Longtime Darien resident Sally Knowlton-Keen looks out onto the salt marsh on her property that feeds into the Long Island Sound. She is concerned that development is harming the fragile wetlands. (Darien Times/David DesRoches)
This summer, The Darien Times has focused a series on Long Island Sound’s changes and how it affects Darien. Articles from the series and more can be viewed by clicking here.
• Area of the Long Island Sound: 1,320 square miles
• Area of the drainage basin or watershed: 16,820 square miles
• Average Depth: 63 feet (60-120 feet)
• Water Volume: 18 trillion gallons
• Length of Coastline: 600 miles
• Salinity range at the western end: 23 parts per thousand
• Salinity range at the eastern end: 35 parts per thousand
• Percent of fresh water that comes from three major rivers: 90%
• Avg. temperatures in 2011: 37°F winter, 69°F summer
• No. of tides each day (greatest tides in the west): 4 tides (2 high, 2 low)
• Population living within 50 miles: more than 23 million people
• Estimated value to the local economy per year: $8.91 billion (2011 dollars)
• No. of finfish species found in the Sound: more than 120 finfish species
• No. of tropical species that stray here seasonally: 21 tropical species
• No. of species that spawn in the Sound: at least 50 species
Source: Long Island Sound Study
