) forest land in the study area. Specifically, urban land 

area has grown from 22 percent of the study area in the early 1970s to 33 percent in 1995, with a corresponding 11-percent 

decrease in agricultural and forest land.
28 Water Quality in the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

DESIGN OF THE LONG ISLAND–NEW JERSEY STUDY

Samples of stream water (over a range of flow conditions) and stream ecology (once each year) were collected at 

seven fixed sites (fig. 35a; basic and intensive, table 6). Samples for chemistry and ecology also were collected once at 

45 synoptic sites (fig. 35b). Streambed sediments were sampled once at 14 sites (fig. 35a); samples of whole fish or 

fish livers were collected at 8 of these sites. Sediment cores were collected once from four lakes (fig. 35a). Streambed 

sediment and fish fillets were collected once for mercury and methylmercury at four stream sites (fig. 35a).

The LINJ study design focused on collecting data (table 6) that would add to current knowledge of contaminants 

in water, sediment, and fish tissue and improve the understanding of their occurrence, their biological effects, and 

the processes governing their occurrence and movement (Gilliom and others, 1995).

Ground-water samples (table 6) 

were collected from 220 wells in 

surficial aquifers that are sources of 

drinking-water supply. Monitoring 

wells were installed in the KirkwoodCohansey aquifer system underlying 

30 new urban (less than 25 years old), 

20 old urban (greater than 25 years 

old), 15 agricultural, and 13 undeveloped land-use settings and each well 

was sampled once (fig. 36a). Waterquality data from these 78 wells, 

from 30 deeper monitoring wells

collocated with urban monitoring 

wells, from 30 public-supply wells, 

and from 3 streams were used in a 

modeling analysis of how contaminants enter and move through the 

aquifer to water- supply wells and 

streams. Domestic-supply wells were 

sampled to assess water quality in 

three major aquifer systems—the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system (30 wells) and the fractured-bedrock 

aquifer systems of the New England (30 wells) and Piedmont (22 wells) Physiographic Provinces (fig. 36b).

Major stream

Pesticide

VOC

Ecology

EXPLANATION

b 74

75

41 73

40

39

41

0 20 MILES

0 20 KILOMETERS

Major stream

Lake-sediment coring

Bed sediment

Fixed site

Mercury

EXPLANATION

a 74

75

41 73

40

39

41

0 20 MILES

0 20 KILOMETERS

Figure 35. Stream-sampling sites included (a) fixed sites, bed-sediment and mercury synoptic sites, and lake-sediment 

coring sites, and (b) pesticide, VOC, and ecological synoptic sites.

0 5 MILES

0 5 KILOMETERS

39

30'

39

45'

75

75 15'

a

Undeveloped

Agricultural

New urban 

Old urban

Public supply

EXPLANATION 74

75

41

40

39

0 20 MILES

0 20 KILOMETERS

Glassboro study area

New England bedrock

Piedmont bedrock 

Kirkwood-Cohansey 

STUDY WELLS, BY AQUIFER

EXPLANATION

b

STUDY WELLS IN GLASSBORO AREA

Figure 36. Ground-water sampling sites included (a) land-use monitoring wells 

and public-supply wells and (b) domestic-supply (household) wells.
Design of the Long Island–New Jersey Study 29 

Table 6. Summary of data collection in the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages study, 1996–98

Study 

componentWhat data were collected and why Number and types of sites sampled Sampling frequency and 

period

Stream Chemistry

Basic-fixed 

sites

Nutrients, suspended sediment, major ions, organic 

carbon, field parameters (streamflow, dissolved 

oxygen, water temperature, pH, and specific 

conductance), and 1 year of 87 pesticides and 85 

volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Fixed sites 

measure how often and how much of a constituent is found, over time, due to different 

seasonal or land-use patterns.

Includes 5 sites that represent typical urban, agricultural, and/or mixed land-use basins—3 smaller 

basins that are indicative of an intensive urban residential (Saddle River), a developing urban (Stony 

Brook), and an agricultural (Neshanic River) land 

use and 2 larger basins (Passaic and Raritan Rivers) 

that integrate mixed land uses. Drainage areas range 

from 20 to 804 square miles (mi2) in size.

Monthly and storm events, 

1996–98; flow and stream 

temperature measured hourly.

Intensivefixed 

sites

Same as above but sampled more for pesticides and 

VOCs. To determine how often and how much 

of a constituent is found, over time, due to different seasonal or land-use patterns. 

Includes 2 smaller (16–44 mi2) sites. Bound Brook represents intensive urban residential/commercial land 

use in northern N.J. and Great Egg Harbor River represents urban/mixed land use in the Coastal Plain.

Biweekly to monthly and storm 

events, 1996–98; flow, stream 

temperature, and specific conductance measured hourly. 

Long-term 

site

Same constituents as above. To determine changes 

or trends in chemistry over time. Only 1 site, Raritan River at Queens Bridge (804 mi2) that integrates mixed land uses in northern N.J.

Monthly, quarterly only for 

VOCs, 1999 to next cycle.

Synoptic 

sites

Nutrients, organic carbon, suspended sediment, 

field parameters, 47 pesticides, and 85 VOCs 

were sampled. To measure how much a constituent changes, over the area, due to different land- or chemical-use patterns. 

Includes 45 sites over a full range (gradient) of urban 

land use (3–96 percent) and a range in drainage area 

from 16 to 180 mi2.

Once; VOCs in January 1997; 

pesticides/nutrients—most in 

June 1997 but some in June 

1998.

VOCsource 

surveys

Field parameters and 85 VOCs were sampled. To 

evaluate VOC sources within selected basins 

for different flow conditions. 

Includes 11 sites within urban basins during winter 

base-flow conditions and 3 sites within the Bound 

Brook basin 4–6 times during a spring storm. 

Once during base flow in January 1997, 3 sites 4–6 times 

during a storm in April 1998.

Stream Ecology, Fish Tissue, Streambed Sediments, and Lake Sediments

Ecological 

fixed 

sites

Algal, benthic-invertebrate, and fish communities 

and the condition of stream habitat sampled. To 

measure how much the communities vary due 

to land-use patterns, location, and time. 

Includes 7 sites that are collocated with the 7 chemistry 

fixed sites. Two of the 7 sites also had 2 additional 

samples upstream and downstream from these fixed 

sites. 

 Single stream reach (200–400 

meters) once each year in 

August–October 1996–98; 

multiple reaches only in 1998.

Ecological 

synoptic 

sites

Same as stream ecology fixed sites above except 

reduced stream habitat and fish collected only at 

selected sites. To measure how much the communities differ due to land use. 

Includes 43 sites that are collocated with the chemistry 

synoptic sites over a full range of urban land use (3–

96 percent). Drainage area ranged from 16 to 180 

mi2. Fish data collected at 16 sites.

Single reach, only once, most in 

August–October 1996; 

Coastal Plain sites in 1997–

98.

Streambedsediment and 

fish tissue sites

Organochlorine pesticides and other hydrocarbons, 

in sieved sediments and whole fish tissue. Trace 

elements in sieved sediments and fish livers. To 

measure how much a constituent changes due 

to different land- or chemical-use patterns. 

Includes 14 bed-sediment and 8 tissue sites—7 sites 

that are collocated with the 7 chemistry fixed sites 

and, to complement existing data, also with the synoptic sites, 7 sites for bed sediment and 1 for tissue.

Once in September–October 

1997.

Lake-sediment 

coring 

sites

Organochlorine pesticides, other hydrocarbons, and 

trace elements at multiple depths in cored sediments. To determine the changes (trend) in 

basin inputs over time due to different landor chemical-use patterns.

Includes 4 lakes. From least to most developed watershed—Clyde Potts Reservoir (undeveloped), Packanack Lake (urban residential), Orange Reservoir 

(urban residential and commercial), and Newbridge 

Pond (urban residential and commercial).

Once in September 1997.

Mercury 

synoptic 

sites

Mercury, methylmercury, and acid-volatile sulfides 

in bed sedment and fish fillets. To evaluate factors for mercury occurrence and methylation 

potential nationwide.

Includes 4 stream sites over a range in land use as part 

of a larger national mercury synoptic survey. From 

least to most urban—Muddy Run (agriculture), and 

Passaic, Great Egg Harbor, and Swan Rivers.

Once in July 1997.

Ground-Water Chemistry

Land-use 

monitoring-well 

surveys

Nutrients, major ions, organic carbon, field parameters, 85 VOCs, 106 pesticides. To measure the 

effects of land use on shallow ground-water 

quality.

Installed 78 monitoring wells 10 feet below the water 

table underlying new urban (< 25 years), old urban 

(> 25 years), agricultural, and undeveloped land-use 

settings in the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system 

of the 400-mi2 Glassboro study area, N.J. 

Once in fall 1996.

Flow-path 

monitoring wells

Same as land-use surveys above except 47 pesticides. To evaluate the quality of ground water 

recharged in urban areas 10–20 years ago.

Installed 30 monitoring wells 40-50 feet below the 

water table, collocated with 30 of the urban land-use 

monitoring wells.

Once in fall 1997.

Household 

(domestic) well 

surveys

Same as land-use surveys plus some trace elements 

(reduced to 87 pesticides; Piedmont, 47 pesticides). To measure water quality representative of major aquifer subunits.

Includes 82 household (domestic) wells in 3 major 

aquifer systems; 30 wells in the New England, 22 in 

the Piedmont fractured bedrock aquifers, and 30 in 

the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system.

Once; New England and Piedmont in 1997, KirkwoodCohansey in 1998.

Community supply well 

survey

Same as land-use surveys. Used in a modeling analysis, along with land-use survey, flow-path survey, and stream data. To better understand how 

contaminants enter and move through the 

aquifer to water-supply wells and streams.

Includes 30 community (public)-supply wells in the 

Glassboro area (Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer system).

 Once in 1997 or 1998.
30 Water Quality of the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages

GLOSSARY

The terms in this glossary were compiled from numerous 

sources. Some definitions have been modified and 

may not be the only valid ones for these terms.

Algae—Chlorophyll-bearing nonvascular, primarily aquatic 

species that have no true roots, stems, or leaves; most 

algae are microscopic. 

Aquatic-life criteria—Water-quality guidelines for protection of aquatic life. Often refers to U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency water-quality criteria for protection 

of aquatic organisms. See also Water-quality standards. 

Aquatic invertebrates—Insects, worms, crayfish, snails, 

clams, and other organisms without a backbone that live 

in, on, or near lakes, streams, rivers, or oceans.

Aquifer—A water-bearing layer of soil, sand, gravel, or 

rock that will yield usable quantities of water to a well. 

Base flow—Sustained, low flow in a stream; ground-water 

discharge is the source of base flow in most streams. 

Basic-fixed site—A site on a stream where streamflow and 

water-quality data are collected to measure how often 

and how much of a constituent is found, over time, due 

to different seasonal, hydrologic, or land-use patterns. 

Basin—See Drainage basin. 

Bed sediment—The material that temporarily is stationary 

in the bottom of a stream or other watercourse. 

Benchmark site—See reference site.

Best management practices (BMPs)—Land-use practices 

that are effective and practical ways of preventing or 

reducing nonpoint-source pollution. 

Blue-baby syndrome—A condition that can be caused by 

ingestion of high amounts of nitrate, resulting in the 

blood losing its ability to effectively carry oxygen. 

Most common in young infants and elderly people. 

Confined aquifer—An aquifer that is completely filled with 

water under pressure and that is overlain by material 

that restricts the upward movement of water. 

Contamination—Degradation of water quality compared to 

original or natural conditions due to human activity. 

Contributing area—The area in a drainage basin that contributes water to streamflow or recharge to an aquifer. 

Denitrification—A process by which oxidized forms of 

nitrogen such as nitrate (NO3) are reduced to form 

nitrites, nitrogen oxides, ammonia, or free nitrogen, 

commonly brought about by the action of bacteria and 

usually resulting in the los of nitrogen to the air. 

Drainage basin—The portion of the surface of the Earth 

that contributes water to a stream through overland runoff, including tributaries and impoundments. 

Drinking-water standard or guideline—A threshold concentration of a chemical constituent or compound in a 

public drinking-water supply, designed to protect 

human health. As defined here, standards are U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations that specify 

the maximum contamination levels for public water 

systems required to protect the public welfare; guidelines have no regulatory status and are issued in an 

advisory capacity. 

Ecological synoptic study—A short-term investigation to 

measure the differences in biologic communities, 

within all or part of a study area, due to different factors, such as land uses or contaminant sources.

Flow path—An underground route for ground-water movement, extending from a recharge area to a discharge 

area or point such as a shallow stream or pumping well. 

Flowpath survey—Collection of data from a network of 

wells in an area to study the relations among land-use 

practices, ground-water flow, and contaminant occurrence and transport. These surveys are conducted in the 

area of one of the land-use surveys. 

Human health advisory—Guidance provided by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, State agencies or scientific organizations, in the absence of regulatory limits, 

to describe acceptable contaminant levels in drinking 

water or edible fish. 

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI)—An aggregated number, or 

index, based on several measures of a fish community 

that provides an assessment of biological conditions. 

Indicator site—Stream sampling site located at an outlet of 

a drainage basin with relatively homogeneous land use 

and physiographic conditions; drainage areas range 

from 20 to 200 square miles. 

Integrator or mixed-use site—Stream sampling site located 

at an outlet of a drainage basin that contains multiple 

environmental settings. Most integrator sites are on 

major streams with relatively large drainage areas. 

Intensive-fixed site—A basic-fixed site at which sampling 

frequency is increased during selected seasonal periods.

Intolerant species—Species that are not adaptable to human 

alterations to the environment and thus decline in numbers where human alterations occur.

Land-use survey—Collection of data from a network of 

shallow wells in an area having a relatively uniform 

land use. These studies have the goal of relating the 

quality of shallow ground water to land use.

Leaching—The removal of materials in solution from soil or 

rock to ground water; refers to movement of pesticides 

or nutrients from land surface to ground water.

Major ions—Constituents commonly present in water at 

concentrations exceeding 1.0 milligram per liter. Generally includes the cations calcium, magnesium, sodium, 

and potassium; the anions, sulfate, chloride, fluoride, 

and nitrate; and those constituents contributing to alkalinity, most generally bicarbonate and carbonate. 

Maximum contaminant level (MCL)—Maximum permissible level of a contaminant in water that is delivered to 

any user of a public water system. MCLs are enforceable standards established by the U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency. 
Glossary 31

Metabolite—A substance produced as the result of the degradation of another compound. 

Milligrams per liter (mg/L)—A unit expressing the concentration of chemical constituents in solution as 

weight (milligrams) of solute per unit volume (liter) of 

water; equivalent to one part per million. One thousand 

micrograms per liter equals 1 mg/L. 

Minimum reporting level (MRL)—The smallest measured 

concentration of a constituent that may be reliably 

reported as a result of use of a given analytical method.

Nonpoint source—A source that cannot be defined as originating from discrete points such as pipe discharge. 

Areas of fertilizer and pesticide applications, atmospheric deposition, manure, and natural inputs from 

runoff are types of nonpoint sources. 

Nutrient—Element or compound essential for animal and 

plant growth. Common nutrients in fertilizer include 

nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. 

Organochlorine compound—Synthetic organic compounds containing chlorine. Examples include organochlorine insecticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, and 

some solvents containing chlorine. 

Organochlorine insecticide—Organic insecticides containing a high percentage of chlorine. Includes dichlorodiphenylethanes (such as DDT), chlorinated 

cyclodienes (such as chlordane), and chlorinated benzenes (such as lindane). Use of most organochlorine 

insecticides was banned because of their carcinogenicity, tendency to bioaccumulate, and toxicity to wildlife. 

Physiography—A description of the surface features of the 

Earth, with an emphasis on the origin of landforms. 

Point source—A source that originates from a discrete location such as discharge pipe or ditch, well, concentrated 

livestock operation, leaky tank, or floating craft. 

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)—A mixture of chlorinated derivatives of biphenyl, marketed under the trade 

name Aroclor. PCBs were used in transformers and 

capacitors for insulating purposes and in gas pipeline 

systems as a lubricant. Further sale for new use was 

banned by law in 1979. 

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)—Organic compounds with a fused-ring aromatic structure. PAHs 

result from incomplete combustion of organic carbon, 

municipal solid waste, and fossil fuels, as well as from 

uncombusted coal and oil products.

Probable effect level (PEL)—Concentration of a contaminant above which adverse biological effects are 

expected to occur frequently.

Recharge—Water that infiltrates the ground and reaches the 

saturated zone or aquifer. 

Reference site—A site whose contributing area is minimally 

disturbed, such as forest and other natural areas.

Riparian—Areas adjacent to rivers and streams with a high 

density, diversity, and productivity of plant and animal 

species relative to nearby uplands. 

Runoff—Excess rainwater or snowmelt that is transported to 

streams by overland flow, tile drains, or ground water.

Sorption—General term for the interaction (binding or association) of a solute ion or molecule with a solid. 

Species diversity—An ecological concept that incorporates 

both the number of species in a particular sampling area 

and the evenness with which individuals are distributed 

among the various species. 

Species (taxa) richness—The number of species (taxa) 

present in a defined area or sampling unit. 

Subunit survey—Collection of data from a network of wells 

in a major aquifer system, based primarily existing 

wells and on data collected in other programs. 

Synoptic site—A site sampled during a short-term investigation to measure differences in water quality, within 

all or part of a study area, due to different factors, such 

as land uses or contaminant sources.

Threshold effect level (TEL)—Concentration of a contaminant above which adverse biological effects are 

expected to occur rarely.

Tolerant species—Those species that are adaptable to (tolerant of) human alterations to the environment and often 

increase in number when human alterations occur. 

Trace element—An element found in only minor amounts 

(concentrations less than 1.0 milligram per liter) in 

water or sediment; examples include arsenic, cadmium, 

chromium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, and zinc. 

Unconfined aquifer—An aquifer whose upper surface is a 

water table. See confined aquifer. 

Unconsolidated deposit—Deposit of loosely bound sediment that typically fills topographically low areas.

Urban gradient study—A study designed to measure physical, chemical, and biological responses along gradients 

of urban land-use intensity and identify the factors most 

responsible for controlling water-quality conditions. 

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)—Organic chemicals 

that have a high vapor pressure relative to their water 

solubility. VOCs include components of gasoline, fuel 

oils, and lubricants, as well as organic solvents, fumigants, some inert ingredients in pesticides, and some 

by-products of chlorine disinfection. 

Water-quality standards—State-adopted and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-approved ambient standards for water bodies. Standards include the use of the 

water body and the water-quality criteria that must be 

met to protect the designated use or uses. 

Watershed—See Drainage basin. 

Water table—The point below land surface where ground 

water is first encountered and below which the earth is 

saturated. Depth to a water table varies widely. 

Water year—The continuous 12-month period, October 1 

through September 30, designated by the year in which 

it ends. September 30, 1980 is the "1980" water year. 
32 Water Quality of the Long Island-New Jersey Coastal Drainages

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Terracciano, S.A., and O'Brien, A.K., 1997, Occurrence 

of volatile organic compounds in streams on Long 

Island, New York, and in New Jersey—Overview of 

available data and reconnaissance sampling: U.S. 

Geological Survey Fact Sheet FS–063–97 4 p.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 1992, Action levels for 

poisonous or deleterious substances in human food and 

animal feed: Washington, D.C., 16 p.

U.S. Geological Survey, 1999, The quality of our Nation’s 

waters—Nutrients and pesticides: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1225, 82 p.

Velz, C.J., 1984, Applied stream sanitation (2d ed.): New 

York, John Wiley and Sons, 800 p.

Vogue, P.A., Kerle, E.A., and Jenkins, J.J., 1994, OSU extension pesticide properties database. (Accessed August 

15, 1998 on the World Wide Web at URL 

http://ace.orst.edu/info/nptn/ppdmove.html)
34 Water Quality in the Long Island - New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Streams in agricultural areas 

Streams in urban areas

Streams and rivers draining mixed land uses 

Shallow ground water in agricultural areas

Shallow ground water in urban areas 

Major aquifers 

Detected concentration in Study Unit

Frequencies of detection, in percent. Detection frequencies 

were not censored at any common reporting limit. The lefthand column is the study-unit frequency and the right-hand 

column is the national frequency 

Not measured or sample size less than two

Study-unit sample size. For ground water, the number of 

samples is equal to the number of wells sampled

National ranges of detected concentrations, by land use, in 36 

NAWQA Study Units, 1991–98—Ranges include only samples

in which a chemical was detected

Drinking-water quality (applies to ground water and surface water)

Protection of aquatic life (applies to surface water only)

Prevention of eutrophication in streams not flowing directly into 

lakes or impoundments

No benchmark for drinking-water quality

No benchmark for protection of aquatic life

*

**

66 38

CHEMICALS IN WATER

Concentrations and detection frequencies, Long Island - New 

Jersey Coastal Drainages, 1996–98—Detection sensitivity varies 

among chemicals and, thus, frequencies are not directly comparable 

among chemicals

Lowest

25 percent

Middle

50 percent

Highest

25 percent

National water-quality benchmarks

National benchmarks include standards and guidelines related to 

drinking-water quality, criteria for protecting the health of aquatic life, and 

a goal for preventing stream eutrophication due to phosphorus. Sources 

include the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Canadian 

Council of Ministers of the Environment

|

|

|

--

This appendix is a summary of chemical concentrations 

and biological indicators assessed in the Long Island - 

New Jersey Coastal Drainages. Selected results for this 

Study Unit are graphically compared to results from as 

many as 36 NAWQA Study Units investigated from 1991 to 

1998 and to national water-quality benchmarks for human 

health, aquatic life, or fish-eating wildlife. The chemical and 

biological indicators shown were selected on the basis of 

frequent detection, detection at concentrations above a 

national benchmark, or regulatory or scientific importance. 

The graphs illustrate how conditions associated with each 

land use sampled in the Long Island - New Jersey Coastal 

Drainages compare to results from across the Nation, and 

how conditions compare among the several land uses. 

Graphs for chemicals show only detected concentrations 

and, thus, care must be taken to evaluate detection 

frequencies in addition to concentrations when comparing 

study-unit and national results. For example, alachlor 

concentrations in Long Island - New Jersey streams 

draining mixed land-use areas were similar to the national 

distribution, but the detection frequency was much higher 

(83 percent compared to 45 percent). 

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

 0.0001 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent

Pesticides in water—Herbicides

Study-unit sample size

12

Alachlor (Lasso, Bronco, Lariat, Bullet) **

| † 44 †

48 20 | 93 83 45 | 36

20 3 | 15 0 <1 | 50 0 1 | 78

Atrazine (AAtrex, Atrex, Atred, Gesaprim) 

| | † 88 †

96 86 | | 93 100 87 | | 36

73 40 | 15 50 30 | 50 10 18 | 78

Cyanazine (Bladex, Fortrol) 

| | † 44 †

9 14 | | 93 44 54 | | 36

0 1 | 15 2 1 | 50 0 <1 | 78

2,4-D (Aqua-Kleen, Lawn-Keep, Weed-B-Gone) 

| | † 15 †

19 18 | | 81 25 11 | | 28

0 <1 | 15 0 1 | 44 2 <1 | 57

DCPA (Dacthal, chlorthal-dimethyl) * ** † 18 †

31 30 93 50 20 36

7 1 15 0 1 50 0 <1 78

Deethylatrazine (Atrazine breakdown product) * ** † 75 †

89 62 93 100 75 36

67 39 15 50 28 50 26 19 78

Dinoseb (Dinosebe) 

| | † <1 †

20 1 | 15

0 <1 | 57

Metolachlor (Dual, Pennant) 

| | † 81 †

96 64 | | 93 100 83 | | 36

73 18 | 15 26 9 | 50 4 5 | 78

Prometon (Pramitol, Princep) **

| † 44 †

95 86 | 93 97 60 | 36

7 12 | 15 32 21 | 50 9 5 | 78

Simazine (Princep, Caliber 90) 

| | † 61 †

85 77 | | 93 97 74 | | 36

47 21 | 15 46 18 | 50 9 5 | 78

† Seven samples were collected at Neshanic River at Reaville, N.J., an agricultural 

site. The requirement of having a minimum of 6-months of data, however, was not 

met. See pages 18–20 for a discussion of pesticide findings.

APPENDIX—WATER-QUALITY DATA FROM THE LONG ISLANDNEW JERSEY COASTAL DRAINAGES IN A NATIONAL CONTEXT

For a complete view of Long Island - New Jersey Coastal Drainages data and for additional information about specific benchmarks used, visit our Web site at 

http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/. Also visit the NAWQA Data Warehouse for access to NAWQA data sets at http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/data.
Water-Quality Data in a National Context 35 

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

 0.0001 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 

Other herbicides detected

Acetochlor (Harness Plus, Surpass) * **

Acifluorfen (Blazer, Tackle 2S) **

Benfluralin (Balan, Benefin, Bonalan) * **

Bentazon (Basagran, Bentazone) **

Bromacil (Hyvar X, Urox B, Bromax) 

Butylate (Sutan +, Genate Plus, Butilate) **

Dicamba (Banvel, Dianat, Scotts Proturf) 

Diuron (Crisuron, Karmex, Diurex) **

EPTC (Eptam, Farmarox, Alirox) * **

Fenuron (Fenulon, Fenidim) * **

Fluometuron (Flo-Met, Cotoran) **

Linuron (Lorox, Linex, Sarclex, Linurex, Afalon) * 

MCPA (Rhomene, Rhonox, Chiptox) 

Metribuzin (Lexone, Sencor) 

Napropamide (Devrinol) * **

Norflurazon (Evital, Predict, Solicam, Zorial) * **

Pendimethalin (Pre-M, Prowl, Stomp) * **

Picloram (Grazon, Tordon) 

Propachlor (Ramrod, Satecid) **

Propanil (Stam, Stampede, Wham) * **

2,4,5-TP (Silvex, Fenoprop) **

Tebuthiuron (Spike, Tebusan) 

Terbacil (Sinbar) **

Trifluralin (Treflan, Gowan, Tri-4, Trific)

Herbicides not detected

Bromoxynil (Buctril, Brominal) * 

Chloramben (Amiben, Amilon-WP, Vegiben) **

Clopyralid (Stinger, Lontrel, Transline) * **

2,4-DB (Butyrac, Butoxone, Embutox Plus, Embutone) * **

Dacthal mono-acid (Dacthal breakdown product) * **

Dichlorprop (2,4-DP, Seritox 50, Lentemul) * **

2,6-Diethylaniline (Alachlor breakdown product ) * **

Ethalfluralin (Sonalan, Curbit) * **

MCPB (Thistrol) * **

Molinate (Ordram) * **

Neburon (Neburea, Neburyl, Noruben) * **

Oryzalin (Surflan, Dirimal) * **

Pebulate (Tillam, PEBC) * **

Pronamide (Kerb, Propyzamid) **

Propham (Tuberite) **

2,4,5-T **

Thiobencarb (Bolero, Saturn, Benthiocarb) * **

Triallate (Far-Go, Avadex BW, Tri-allate) * 

Triclopyr (Garlon, Grandstand, Redeem, Remedy) * **

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent

Pesticides in water—Insecticides

Study-unit sample size

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

 0.0001 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in ground water

These graphs represent data from 16 Study Units, sampled from 1996 to 1998

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection in percent Study-unit sample size

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 

Other insecticides detected 

Aldicarb (Temik, Ambush, Pounce) 

Aldicarb sulfoxide (Aldicarb breakdown product) 

Carbofuran (Furadan, Curaterr, Yaltox) 

Fonofos (Dyfonate, Capfos, Cudgel, Tycap) **

Malathion (Malathion) 

Methomyl (Lanox, Lannate, Acinate) **

Terbufos (Contraven, Counter, Pilarfox) **

Insecticides not detected

Aldicarb sulfone (Standak, aldoxycarb) 

Disulfoton (Disyston, Di-Syston) **

Ethoprop (Mocap, Ethoprophos) * **

alpha-HCH (alpha-BHC, alpha-lindane) **

3-Hydroxycarbofuran (Carbofuran breakdown product) * **

Methiocarb (Slug-Geta, Grandslam, Mesurol) * **

Methyl parathion (Penncap-M, Folidol-M) **

Oxamyl (Vydate L, Pratt) **

cis-Permethrin (Ambush, Astro, Pounce) * **

Phorate (Thimet, Granutox, Geomet, Rampart) * **

Propargite (Comite, Omite, Ornamite) * **

Propoxur (Baygon, Blattanex, Unden, Proprotox) * **

Azinphos-methyl (Guthion, Gusathion M) * 

| † 3 †

2 1 | 93 0 2 | 36

0 <1 15

Carbaryl (Carbamine, Denapon, Sevin) 

| | † 9 †

52 46 | | 93 61 16 | | 36

7 <1 | 15 6 2 | 50 3 1 | 78

Chlorpyrifos (Brodan, Dursban, Lorsban) 

| | † 18 †

32 37 | | 93 20 20 | | 35

0 1 | 15 0 1 | 50 0 <1 | 78

p,p'-DDE 

| | † 8 †

1 2 | | 93 3 4 | | 36

7 4 | 15 0 2 | 50 4 2 | 78

Diazinon (Basudin, Diazatol, Neocidol, Knox Out) 

| | † 16 †

57 70 | | 93 56 39 | | 36

0 <1 | 15 0 2 | 50 0 2 | 78

Dieldrin (Panoram D-31, Octalox, Compound 497) 

| | † 6 †

0 2 | | 93 3 2 | | 36

10 1 | 10 21 6 | 38 4 1 | 78

gamma-HCH (Lindane, gamma-BHC) 

| | † 1 †

2 1 | | 93 0 4 | | 36

0 <1 | 10

0 <1 | 78

Parathion (Roethyl-P, Alkron, Panthion, Phoskil) * 

| † <1 †

1 1 | 93 0 <1 | 36

1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane (DBCP, Nemagon) 

0 1 | 15

1 <1 | 79

† Seven samples were collected at Neshanic River at Reaville, N.J., an agricultural 

site. The requirement of having a minimum of 6-months of data, however, was not 

met. See pages 18–20 for a discussion of pesticide findings.
36 Water Quality in the Long Island - New Jersey Coastal Drainages

CONCENTRATION, IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

Nutrients in water

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

Other VOCs detected

tert-Amylmethylether (tert-amyl methyl ether (TAME)) * 

Benzene 

Bromodichloromethane (Dichlorobromomethane) 

2-Butanone (Methyl ethyl ketone (MEK)) * 

n-Butylbenzene (1-Phenylbutane) * 

sec-Butylbenzene * 

tert-Butylbenzene * 

Carbon disulfide * 

Chlorobenzene (Monochlorobenzene) 

Chlorodibromomethane (Dibromochloromethane) 

Chloroethane (Ethyl chloride) * 

Chloroethene (Vinyl chloride) 

Chloromethane (Methyl chloride) 

1,2-Dichlorobenzene (o-Dichlorobenzene) 

1,3-Dichlorobenzene (m-Dichlorobenzene) 

1,4-Dichlorobenzene (p-Dichlorobenzene) 

Dichlorodifluoromethane (CFC 12, Freon 12) 

1,2-Dichloroethane (Ethylene dichloride) 

1,1-Dichloroethane (Ethylidene dichloride) * 

1,1-Dichloroethene (Vinylidene chloride) 

cis-1,2-Dichloroethene ((Z)-1,2-Dichloroethene) 

Dichloromethane (Methylene chloride) 

1,2-Dichloropropane (Propylene dichloride) 

Diethyl ether (Ethyl ether) * 

Diisopropyl ether (Diisopropylether (DIPE)) * 

1,2-Dimethylbenzene (o-Xylene) 

1,3 & 1,4-Dimethylbenzene (m-&p-Xylene) 

1-4-Epoxy butane (Tetrahydrofuran, Diethylene oxide) * 

Ethenylbenzene (Styrene) 

1-Ethyl-2-methylbenzene (2-Ethyltoluene) * 

Ethylbenzene (Phenylethane) 

Iodomethane (Methyl iodide) * 

Isopropylbenzene (Cumene) * 

p-Isopropyltoluene (p-Cymene) * 

Methylbenzene (Toluene) 

Naphthalene 

2-Propanone (Acetone) * 

n-Propylbenzene (Isocumene) * 

Tetrachloroethene (Perchloroethene) 

Tetrachloromethane (Carbon tetrachloride) 

1,2,3,4-Tetramethylbenzene (Prehnitene) * 

Tribromomethane (Bromoform) 

1,1,2-Trichloro-1,2,2-trifluoroethane (Freon 113) * 

1,1,1-Trichloroethane (Methylchloroform) 

Trichlorofluoromethane (CFC 11, Freon 11) 

1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene (Pseudocumene) * 

1,3,5-Trimethylbenzene (Mesitylene) * 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection in percent Study-unit sample size

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 

Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) 

13 4 | 15 58 16 | 50 32 6 | 79

Trichloroethene (TCE) 

13 3 | 15 6 8 | 50 15 5 | 79

Trichloromethane (Chloroform) 

67 35 | 15 86 51 | 50 68 30 | 79

VOCs not detected

Bromobenzene (Phenyl bromide) * 

Bromochloromethane (Methylene chlorobromide) 

Bromoethene (Vinyl bromide) * 

Bromomethane (Methyl bromide) 

3-Chloro-1-propene (3-Chloropropene) * 

1-Chloro-2-methylbenzene (o-Chlorotoluene) 

1-Chloro-4-methylbenzene (p-Chlorotoluene) 

1,2-Dibromoethane (Ethylene dibromide, EDB) 

Dibromomethane (Methylene dibromide) * 

trans-1,4-Dichloro-2-butene ((Z)-1,4-Dichloro-2-butene) * 

trans-1,2-Dichloroethene ((E)-1,2-Dichlorothene) 

2,2-Dichloropropane * 

1,3-Dichloropropane (Trimethylene dichloride) * 

trans-1,3-Dichloropropene ((E)-1,3-Dichloropropene) 

cis-1,3-Dichloropropene ((Z)-1,3-Dichloropropene) 

1,1-Dichloropropene * 

Ethyl methacrylate * 

Ethyl tert-butyl ether (Ethyl-t-butyl ether (ETBE)) * 

Hexachlorobutadiene 

1,1,1,2,2,2-Hexachloroethane (Hexachloroethane) 

2-Hexanone (Methyl butyl ketone (MBK)) * 

Methyl acrylonitrile * 

Methyl-2-methacrylate (Methyl methacrylate) * 

4-Methyl-2-pentanone (Methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK)) * 

Methyl-2-propenoate (Methyl acrylate) * 

2-Propenenitrile (Acrylonitrile) 

1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane * 

1,1,1,2-Tetrachloroethane 

1,2,3,5-Tetramethylbenzene (Isodurene) * 

1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene 

1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene * 

1,1,2-Trichloroethane (Vinyl trichloride) 

1,2,3-Trichloropropane (Allyl trichloride) 

1,2,3-Trimethylbenzene (Hemimellitene) *

Ammonia, as N * **

54 84 28 77 86 162 72 75 64

33 78 15 38 71 50 52 70 79

Dissolved ammonia plus organic nitrogen, as N * ** 100 78 28 93 74 163 100 62 64

33 28 15 28 30 50 5 24 79

Dissolved nitrite plus nitrate, as N ** 96 95 | 28 100 97 | 163 98 91 | 64

100 81 | 15 96 74 | 50 86 71 | 79

Orthophosphate, as P * **

79 79 28 82 72 163 97 74 64

7 59 15 14 52 50 68 61 79

Total phosphorus, as P * ** 90 92 | 29 92 90 | 163 100 88 | 65
Water-Quality Data in a National Context 37 

Fish tissue from streams in agricultural areas

Fish tissue from streams in urban areas

Fish tissue from streams draining mixed land uses

Sediment from streams in agricultural areas 

Sediment from streams in urban areas 

Sediment from streams draining mixed land uses

Protection of fish-eating wildlife (applies to fish tissue)

Protection of aquatic life (applies to bed sediment)

No benchmark for protection of fish-eating wildlife

No benchmark for protection of aquatic life

|

|

**

CHEMICALS IN FISH TISSUE

AND BED SEDIMENT

Concentrations and detection frequencies, Long Island - New 

Jersey Coastal Drainages, 1996–98—Detection sensitivity varies 

among chemicals and, thus, frequencies are not directly comparable 

among chemicals. Study-unit frequencies of detection are based on 

small sample sizes; the applicable sample size is specified in each 

graph

Lowest

25 percent

Middle

50 percent

Highest

25 percent

National benchmarks for fish tissue and bed sediment

National benchmarks include standards and guidelines related to 

criteria for protection of the health of fish-eating wildlife and aquatic 

organisms. Sources include the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 

other Federal and State agencies, and the Canadian Council of 

Ministers of the Environment

*

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER KILOGRAM

(Fish tissue is wet weight; bed sediment is dry weight)

 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER KILOGRAM

(Fish tissue is wet weight; bed sediment is dry weight)

 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

National ranges of concentrations detected, by land use, in 36 

NAWQA Study Units, 1991–98—Ranges include only samples

in which a chemical was detected

Detected concentration in Study Unit

Frequencies of detection, in percent. Detection frequencies 

were not censored at any common reporting limit. The lefthand column is the study-unit frequency and the right-hand 

column is the national frequency

Not measured or sample size less than two

Study-unit sample size

66 38

--

12

Organochlorines in fish tissue (whole body)

and bed sediment

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

Other trace elements detected

Chromium 

Lead 

Selenium 

Zinc 

Trace elements not detected

Cadmium 

CONCENTRATION, IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITER

 0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

Dissolved solids in water

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

CONCENTRATION, IN PICOCURIES PER LITER

Trace elements in ground water

Arsenic 

-- 58 | 0 -- 36 | 0 24 37 | 79

Radon-222 

-- 99 | 0 -- 100 | 0 100 97 | 27

Uranium 

-- 64 | 0 -- 35 | 0 27 33 | 30

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER LITER

 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

Dissolved solids * ** 100 100 28 99 100 160 100 100 63

100 100 15 100 100 50 100 100 79

Total Chlordane (sum of 5 chlordanes) -- 38 | 1 100 75 | 4 100 56 | 2

-- 9 | 1 86 57 | 7 0 11 | 2

o,p'+p,p'-DDD (sum of o,p'-DDD and p,p'-DDD) * 

-- 49 1 100 69 4 100 50 2

-- 27 | 1 100 50 | 7 100 20 | 2

p,p'-DDE * **

-- 90 1 100 94 4 100 92 2

-- 48 1 100 62 7 50 39 2

o,p'+p,p'-DDE (sum of o,p'-DDE and p,p'-DDE) * -- 90 1 100 94 4 100 92 2

-- 48 | 1 100 62 | 7 50 39 | 2
38 Water Quality in the Long Island - New Jersey Coastal Drainages

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER KILOGRAM, DRY WEIGHT

 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent

Semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs)

in bed sediment

Study-unit sample size

1 The national detection frequencies for total PCB in sediment are biased low because about 

30 percent of samples nationally had elevated detection levels compared to this Study Unit. 

See http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/ for additional information.

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER KILOGRAM

(Fish tissue is wet weight; bed sediment is dry weight)

 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

Other organochlorines detected

Mirex (Dechlorane) **

Organochlorines not detected

Chloroneb (Chloronebe, Demosan) * **

DCPA (Dacthal, chlorthal-dimethyl) * **

Endosulfan I (alpha-Endosulfan, Thiodan) * **

Endrin (Endrine) 

gamma-HCH (Lindane, gamma-BHC, Gammexane) * 

Total-HCH (sum of alpha-HCH, beta-HCH, gamma-HCH, and delta-HCH) **

Isodrin (Isodrine, Compound 711) * **

p,p'-Methoxychlor (Marlate, methoxychlore) * **

o,p'-Methoxychlor * **

cis-Permethrin (Ambush, Astro, Pounce) * **

trans-Permethrin (Ambush, Astro, Pounce) * **

Toxaphene (Camphechlor, Hercules 3956) * **

o,p'+p,p'-DDT (sum of o,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDT) * -- 31 1 100 53 4 100 29 2

-- 19 | 1 43 38 | 7 100 11 | 2

Total DDT (sum of 6 DDTs) **

-- 90 | 1 100 94 | 4 100 93 | 2

-- 49 1 100 66 7 100 41 2

Dieldrin (Panoram D-31, Octalox) * -- 53 1 75 42 4 100 38 2

-- 13 | 1 43 30 | 7 50 9 | 2

Dieldrin+aldrin (sum of dieldrin and aldrin) ** -- 52 | 1 75 42 | 4 100 38 | 2

-- 13 1 43 29 7 50 9 2

Heptachlor epoxide (Heptachlor metabolite) * 

-- 8 1 25 9 4 50 14 2

-- 1 | 1 0 3 | 7 0 <1 | 2

Heptachlor+heptachlor epoxide **

-- 9 | 1 25 9 | 4 100 14 | 2

-- 1 1 0 2 7 0 <1 2

Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) ** -- 8 | 1 50 12 | 4 50 3 | 2

-- 4 1 0 4 7 0 1 2

Pentachloroanisole (PCA) * **

-- 6 1 0 14 4 50 8 2

Acenaphthene 

-- 10 | 1 57 54 | 7 50 27 | 2

Anthracene 

-- 37 | 1 100 89 | 7 100 56 | 2

Anthraquinone **

-- 21 1 100 83 7 100 39 2

Benz[a]anthracene 

-- 44 | 1 100 94 | 7 100 62 | 2

Benzo[a]pyrene 

-- 40 | 1 100 92 | 7 100 59 | 2

9H-Carbazole **

-- 19 1 100 76 7 50 33 2

Chrysene 

-- 50 | 1 100 94 | 7 100 67 | 2

Dibenz[a,h]anthracene 

-- 8 | 1 86 68 | 7 100 23 | 2

Dibenzothiophene **

-- 12 1 100 64 7 100 30 2

Total PCB 1

-- 38 | 1 100 81 | 4 100 66 | 2

-- 2 | 1 57 21 | 7 0 9 | 2
Water-Quality Data in a National Context 39 

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER GRAM

(Fish tissue is wet weight, bed sediment is dry weight)

 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 10,000 1,000 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent

Trace elements in fish tissue (livers) and 

bed sediment

Study-unit sample size

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER KILOGRAM, DRY WEIGHT

 0.1 1 10 100 1,000 10,000 100,000 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

Other SVOCs detected

Acenaphthylene 

Acridine **

Benzo[b]fluoranthene **

Benzo[ghi]perylene **

Benzo[k]fluoranthene **

Butylbenzylphthalate **

p-Cresol **

Di-n-butylphthalate **

Di-n-octylphthalate **

Diethylphthalate **

1,2-Dimethylnaphthalene **

1,6-Dimethylnaphthalene **

Dimethylphthalate **

Indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene **

1-Methyl-9H-fluorene **

2-Methylanthracene **

4,5-Methylenephenanthrene **

1-Methylphenanthrene **

1-Methylpyrene **

Naphthalene 

Phenanthridine **

1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene **

2,3,6-Trimethylnaphthalene **

SVOCs not detected

C8-Alkylphenol **

Azobenzene **

Benzo[c]cinnoline **

2,2-Biquinoline **

4-Bromophenyl-phenylether **

4-Chloro-3-methylphenol **

bis(2-Chloroethoxy)methane **

2-Chloronaphthalene **

2-Chlorophenol **

4-Chlorophenyl-phenylether **

1,2-Dichlorobenzene (o-Dichlorobenzene) **

1,3-Dichlorobenzene (m-Dichlorobenzene) **

1,4-Dichlorobenzene (p-Dichlorobenzene) **

3,5-Dimethylphenol **

2,4-Dinitrotoluene **

2-Ethylnaphthalene **

Isophorone **

Isoquinoline **

Nitrobenzene **

N-Nitrosodi-n-propylamine **

N-Nitrosodiphenylamine **

Pentachloronitrobenzene **

Quinoline **

2,6-Dimethylnaphthalene **

-- 65 1 86 74 7 100 77 2

bis(2-Ethylhexyl)phthalate **

-- 91 1 100 99 7 100 95 2

Fluoranthene 

-- 66 | 1 100 97 | 7 100 78 | 2

9H-Fluorene (Fluorene) 

-- 22 | 1 100 76 | 7 100 41 | 2

Phenanthrene 

-- 50 | 1 100 93 | 7 100 66 | 2

Phenol **

-- 81 1 71 82 7 100 80 2

Pyrene 

-- 64 | 1 100 95 | 7 100 76 | 2

Arsenic * 

-- 56 1 0 38 3 0 76 2

-- 99 | 1 100 98 | 6 100 97 | 2

Cadmium * 

-- 77 1 100 72 3 100 95 2

-- 98 | 1 100 100 | 6 100 98 | 2

Chromium * -- 62 1 67 72 3 50 54 2

-- 100 | 1 100 99 | 7 100 100 | 2

Copper * -- 100 1 100 100 3 100 100 2

-- 100 | 1 100 99 | 7 100 100 | 2

Lead * 

-- 11 1 67 41 3 0 41 2

-- 100 | 1 100 100 | 7 100 99 | 2

Mercury * 

-- 71 1 100 59 3 100 80 2

-- 82 | 1 100 97 | 6 100 93 | 2
40 Water Quality in the Long Island - New Jersey Coastal Drainages

Biological indicator value, Long Island - New Jersey Coastal 

Drainages, by land use, 1996–98

Biological status assessed at a site

National ranges of biological indicators, in 16 NAWQA Study 

Units, 1994–98

Streams in undeveloped areas

Streams in agricultural areas

Streams in urban areas

Streams in mixed-land-use areas

75th percentile

25th percentile

BIOLOGICAL INDICATORS

Higher national scores suggest habitat disturbance, water-quality 

degradation, or naturally harsh conditions. The status of algae, 

invertebrates (insects, worms, and clams), and fish provide a 

record of water-quality and stream conditions that waterchemistry indicators may not reveal. Algal status focuses on the 

changes in the percentage of certain algae in response to 

increasing siltation, and it often correlates with higher nutrient 

concentrations in some regions. Invertebrate status averages 11 

metrics that summarize changes in richness, tolerance, trophic 

conditions, and dominance associated with water-quality 

degradation. Fish status sums the scores of four fish metrics 

(percent tolerant, omnivorous, non-native individuals, and percent 

individuals with external anomalies) that increase in association 

with water-quality degradation

 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

 0 5 10 15 20

CONCENTRATION, IN MICROGRAMS PER GRAM

(Fish tissue is wet weight, bed sediment is dry weight)

 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 10,000 1,000 

Study-unit frequency of detection, in percent

National frequency of detection, in percent Study-unit sample size

 Algal status indicator

Undeveloped

Agricultural

Urban

Mixed

 Invertebrate status indicator

Undeveloped

Agricultural

Urban

Mixed

 Fish status indicator

Undeveloped

Agricultural

Urban

Mixed

Nickel * **

-- 42 1 0 44 3 0 50 2

-- 100 1 100 100 7 100 100 2

Selenium * -- 99 1 100 100 3 100 99 2

-- 100 | 1 100 100 | 6 100 100 | 2

Zinc * 

-- 100 1 100 100 3 100 100 2

-- 100 | 1 100 99 | 7 100 100 | 2
A COORDINATED EFFORT

Coordination with agencies and organizations in the Long Island–New Jersey Coastal Drainages was integral to 

the success of this water-quality assessment. We thank those agencies and organizations who allowed their 

employees to serve as members of our liaison committee. 

Federal agencies

National Park Service

U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources 

Conservation Service

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

U.S. Forest Service

State agencies

New Jersey Department of Agriculture

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

New Jersey Geological Survey

New Jersey Pinelands Commission

New York Department of Environmental Conservation

New York Geological Survey

Local and regional agencies

Hunterdon County Planning Board

Long Island Regional Planning Board

Nassau County Department of Public Works

New York City Department of Environmental Protection

Ocean County Health Department

Suffolk County Department of Health

Suffolk County Water Authority

Universities

Rutgers University

Stony Brook University

Other public and private organizations

Farm Bureau of Long Island and New Jersey 

Hackensack Meadowlands Development Committee

New Jersey State Soil Conservation Committee

New Jersey Water Resources Research Institute

Passaic River Coalition

Rutgers Agricultural Extension Service

The Nature Conservancy, L.I. Chapter

Upper Raritan Watershed Association

We thank the following individuals and their agency or organization for contributing to this study.

John Curran (New Jersey Geological Survey), Glenn Berwick, and David Kraemer (USGS) provided monitoringwell-drilling services. Robert Daniels (New York State Museum) validated and vouchered unusual fish specimens. 

Robert Zampella (New Jersey Pinelands) provided helpful input throughout the study. Timothy Dunne (Natural 

Resource Conservation Service) assisted with historical fish sampling site location and validation. James Kurtenbach (USEPA) and Lisa Barno, Alan Korndoerfer, Walter Murawski, and Paul Olsen (NJDEP) contributed biological 

and other information for retrospective assessments. Christopher Millard (Maryland Department of Natural 

Resources) assisted with barge and backpack electrofishing and fish identification. Edward Callender, Peter Van 

Metre, Michael Dorsey, Kathryn Conko, Craig Weiss, and Timothy Wilson (USGS) led and (or) assisted in the lakesediment coring. David Krabbenhoft and William Brumbaugh (USGS) provided laboratory analyses and interpretation of mercury data. David Armstrong (USGS) assisted with total station analyses for habitat characterization. 

Ronald Baker, Thomas Barringer, Karen Beaulieu, Eric Best, Ann Chalmers, Michael Deluca, Charles Donovan, 

Rose Eppers, Bonnie Gray, Tamara Ivahnenko, Jonathan Klotz, Mathew Lahvis, Joel Murray, Timothy Oden, 

Melissa Riskin, Kristin Romanok, Nicholas Smith, Zoltan Szabo, Steven Tessler, and Robert Winowitch (USGS), 

Dean Bryson, Thomas Miller, and Victor Poretti (NJDEP), Harold Campbell (NSF International, Mich.), Michael 

Chadwick, Adam Kustka, Diane Salkie, and Thuan Tran (USEPA, Region II) all assisted with collection, compilation, and (or) analysis of the data to some degree. Many genuinely interested people, landowners, and organizations helped locate and provide access to data and sampling sites. The District publications unit, especially William 

Ellis and Dale Simmons, provided editorial and graphics assistance throughout the study. Last but not least, Arthur 

Baehr, Ellyn (Del Corso) Campbell, Ming Chang, Emmanuel Charles, Richard Clawges, Helle Gylling, Jessica 

Hopple, Leon Kauffman, Gary Long, John Monti, Anne O'Brien, John Pflaumer, Robert Reiser, and Steven Terracciano all were dedicated team members and contributing authors.
Ayers and others— Water Quality in the Long Isalnd-New Jersey Coastal Drainages

U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1201

National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program

Long Island-New Jersey Coastal Drainages

NAWQA

New

Jersey

PA

Philadelphia

New

York 

City

NY

Atlantic

City

Long Island, NY

Atlantic Ocean