[Paddlewise] new york waterfront

There is an interesting interview with Adam Brown in the Metro section
of today's (Friday, 2/26) New York Times.

Adam is a commercial diver who has been seeing the underside of our
boats for years as he assesses and works on the underpinning of New
York's piers.

For those who are unaware, the pollution levels of the water here has
dropped so drastically that many forms of marine life, once unable to
survive here because of the condition of the water, have returned. 
Included are crustaceans and mollusks that are eating away at the piers.

I took an eye-opening and highly informative trip with Adam last year
for a few hours looking at the condition of the piers.  The article
covers some of what he has observed and he gives in a clear form what
exactly is happening.  The crustacean, known as a gribble, eats away at
the outside of the piers giving them the look of having been attacked by
beavers, i.e. an hour glass silohuette.  The other is a mollusk know as
a shipworm, a marine borer.  It bores holes into the pier leaving its
offspring to eat away at the core of the wood inside.

Adam's interview doesn't get into the solution for killing off the
shipworm borer.  The pier is wrapped in plastic and that effectively
cuts off the oxygen supply for the baby shipworms and they suffocate to
death.

I think the New York Times has shyed away from the murder of these
innocents for political purposes and so I'm planning a campaign to Save
The Baby Shipworm.  Now that those dastardly Canadians no longer are
killing baby seals, I think this is a good cause for us to take up.  My
movement plans to print up T-shirts with pictures of baby shipworms. 
They are not as appealing-looking as baby seals...no lovely eyelashes
and sweet faces.  In fact, they are downright ugly.  But who is to say
that we should only save what we find cute or romantic such as baby
seals and whales. They are babies suffering an insufferable death.  As
part of the protest, I am organizing a group of kayakers to tie
ourselves around the piers to prevent any further wrapping with
plastics.  Those who have shown disdain for folding kayaks and SOTs will
get less choice spots below the high water line.  :-)

Seriously, it is an interesting development many of us have been
following in New York Harbor.  The waters are so much cleaner.  Just
stay away from the piers.  One might collapse on you!!  And please don't
pass on my feeble attempt at humor regarding saving the baby shipworm. 
Some tree hugger may just take it up as a cause!!

ralph diaz

ralph diaz
-- 
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Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter
PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024
Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com
"Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag."
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