<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=us-ascii">
<meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 15 (filtered medium)">
<style><!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:"Cambria Math";
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:"Calibri Light";
panose-1:2 15 3 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:#0563C1;
text-decoration:underline;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:#954F72;
text-decoration:underline;}
span.EmailStyle17
{mso-style-type:personal;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
span.EmailStyle18
{mso-style-type:personal-reply;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:#1F497D;}
.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
font-size:10.0pt;}
@page WordSection1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;}
div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}
--></style><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="1026" />
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapelayout v:ext="edit">
<o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1" />
</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]-->
</head>
<body lang="EN-US" link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72">
<div class="WordSection1">
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif">UPDATE ON EMERGENCY SHELLFISH CLOSURE IN RI WATERS</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><i><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif">Testing of local waters and shellfish
<span style="color:black">meat will continue</span></span></i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black">PROVIDENCE - The precautionary shellfish harvesting closure announced last week for Narragansett Bay, Mt. Hope Bay, Kickemuit River, Sakonnet River and their
tributaries remains in effect until further notice. The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) announced today water samples collected on Sunday, October 9 still show high levels of phytoplankton in the Bay. DEM and the Rhode Island Department
of Health (RIDOH) will continue to monitor water quality and shellfish meats to determine when these local waters can be reopened to shellfishing. </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black">DEM regularly monitors local waters for the presence of phytoplankton that can produce harmful algae blooms. Since the closure, water samples are being taken
every other day. Until Bay samples indicate the bloom is declining, efforts to collect local shellfish for analysis to determine if the toxins are present in shellfish meats at levels of concern will be suspended. The toxin, known as domoic acid, produced
by these phytoplankton is responsible for causing amnesiac shellfish poisoning (ASP) in humans. Symptoms of ASP include short- and long-term memory loss along with other serious health effects.</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black">Samples collected on October 9 from four of the coastal salt ponds show that Pseudo-nitzschia cells were absent or present at very low levels. The ponds sampled
include – Winnapaug Pond, Pt. Judith Pond, Quonochontaug Pond, and Ninigret Pond.</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black">Today's sampling efforts focused on offshore waters outside the mouth of the Bay and waters flowing into Ninigret, Winnapaug, Quonochontaug and Pt Judith
Pond. </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black">Shellfish meats were collected by DEM from Narragansett Bay and aquaculture areas in southern Rhode Island coastal ponds over the weekend. The samples were
transported to Maine for analysis. Test results confirm no toxin was present. As a result, RIDOH has released the inventory of shellfish collected last week, which were being held by dealers since the ban was enacted on October 6. </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black">The shellfish closures, enacted at sunrise on Friday, October 7 and Saturday, October 8 are due to a confirmed harmful algae bloom (HAB) caused by the presence
of toxic phytoplankton, <i>Pseudo-nitzschia spp</i>. The harvest restriction does not apply to carnivorous snails, such as whelk and moon snails.</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:black">Given the high concentrations of phytoplankton in several areas of Narragansett Bay and the confirmed presence of toxins in the phytoplankton, and out of
an abundance of caution, all portions of the Bay where these elevated levels were found were closed to shellfish harvesting until further notice. There is no evidence that southern Rhode Island coastal ponds have been affected by the HAB.
</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif">For updates on shellfish closure areas, contact the DEM 24-hour shellfishing hotline at 401-222-2900. For more information
<span style="color:black">on</span><span style="color:red"> </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:red"><a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/index.htm"><span style="font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:red">DEM</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif">
divisions and programs, <span style="color:red">visit </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:red"><a href="http://www.dem.ri.gov/index.htm"><span style="font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:red">www.dem.ri.gov</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif">.
Follow us on Facebook <span style="color:black">at </span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:red"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/RhodeIslandDEM"><span style="font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif;color:red">www.facebook.com/RhodeIslandDEM</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif">
or on Twitter (@RhodeIslandDEM) for timely updates.</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif">-30-</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Calibri Light",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</body>
</html>