. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. How freshwater in big doses threatens fisheries The problem: freshwater drainage into saline estuaries Coastal lowlands, once thought to be wastelands of soggy mire, are being cleared and drained at an increas- ing rate. Farmers have learned that drained wetlands can be among North Carolina's most productive agricultural acreage. The water drained from these wetlands usually ends up in the estuaries, and can affect nursery areas for most of the state's commercial and recreational fishes. Scientists, resour
. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. How freshwater in big doses threatens fisheries The problem: freshwater drainage into saline estuaries Coastal lowlands, once thought to be wastelands of soggy mire, are being cleared and drained at an increas- ing rate. Farmers have learned that drained wetlands can be among North Carolina's most productive agricultural acreage. The water drained from these wetlands usually ends up in the estuaries, and can affect nursery areas for most of the state's commercial and recreational fishes. Scientists, resource managers, fishermen and others are worried the freshwater influx is affecting the makeup of the estuaries (salinity levels, turbidity and nutrient levels) and in turn affecting fisheries production. The research: studies to measure the volume of freshwater influx, changes in salinity and the ef- fects on fishes Three new UNC Sea Grant projects will study land drainage, focusing the efforts of scientists from different fields to provide the missing links in the land drainage- estuarine knowledge available. Wendell Gilliam and Wayne Skaggs will be examining the rate of freshwater influx into the estuaries. They will measure the rate and volume of freshwater flow from drainage ditches into the estuaries over a variety of conditions—soil type, rainfall, canal construction. The team will also be looking at different ways for farmers to drain land while minimizing the effects of drainage on the estuaries. Len Pietrafesa will be using Gilliam and Skaggs' findings to study the effects of drainage on salinity pat- terns in the estuary. In turn, John Miller and Jim Reed will be examining the effects of salinity changes on the production of juvenile fishes and shrimp in the estuary. (Watch for more on the land-drainage problem in future issues of Coastwatch). Drainage canal under construction The researchers: J. Wendell Gilliam, Department of Soil Science, North Carolina State Univer
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