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ABOUT NANTUCKET SOUND
Nantucket Sound's unique ecology makes it a national treasure. Here the cold Labrador Current and warm Gulf Stream meet, bringing together northern and southern species of marine life and creating an extreme richness of biological diversity and productivity.
The success of reproduction and juvenile development of these migratory species impacts abundance levels up and down the East Coast. The habitats of the Sound promote diversity, open waters, shallow shoals, salt marshes and sandy beaches.
These settings also attract great numbers of songbirds, seabirds and endangered species. Drawn by this natural beauty, residents and visitors, fishermen, boaters and sightseers come from around the world.
Unfortunately, popularity has a price. Overuse, pollution and habitat loss are stressing natural systems beyond their capacity to cope. Our degraded inshore waters now host algae blooms and fish kills.
According to the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies, the coastal and marine waters and the lands of Nantucket Sound contain valuable natural resources that are of great scientific, scenic, historical, ecological, environmental, recreational and economic value.
Nantucket Sound has long been recognized as deserving of special protection. In the 1970s, it was designated as a Massachusetts Ocean Sanctuary. Twice in the 80s, it was nominated as a National Marine Sanctuary. Today, it is still on the list of water bodies nominated for national protective status. Such permanent protective status must remain a high priority for all concerned with protecting Nantucket Sound.
