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Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary The Influence of Salt Marshes
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Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Feb 06, 2016

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Joyce Lagunday

Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary. The Influence of Salt Marshes. Goals of Neponset Restoration. Restore water quality Restore ecosystem heath and function Restore ecosystem services. Are oysters the answer?. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Page 1: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River EstuaryThe Influence of Salt Marshes

Page 2: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Goals of Neponset Restoration Restore water quality Restore ecosystem heath and function Restore ecosystem services

Page 3: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Are oysters the answer?

Page 4: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 80005

10152025303540

Turbidity (NTU) at Station 140

Conversion from NTU to TSS is site specific but is estimated as NTU*2.5 =TSS (mg/L)

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 7000

102030405060708090

Turbididty (NTU) at Station 89

Page 5: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

0 100 200 300 400 500 60005

1015202530354045

Turbidity (NTU) at Station 41

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 5000

10203040506070

Turbidity (NTU) at Station 54

0 100 200 300 400 500 6000

102030405060

Turbidity (NTU) at Station 42

Conversion from NTU to TSS is site specific but is estimated as NTU*2.5 =TSS (mg/L)

Page 6: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Salt Marshes Extremely productive ecosystems Rich in marine life Important animal habitat

Nursery Sanctuary

Protect shore lines Wave action Erosion Filtering nutrients

Enhance water quality

Page 7: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Water Quality Improvement Sedimentation along marsh

Deposited during tidal flux and storms Rates vary among sites and depend on

particle size Rates currently unknown for Neponset

Will be enhanced with salt marsh restoration Particulate nutrients also deposited in marsh

Excess of nutrients in most coastal systems Basins general net importers of nutrients Majority of nutrients deposited in marsh

Page 8: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Marshes of Neponset Historic

Page 9: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Marshes of Neponset Present

Page 10: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

How much marsh do we need?

These are measurements of kg/ 532 km2

In 1991 there was ~1km2 of marsh in the Neponset

For 1km -39.5 33.3 -1.1 -2.6 -0.6 9.0 -1.6 -0.4 -2.2

Nutrient Concentrations at Station 140- 1994-2011 Average

Average uM multiplied by MW

Yearly volume based on low river flow (0.6m^3/s)

Yearly volume based on high river flow (3.1m^3/s)

Ammonium 3.84(uM) 307.01 (ug/m^3) 5.81 (kg) 30.03 (kg)Nitrate+Nitrite 6.21 (uM) 385.00(ug/m^3) 7.29 (kg) 37.66 (kg)Total Dissolved N 25.71(uM) 360.17 (ug/m^3) 6.82 (kg) 35.23(kg)Particulate N 6.10(uM) 85.42(ug/m^3) 1.62(kg) 8.36 (kg)Phosphate 0.92 (uM) 87.59 (ug/m^3) 1.66 (kg) 8.57 (kg)Total Dissolved P 1.15(uM) 35.75(ug/m^3) 0.68(kg) 3.50 (kg)Particulate P 0.68 (uM) 21.10 (ug/m^3) 0.40 (kg) 2.06 (kg)Total Phosphorus 4.44(uM) 137.50(ug/m^3) 2.60 (kg) 13.45 (kg)Particulate C 47.20(uM) 566.88 (ug/m^3) 10.73(kg) 55.46 (kg)

Page 11: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Examples of Restoration Success

Long Island Sound- CT Sachuest Salt Marsh- RI San Francisco Bay- CA

And failures San Diego Bay- Sweetwater Marsh Several small sites in NW Europe

Debate over “success” vs. “failure” What is “restoration”? What goals need to be reached? Often cannot restore biodiversity May take longer for some factors to recover

Page 12: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Neponset Restoration Potential Two projects already under taken:

In 2005 dredging restored 0.06km2 of salt marsh to the Neponset Estuary

In 2011 0.2km2 were restored at Broad Meadows in Quincy

Small restoration takes a lot of effort Broad Meadows cost $5.4 million

Need to set goals and timeline Need room to expand

Needs to be suitable habitat

Page 13: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary
Page 14: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

Marshes of Neponset Present

Page 15: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary
Page 16: Restoring Eelgrass to the Neponset River Estuary

References Oysters and TSS:

Cerco and Noel 2007 Nutrient Data:

MWRA Neponset River Physical Measurements, collected 1989 through 2011 http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/projects/ma/bhnip/MonitoringRpt09/Summary%20Report%20Plume%20Monitoring.pdf

General Marsh Information: http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/saltmarsh.html http://www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal/habitats/saltmarshes.htm http://www.dnr.sc.gov/marine/pub/seascience/dynamic.html

Water Quality and Marshes: http://

www.bainbridgewa.gov/documents/pln/2011_smp_reference3/stumpf_rp_the_process_of_sedimentation_on_the_surface_of_salt_marsh.pdf

http://geotest.tamu.edu/userfiles/167/110.pdf Maps of Marsh Loss:

http://www.mass.gov/czm/ma_estuarine_trends_1.pdf Marsh Nutrient Up-take:

http://www.bainbridgewa.gov/documents/pln/2011_smp_reference3/stumpf_rp_the_process_of_sedimentation_on_the_surface_of_salt_marsh.pdf

Current Marsh Extent: http://maps.massgis.state.ma.us/map_ol/oliver.php http://www.fws.gov/wetlands/Documents/Wetland-Status-and-Recent-Trends-for-the-Neponset-Watershed-Massachusetts-1977-1991

.pdf

Restoration Information: ftp://ftp.epchc.org/EPC_Wetlands_FTP/Hart/Literature/Zedler%20and%20Callaway%201999.%20Tracking%20Wetland%20Rest..pdf http://

www.ci.bainbridge-isl.wa.us/documents/pln/2011_smp_reference3/thom_rm_adaptive_mgmt_of_coastal_ecosystem_restoration_projects.pdf

http://www.vliz.be/imisdocs/publications/114137.pdf Prior Restoration Efforts:

http://www.neponset.org/Restoration-SaltMarsh.htm http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/der/pdf/der_annual_report_2011.pdf

Cover and Land Use Maps: http://www.neponset.org/BasinPlan/Low%20Resolution/NeponsetAssessLoRes.pdf