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The Importance of Coastal Wetlands

The Importance of Coastal Wetlands. http://www.uwgb.edu/biodiversity/econotes/2003/bradwetland2.jpg. The most common coastal wetlands are swamps and marshes. Swamps are wetlands with mainly trees and shrubs. There is standing water with limited drainage.

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The Importance of Coastal Wetlands

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  1. The Importance of Coastal Wetlands http://www.uwgb.edu/biodiversity/econotes/2003/bradwetland2.jpg

  2. The most common coastal wetlands are swamps and marshes.

  3. Swamps are wetlands with mainly trees and shrubs. There is standing water with limited drainage. http://www.sptimes.com/2006/03/31/images/state-swamp.jpg

  4. Marshes are wetlands that are almost always flooded and have a mixture of cattails, reeds and other water plants. http://farm1.static.flickr.com/79/231704069_8f7fcb83eb.jpg

  5. What do coastal wetlands do for us? http://www.parkweb.vic.gov.au/education/endangered_species/images/activities/bd11-wetlands.jpg

  6. Water Quality: Wetlands are one of nature's most efficient water filters. Wetland plants and soils clean the water before it goes into groundwater or into rivers. http://www.earthgauge.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/ace-basin-nerr_interior-wetlands_sc_noaa.jpg

  7. Nurseries: Coastal near-shore wetlands serve as important nurseries for fish, crab, and other shellfish. This directly impacts commercial fishing, a huge industry in the United States. http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3052/2766459005_284d6951fd_o.jpg

  8. Wood Turtle Wildlife Habitat: They are home to many different kinds of animals. Muskrat Wood Ducks http://www.on.ec.gc.ca/wildlife/factsheets/fs_coastal_wetlands-e.html#peopleneedwetlands

  9. Storm surge buffers: Coastal wetlands knock down the storm surge which accompanies a hurricane and lessen the strength of hurricanes before the hit populated areas. http://soundwaves.usgs.gov/2005/09/H_Dennisfig3LG.jpg

  10. Erosion control: Barrier island marshes limit shoreline erosion and stabilize seashores. http://www.uvm.edu/~jbartlet/nr260/wetland%20formation/barrierisland.jpg

  11. Recreation: Coastal wetlands also provide a place for hiking, hunting, fishing, and bird-watching. http://www.psdn.org.ph/wetlands/wetgraphics/importance_7.jpg http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3188/2694554943_2f919e83f3.jpg http://www.monmouthcountyparks.com/AgencyImages/130/fishing_turkey.jg

  12. New Orleans: City at Risk http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/usa/images-2/hurricane-katrina-superdome.jpg

  13. How could one of the largest and most important coastal cities in the U.S. get destroyed by a hurricane? http://www.fema.gov/hazard/hurricane/2005katrina/slideshow/photos/15507.jpg

  14. The pink areas are built below sea level. And why is that? http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/32/Msyelevst.jpg

  15. The French built New Orleans on the high banks of the Mississippi River. (1726) justeastofeden.blogharbor.com

  16. The first area settled was called the “French Quarter.” It was built on high ground by the Mississippi River. http://www.chesnes.com/pics/urban_neworleans03/a29_small.jpg

  17. http://soa.utexas.edu/news/archive/030107/images/FOAneworleans.jpghttp://soa.utexas.edu/news/archive/030107/images/FOAneworleans.jpg

  18. Jackson Square http://wpcontent.answers.com/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/StLouisCathedralJacksonStatue.jpg/180px-StLouisCathedralJacksonStatue.jpg

  19. 1798 http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/historical/new_orleans_1798.jpg

  20. Swamps and marshlands were left empty in early New Orleans. http://whitechapelghoststyle.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/map-of-new-orleans-1849.jpg

  21. In 1803, New Orleans became part of the U.S. through the Louisiana Purchase. enchantedlearning.com

  22. Even 150 years after the city started, the marshes and swamps were mostly empty. (1878) http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2746/4016323355_e78049ae07.jpg

  23. In the late 1890s, canals were dug to partially drain the swamps. www.journalofamericanhistory.org

  24. Through a system of drainage canals and levees, the swamps were turned into dry land and the city grew. http://lib.utexas.edu/maps/world_cities/new_orleans.jpg

  25. But the only thing keeping the city from drowning was the levee system. http://www.classicalvalues.com/New-Orleans-Ground-Elevs.jpg

  26. And the levees could not stand up to the storm surge of Katrina. National Geographic Time.com

  27. satellite images of New OrleansAfter Katrina looked like thisBefore had looked like this. http://geology.com/news/images/hurricane-katrina-flooding.jpg

  28. So, 100+ years of building on former swamplands – and not being able to adequately protect them – led to much of the deadly flooding. http://www.katrinahelp.com/hurricane-katrina-pictures.html

  29. GEOGRAPHIC LESSON:STOP DESTROYING the natural “buffer zone” between the ocean and the occupied land. http://habeasindex.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/lead095il.gif

  30. Louisiana originally had miles and miles of coastal marshes. These came from the Mississippi River’s delta as the river depositedrich silt at the mouth of the river. http://rlv.zcache.com/mississippi_river_delta_satellite_postcard-p239580941934606112qibm_400.jpg

  31. Hurricanes gain energy from the heat of warm water in the Gulf of Mexico. So when a hurricane travels over the marshlands, it loses some energy BEFORE it hits populated areas. http://www.magazine.noaa.gov/stories/images/laraineyrefugemarsh.jpg

  32. Scientists sometimes refer to coastal mashes as “nature’s speed bumps” for hurricanes. http://farm1.static.flickr.com/34/122926506_15d85e7381.jpg http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_axeScVj_ges/SrfHbVn1SbI/AAAAAAAAASY/l84ftH3rOak/s320/Speed_Bump.jpg

  33. Scientists also tell us that for every 3 miles of marshland, a hurricane’s storm surge is knocked down by 1 foot -- before it hits populated areas. http://www.co.baldwin.al.us/Uploads/Images/Surge.bmp

  34. But humans have been draining the marshes over the past many years. That turns marshes into solid land, and people move in. http://www.cclockwood.com/stockimages/saltmarsh.htm

  35. And canals they built further erode the marshlands. Old marshes are turning into open ocean. http://www.cclockwood.com/stockimages/coastalerosion.htm

  36. Concrete levee systems also prevent silt from naturally rebuilding the delta. Louisiana is losing 25 square miles a year of marshlands. http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/imagerecords/15000/15425/MissDelta_TMO_2005221_lrg.jpg

  37. Rock jetties are now used in some places to slow marshland erosion. http://www.cclockwood.com/stockimages/EN-MARSHRESTORE-1072.jpg

  38. And the U.S. Corps of Engineers has actually built pumping sites to pump silt-filled Mississippi water over the levees & into the marshes. http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/pao/dpond/davispond.htm

  39. Protecting – and rebuilding – coastal wetlands will help us with water quality, erosion control, and protection against hurricanes.

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