Estuaries
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Depolito, Smith and Praino |
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Question
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Answer |
What are
Estuaries? Why are they such a critical and productive part of marine
environments? |
Estuaries,
which are found at the mouth of rivers
where they meet the sea, are an important part of marine environments.
They are rich in nutrients, help replenish oxygen in rivers and seas,
and add nutrients and organic matter on bottom of the sea. Estuaries also act as nurseries for new and growing organisms. These areas are like safe havens
with plenty of food for new organisms where they mature before "going into the real world."
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Where is the
Chesapeake Bay located? |
The Chesapeake Bay is
located between Maryland and
Virginia. The Susquehanna River empties in to the Chesapeake Bay and supplies most of its fresh water. |
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Describe in
simple terms why estuaries are so productive and explain why they are so
sensitive to pollution and excessive nutrient load. |
Estuaries are so productive because two different communities of organisms
meet within them. Nutrients are abundant in Estuaries because of all the
run off that is carried down stream by the rivers. Estuaries are very sensitive to pollution, a good amount of any a foreign chemical can throw a whole community off. If any organism reproduces excessively or dies off, other organisms are affected because a food chain have been broken. Estuaries are always in constant danger of Eutrophication, human waste, and dumping from
factories or run off from farms.
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What are some
of the commercially important species that the use the Chesapeake Bay |
Some
commercially important species that use the Chesapeake Bay are the
Blue Crab, Oysters, and Shrimp. In the past the bay was also noted for
Canvas Back ducks and Terrapins both were considered delicacies.
Unfortunately both of these species were harvested to commercial
extinction. |
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What is
eutrophication? How does it occur. What are Algal and Bacterial blooms?
Why do such blooms represent a threat to the fishing industry |
Eutrophication
occurs when too many nutrients flow into a aquatic ecosystem, These
nutrients can be either organic compounds or inorganic substances like
phosphates or nitrates. These nutrients act as fertilizer for the simple
bacteria and algae in the water.
If there is an over supply of inorganic nutrients
it will cause an algal bloom. Unicellular algae will multiply so fast that
they will completely cloud the water. This can harm fish and shellfish and
can kill off all of the more complex bottom dwelling plants.
If there is an oversupply of organic waste
bacteria will bloom removing all oxygen from the water and killing
everything.
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What has been
governmental response to protect Estuaries from Eutrophication. |
The
Federal Clean Waters act and the Massachusetts Rivers Protection act and
The Title 5 septic systems Certification, were all intended to decrease
flow of man made pollutants into Marine and Aquatic environments. |
References:
You should provide references for all of your answers and images. |
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