This past week, Bronx residents and visitors of Starlight Park were greeted with a more than welcome sight: dolphins had returned to the Bronx River.
The 19th and 20th centuries saw the Bronx River at its most polluted, with the river described as an “open sewer.” Industrial waste, fertilizers, and oil were routinely emptied into the river as a disposal site. As late as the early 2000s, the Bronx Zoo used the river to dump animal waste. The Botanical Gardens also used the river to dump pollutants. Consequently, vegetation died and animals fled the area.
Over the past few decades, environmental groups dedicated time and resources to cleaning up the river and restoring Starlight Park. In 2018, the Parks Department released 400 fish – a type of herring – into the river; the hope is they’ll lay eggs and continue living within the river, working towards a long-term benefit for the river’s ecology. The park has been restored with vegetation, playgrounds, and picnic tables, rounding out the efforts to improve this community space.
The city’s Parks Department declared that the sighting of dolphins back in the river is a sign of a healthy ecosystem. The return of the Dolphins is a statement about the power and importance of community conservation efforts.