The director of the Martha's Vineyard Shellfish Group said yesterday that nearly four million healthy juvenile shellfish under culture at his Lagoon Pond hatchery have died in the last three weeks because of extremely poor water quality in the pond.

The deteriorating water quality has not affected mature shellfish and there is no danger to humans who eat shellfish from the pond.

Oil Spill in Edgartown Harbor Kills Million Baby Oysters and Fouls
Waters

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

An oil spill of unknown origin sullied the pristine water of the
outer Edgartown harbor yesterday, ruining an entire crop of juvenile
shellfish at a hatchery owned by the Martha's Vineyard Shellfish
Group and posing a possible threat to the rich bay scallop beds off the
north shore of Chappaquiddick.