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COASTAL SALT MARSH COMMUNITY CHANGE IN NARRAGANSETT BAY IN RESPONSE TO CULTURAL EUTROPHICATION
Citation:
WIGAND, C. COASTAL SALT MARSH COMMUNITY CHANGE IN NARRAGANSETT BAY IN RESPONSE TO CULTURAL EUTROPHICATION. Chapter 17, Alan Desbonnet, Barry A. Costa-Pierce (ed.), Science for Ecosystem-based Management: Narragansett Bay in the 21st Century. Springer Science + Business Media, New York, NY, , 499-521, (2008).
Impact/Purpose:
This chapter by NHEERL’s Atlantic Ecology Division will be submitted to a book entitled “Ecosystem-based Management of a Southern New England Estuary: A Case Study of Narragansett Bay” which is a follow-up synthesis of the workshop “State of Science Knowledge on Nutrients in Narragansett Bay” held on Block Island, RI in November 2004. Coastal salt marshes are susceptible to cultural eutrophication, particularly the over-enrichment of nitrogen, because they are often located where surface water and groundwater discharge into estuaries. In this book chapter, first, the current areal extent of coastal salt marshes in Narragansett Bay, RI is reported. Second, changes in salt marsh community structure and system-level processes due, in part, to nitrogen over-enrichment are described. Over-enrichment of nitrogen is shown to alter coastal salt marsh community structure (i.e., plant and animal species richness, dominant species, and density) and ecosystem processes (i.e., plant productivity; denitrification and soil respiration rates) in Narragansett Bay coastal salt marshes. Changes in community structure and ecosystem processes may alter the ability of coastal marshes to provide key ecosystem services such as erosion and flood control, habitat and food for fish and wildlife, and water quality maintenance. Some successful approaches used to protect, restore, and manage coastal salt marshes are described. This book chapter will provide students, restoration specialists, scientific researchers, and stewards of coastal wetlands an assessment of the state of Narragansett Bay coastal salt marshes and an understanding of the effects of nitrogen enrichment on the structure and function of these systems.
Description:
Coastal salt marshes are susceptible to cultural eutrophication, particularly the over-enrichment of nitrogen, because they are often located where surface water and groundwater discharge into estuaries. In this report, the current areal extent of coastal salt marshes in Narragansett Bay, RI is described based on published studies. Then the changes in salt marsh community structure and system-level processes due, in part, to nitrogen over-enrichment are reviewed and summarized. Over-enrichment of nitrogen is shown to alter coastal salt marsh community structure (i.e., plant and animal species richness, dominant species, and density) and ecosystem processes (i.e., plant productivity; denitrification and soil respiration rates) in Narragansett Bay coastal salt marshes. Changes in community structure and ecosystem processes may alter the ability of coastal marshes to provide key ecosystem services such as erosion and flood control, habitat and food for fish and wildlife, and water quality maintenance. Additional stressors such as global warming, sea level rise, and watershed development may amplify the effects of cultural eutrophication on the structure and function of coastal salt marshes. Some successful approaches used to protect, restore, and manage coastal salt marshes are discussed.