Salt water marshes have experienced a wide variety of human impacts that range from waste disposal, developments of cities, and animal grazing(Gedan,Sillman, Bartness 118). Each marsh area will be affected differently from human impacts and the only hope is that humans realize soon how devastating their lifestyle is to marshland. Human impacts of coastal engineering and pollution also have changed several marsh areas so much that the ecosystems of the salt marshes are incapable of providing for all coastal areas (Gedan, Sillman, Bartness 134).Sometimes it may not be direct impact on the marshes,but also the impact of humans on the environment can affect marshland. Salt marshes face regional and global changes that correlate with the amounts of human impacts(Gedan,Sillman,Bartness 119).
Salt marshes are the dumping bin of particulate matter, associated nutrients, and metals(Gedan,Sillman,Bartness 127). When waste is dumped into the water it alters soil composition, surface water, animal life and plant development.The dumping of waste also affects the production of oxygen into the atmosphere which affects the environment. An environmental change would be climate which impacts the geographical distribution of salt marshes that essentially affects the productivity of salt marsh plant species and could also affect animal life(Gedan,Sillman, Bartness 119). It is not truly clear if the concentration of toxin waste in marshland affects the lifespan or fitness of marine life, but it is known that waste in marshlands is not beneficial to marine life(Gedan,Sillman,Bartness 128). Being mindful of what society puts next to marshlands would be a wise decision because paper mills and waste lands are more contaminating to marshland than benef...
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...“Major Causes of Wetland Loss and Degradation”). Overall roads definitely contribute to marshland disturbance.
Marshlands near cities have been converted to industrial complexes that result in permanent loss and sometimes disappearance of the successful ecosystem that marshland developed (Gedan,Sillman,Bartness 119). These cities are using their resources in the area to potentially destroy the marshland around them. Wetland loss has limited the amount of habitat available to truly support a healthy population of marine life ( “Coastal Watershed Factsheets”). It’s not just in cities,but also in suburbs where the lawn fertilizers that americans use to have the best lawn contributes to loss of salt marshes (Kenney). From lawn fertilizers to watering the lawn too much can cause damage to marshland because some of those developments are being built right on the marsh.
On Wednesday, February 15th, I was able to have the opportunity to listen to Andrew Lipman. Andrew Lipman is the author of The Saltwater Frontier: Indians and the Contest for the American Coast. In the novel, he explained the life of Native Americans living in New England and on the coast of Long Island. During this time, most individuals relied on trading natural resources. In order for profit for the resources, the colonists and Native Americans used wampum. Wampum was used as a sacred gift in Native American culture as a peace offering, funerals and marriages. Colonialists had an advantage towards using wampum. They used beads as a commodity for furs. Native Americans relied on canoes for transportation. Canoes can hold up to fifty people.
Kennedy, Victor S. and Kent Mountford. (2001). Human Influences on Aquatic Resources in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Office of Water (2006) Wetlands: Protecting Life and Property from Flooding, Washington: Environmental Protection Agency
The Dry Creek Station was created in the spring of 1860 by crew members. This station was the last one built on the Pony Express on Bolivar Roberts division. This station was built for the purpose of the Pony Express which delivered mail. William H. Russell, Alexander Majors, and William B. Waddell created the Pony Express because mail delivery by boat would take a substantial amount of time so they chose that delivering mail by horse would take a cut on time. During the building process they ran into some issues with Indians, and one day when a “heavy mail” carrier named William H. Streeper was headed westward and ran into two prospectors that asked if they could join him in the journey. They neared Dry Creek Station and saw that there were no Indians in sight, but when they got to the station they found the station keeper scalped and mutilated, this man’s name was Ralph Rosier. What had actually happened is that Indians came into the station and shot two men. One of the men shot was named Applegate, who was already suffering from being shot, one of the Indians gave him a bullet and they let him decide his fate. He chose to shoot himself in the head rather than try and shoot the Indian in front of him.
The St.Lawerence Lowlands region consists of two parts St.Lawerence Lowlands and great lakes. The parts are separated by a thin wedge of the Canadian Shield, this thin wedge is just across the St.Lawerence river and extends to the United States near Kingston Ontario. These Lowlands have bedrock formed of sedimentary rock, the bedrock can be seen in several escarpments in the Great Lakes Lowlands. The best known is the Niagara escarpment which extends from Niagara to Manitoulin Island, the Great Lakes landscape is characterized by flat plains with glacial hills and deep rivers and valleys. The Lowlands was formed by faulting which caused a rift valley, the valley was flooded with water close to the end of the last ice age by part of the Atlantic
The Chesapeake Bay plays host to an astonishing amount of plant and animal life, providing much of our fish intake for species that aren’t being overfished. For the species that are being overdrawn, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation is working to restore the populations, and it’s going well thus far. Another theme that is endangering the marine life populations as well as the health of the human population is the massive amount of polluti...
When you think of the Eastern Shore, you may think of seafood, beaches, annoying tourists, and other attractions. But, a more interesting thing that people don’t immediately think of are hauntings. Hauntings of the Eastern Shore are unique and interesting things that also influence our culture. There are many myths, attractions, places, museums, and interesting stories from different people. Not all paranormal activity is the same, they all have a uniquely fascinating story behind them that makes the Eastern Shore unique. “Each year, in the Fall, haunted houses, hayrides, and trails find a new and creepier way to scare Marylanders” (Cockrum).
Williams, Jeff. "Louisiana Coastal Wetlands: A Resource at Risk." Marine and Coastal Geology Program. United States Geological Survey, 3 Nov. 1995. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. .
There are destructive forces at work against the salt marsh. While a slowly rising sea level has had some effect, the greatest destruction of salt marshes that has taken place is urban and suburban development.
...n, the Louisiana wetlands are an extremely valuable asset to the State of Louisiana and the United States. The continual loss of Louisiana wetlands has the potential to have an immensely negative effect on the economy at a state and national level. Over 2 million people live in the Louisiana coastal parishes (Field et al., 1991). The majority of people living on the Louisiana coast make their living from things that are directly related to the wetlands. The Louisiana wetlands make up the largest wetland community in America and is being lost at a rate greater than the other wetland communities in the country. The suggested strategies that are being taken into consideration could be helpful but it seems that the State of Louisiana is not as concerned as it should be given the future consequences and much like climate change coastal erosion is not being taken serious.
Scavia, Donald, John C. Field, Donald F. Boesch, Robert W. Buddemeier, Virginia Burkett, Daniel R. Cayan, Michael Fogarty, Mark A. Harwell, Robert W. Howarth, Curt Mason, Denise J. Reed, Thomas C. Royer, Asbury H. Sallenger, and James G. Titus. "Climate Change Impacts on U.S. Coastal and Marine Ecosystems." Estuaries 25.2 (2002): 149-64. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 2 Nov. 2013.
Urban runoff is the pollution washed into the oceans from, “irrigation runoff, households, and storm events, as well as contributions of raw sewage from degrading infrastructure and accidental spills,” (Dwight Fernandez). Urban runoff is a major issue facing California’s beach water quality. The two main sources of coastal water pollution in California are treated sewage and urban runoff, and in Southern California urban runoff is the primary cause of contamination in coastal waters (Brinks). Analysis has shown that urban runoff waters contain, “infectious and toxic pollutants,” posing a serious risk to beachgoers across California (Dwight, Fernandez). Southern California’s dense urban infrastructure, in particular, is conducive to generating urban runoff that is washed int...
Human activity is one of the leading causes of the disappearance of coastal wetlands. As the human population increases in coastal cities so does the demand for more land. Urbanization is causing enormous amounts of devastation to the existing wetlands. Unrestricted development is causing the erosion of soil, which is dumping foreign sediments into the wetlands polluting the water and disturbing the ecosystem. According to Lee et al. (2006) “Urbanization is a major cause of loss of coastal wetlands. Urbanization also exerts significant influences on the structure and function of coastal wetlands, mainly through modifying the hydrological and sedimentation regimes, and the dynamics of nutrients and chemical pollutants”. Restrictions on the development...
Analysis of sites in five coastal states indicate that many marshes and mangrove ecosystems receive adequate mineral sediments to produce enough organic sediment and root material to remain above sea level at the present rate of sea-level rise (1-2 mm per year globally). However, three of the twelve wetlands studied were not keeping pace with the current rate of sea-level rise. If sea-level rise accelerates, some additional sites would also begin to slowly deteriorate and submerge.
The problem with contaminated beaches will soon take effect on everyone. The main causes that pollution creates in the beaches are from heavy rainfall, natural disasters, and plant malfunctions. Government agencies cannot control the weather, but they can control what goes into the water. In the United States, the number one reason why beaches are closed down are due to contamination in the water that may be harmful and are left untreated. The arising problem with the beach is that the industries are producing toxic chemicals and tossing the unwanted waste into the ocean. Also, the public are recklessly throwing their trash out into the streets. A prime example to demonstrate this is, if someone was trying to throw a bottle into a street trashcan but missed, he/she is unlikely to pick up after himself/herself if no one was around to see it. This scenario causes pollution to the sidewalks. When mother nature disasters occur, these waste products will end up in the storm drains and into the sewage system. The overflow of debri from the cities can flow into the rivers and if not preserved, it can flow into the ocean. The rivers will then carry these human caused waste into t...