Estuary+Conservation

=Estuary Conservation = Clairese K. Alison F.

No matter what, Humans WILL impact the Estuary biome. Algae can become a huge problem in estuarine environments. When there is an excessive amount of algae it can suffocate fish and produce harmful toxins. Algal blooms may also be called " red tide ". However, Humans can make a good impact as well. Using Forest Buffers, or buffers of trees on the banks of the many tributaries of Chesapeake Bay helps prevent erosion and also provides shade to cool down the tribuaries water, which is a necessity for some fish. Forest Buffers also provide habitats for animals and are altogether good for Chesapeake Bay.



There are many things that also need to be addressed in the estuaries. One problem in many estuarys is invasive species. Oyster drills, chinese mitten crabs, Brazillian pepper trees, and purple listrife are just a few of the invasive speies that have entered estuarys. The majority of these animals could have entered through ballast water. Ballast water is the water in the bottom of freight ships that is usually just ocean water. Once a ship has reached its destination it can just dump the water introducing new plankton and other organisms to the area. This is not a good thing. Another problem is when humans build dams and the water flow of rivers and tributaries of estuaries changes. This also prevents and slows down the migration of fish who swim upriver to spawn, reducing the fish population.



However, there are also ways to fix these problems. Humans can build fish ladders to allow the fish to proceed to their usual spawning areas. Humans can also rip down existing dams and let the waters of the tributaries revert to their natural flow, promoting flora and fauna to exist in greater numbers.

One solution for invasive species is managing ballast water. Websites and programs such as http://globallast.imo.org work to reduce the amount of species in the ballast water. It is not a perfect solution,but it is effective.



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