New York State says ash, charcoal on Long Island South Shore beaches may have come from New Jersey wildfires

New York State investigators say ash and charcoal washing up this past week on South Shore ocean beaches, including surf zones at both Jones Beach and Robert Moses, may have come from the recent wildfires in New Jersey.

State Department of Environmental Conservation officials said Monday they are investigating the source of the debris but fine particles carried by wind and ocean currents may have come from the southern New Jersey pine barrens wildfires.

Officials said the incidents were first reported by the Long Island office of New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation on May 6. Those reports indicated "deposits" of what the NYSDEC said appeared to be "small pieces of charcoal and ash" had washed up on beaches at the two state parks.

George Gorman, New York State Parks regional director for Long Island, confirmed workers at the two beaches reported finding the debris last Tuesday and said, after cleaning shorefront areas, officials are "monitoring the shoreline so that if we do see any debris or ash wash up again, we can clean it immediately."

The NYSDEC said those cleanups were made with state parks staff "utilizing surf rakes" to clean, but stressed the situation has not affected beachgoers at this point — since swimming is currently prohibited due to seasonal closures.

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection was first notified Monday about reports of ash washing up on New York beaches. 

"New Jersey experienced ash washing up on beaches in Ocean County in the days after Jones Road Wildfire fire began on April 22, but this ash has largely washed away as a result of repeated tide cycles," New Jersey officials said. "The DEP plans to coordinate with local officials on additional monitoring of New Jersey beaches this week and will share information with New York officials."

Officials are hopeful the situation will not impact the start of summer beach season.

"It has dissipated and we believe there will be no impact by Memorial Day weekend, when lifeguards are on duty and swimming is allowed," Gorman said.

Babylon Town officials also said Monday morning that "black, charred debris" was washing up on beaches.

"The situation is expected to resolve on its own, but our Town DPW and DEC teams are actively monitoring the beaches. The state has also shared that similar debris is being reported along the entire South Shore," Babylon town officials said in a Facebook post.

While the NYSDEC said investigators also were monitoring the situation at other area ocean beaches, officials in Long Beach and the Town of Hempstead said they had not found any evidence of fire-related detritus on their beaches.

Marta Kane, a spokeswoman for the Town of Oyster Bay said debris washed up on the town's beach, located near Jones Beach, Wednesday and was cleaned up with a surf rake.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said its satellites have been "closely monitoring" the effects of the New Jersey pine barrens fires, also known as the Jones Road Fire, which, fueled by gusting winds, burned more than 24 square miles of land — forcing the evacuation of more than 5,000 area residents.