We meet up with three different people who have long-term knowledge of the coastal waters at Montauk Point to ask about change in the area.
First we meet with Professor Arthur (Artie) Kopelman. He teaches sustainability at The Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York and is President of Coastal Research & Education Society of Long Island (CRESLI).
For over twenty years Artie has been conducting regular off-shore trips from Montauk Harbor to map and monitor cetacean (marine mammals such as dolphin, porpoise and whale) numbers. Here is a link to his photographs from the trip that he made the day we met him. He talks of his visual observation of the sea, and in particular visual knowledge of these incredible animals.
Artie’s images of whales resonate with a description in Philip Hoare’s book Leviathan or, The Whale that I’m reading. In it Hoare charts the historical, natural and literary history of the whale as well as his own fascination with this species. He describes seeing a whale for the first time:
“Then someone shouted,
Whale!
and in the mid-distance, a massive grey-black shape slid up out of the water and back down below. Before I know it, there they are, off our bows, whales blowing noisily from the nostrils, rolling with the waves. Barely yards away a young humpback threw itself out of the water, showing off its white underbelly, ridged like some giant, rubbery shell. It was a jump-cut close-up of something impossible: a whale in flight”
(2009, p22-23)
Hoare peppers the book with quotations from Melville’s classic tale Moby Dick. The Whaling Museum that we visit at Sag Harbor is testament to man’s more violent relationship with the whale, and the reason numbers of this majestic animal dwindled. The C19th world-wide industry of whaling was dirty, dangerous, violent and lucrative for those who took the risk. This part of the east coast of the USA, like that of the UK sailed whaling vessels worldwide in mainly the C18th and C19th.
Now the threat to these creatures in this area isn’t culling for oil, but rather shipping channels and, of course, marine plastic. CRESLI’s monitoring of cetacean numbers is paired with taking the public out into the waters to see these mammals first hand. We talk about the effectiveness of primary experience, action and image-making to communicate and engage with a wider audience.
After our fascinating discussion with Artie, we go round the Harbor to chat with a few of the local fishermen whose livelihoods depend on these waters. Like in the UK, fishing is closely monitored here with strict quotas for what can be landed and sold.
And, like in the UK, fishermen here have seen a demise in what they can fish legally, and a rise in state and government legislation. The mantra is familiar: their knowledge of these waters and the habit is extensive and intimate; they know on a day-to-day basis which species of fish are thriving and those that are not; the decision-making of those who make the rules and have the power seems remote and out of touch.
Whilst in the UK, disputes about what and who fishes is by country (think of the on-going UK-French scallop row), here, rival quota and landings are by State. From Montauk Point north you can see Connecticut with the naked eye, and Massachusetts is not much further. To the south and west is New Jersey. The New York State registered fishermen, here, have to abide by their State landing rules, different from the others who visit their waters. It is unsurprising that this dangerous and precarious livelihood is deeply territorial.
Our last meeting in Montauk Harbor is with at the coastguard at the station on Star Island. In the UK, H.M. Coastguard is responsible for search and rescue around the coast waters. It is not a military, nor law enforcement unit. Here, as we enter the station grounds, we are immediately aware that we are entering a military unit. The United States Coast Guard is responsible for law enforcement as well as search and rescue. The unit are well placed here as they cover a wide stretch of water in Long Island Sound (the stretch of water to the north between Long Island and Connecticut) and the South Shore down towards New York City. We realise that discussion of environmental change in the area will be limited, it is inappropriate for us to stray into political waters. So we are given some new leads with people in the area who have been involved in sea defence work around Montauk Point and the Lighthouse. That will be our next stop.
