4/11/13 Update: As of April 15, 2013, all of New Jersey’s shellfish beds that were once closed as a result of Superstorm Sandy will return to the classifications they had before Superstorm Sandy hit in October.

Partial Re-Opening Waters to Shellfish Harvest: Delaware Bay (11/11/2012 update)
Effective sunrise on November 12, 2012 all of the New Jersey state waters of the Delaware Bay are re-opened to their prior shellfish classification (see adjacent map). The Department has determined through monitoring of water quality and shellfish tissue that the Delaware Bay of New Jersey is now safe for the harvesting of shellfish in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:12 et seq. To view the Administrative Order, click here.

Delaware Bay / Cumberland County Stations (11/9/12 update)
Cumberland County Stations (stations 39-47) include all of the Delaware Bay.  Sample results indicate that bacteria levels have generally returned to normal.  The NJDEP is sampling those stations again today (11/9/12) to ensure that the Nor’easter did not degrade water quality.  In addition, tissue samples were taken today with assistance of the Delaware Bay Shellfish Council.   If today’s water sample results show levels within the criteria for those water’s classification and if tissue analysis results meet the criteria in the National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP), then it is likely that the shellfish harvest will be re-opened effective sunrise November 12, 2012.  Tissue is  analyzed for both viruses and bacteria.