Red Tide Forces Shellfishing Ban

 BOSTON (AP) - The state has closed areas of the Nauset Marsh system between Orleans and Eastham on Cape Cod to shellfishing because of concerns about toxic "red tide."
 
The state Division of Marine Fisheries said Friday the area is closed immediately because shellfish have been found contaminated by the plankton present in red tide. The toxin can affect the human nervous system and even cause fatal paralysis.
 
Among the areas included are Nauset Harbor, Town Cove, and Mill Pond in Orleans and Salt Pond in Eastham.
 
Digging, harvesting or collecting and/ attempting to dig, harvest or collect shellfish and the possession of shellfish, including carnivorous snails, from the defined areas is prohibited.
 
The state said experts from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute have seen increasing levels of the toxic plankton in the marsh system.

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