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Aquatic Ecosystems
Trends and Global Prospects
Edited by Nicholas V. C. Polunin
Book DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511751790
Online ISBN: 9780511751790
Hardback ISBN: 9780521833271
Chapter
13 - Environmental future of estuaries pp. 188-206
Chapter DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511751790.018
Cambridge University Press
13 Environmental future of estuaries
mi c h a e l j . k e n n i s h, r o b e rt j . l i v i n g s to n, dav e r a f fa e l l i a n d
ka r s t e n r e i s e
INTRODUCTION
Estuaries are biologically productive coastal ecosystems
where fresh water from land drainage mixes with seawater
(Kennish 1986, 2001a). They are coastal indentations with
restricted connections to the ocean and remain open at
least intermittently (Kjerfve 1989). The system can be
subdivided into three regions, namely (1) a tidal river zone
characterized by lack of ocean salinity but subject to tidal
rise and fall of sea level, (2) a mixing zone, the estuary
proper, characterized by water mass mixing and strong
gradients of physical, chemical and biotic components,
reaching from the tidal river zone to the seaward location
of a river mouth or ebb-tidal delta, and (3) a nearshore
turbid zone in the open ocean between the mixing zone and
the seaward edge of the tidal plume at full ebb tide.
The global coastal population may approach 8 billion
people by 2025 (Chapter 1) and anthropogenic activities affect
nearly all estuaries (Weber 1994; Hameedi 1997). Developing
Aquatic Ecosystems, ed. N. V. C. Polunin. Published by Cambridge University Press. Foundation for Environmental Conservation 2008.
188
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countries widely lack government environmental regulations
or have less stringent controls than most developed countries,
and their technology to mitigate environmental impacts in
estuarine embayments is also poor. However, currently the
most signicant human impacts are concentrated along
heavily populated industrialized coasts (Fig. 13.1).
Anthropogenic impacts on estuaries include point and
non-point source pollution, habitat loss and alteration,
shoreline development, altered hydrologic regimes, sea-level
rise, land subsidence, energy/resource operations, boating
and shipping, overshing, introduced/invasive species and
sediment input/turbidity (Table 13.1).
ESTUARI ES AS ECOSYSTEMS
Estuarine systems are among the most temporally variable of
all systems on Earth and are characterized by an array of
habitats with common physical, chemical and biological
attributes marked by abrupt changes in space and time.
Each estuarine system exhibits a unique combination of
these habitats. Primary productivity also differs widely both
within and among systems. The biological attributes and
productivity of each estuary are inuenced by the adaptive
responses of indigenous species. Seasonal and interannual
cycles of controlling factors, together with intermittent
storm events, provide a highly variable background.
Within individual drainage basins, the complex com-
binations of habitats form highly productive systems that
are interconnected physically, chemically and biologically.
High nutrient levels, multiple sources of primary and
secondary production, shallow depths, organically rich
sediments, energy subsidies from wind and tidal currents,
and freshwater inows together elevate the natural prod-
uctivity. Although similar patterns occur in many estuaries,
unique arrays of habitats in different systems lead to
broad variations of trophodynamic processes (Livingston
2000, 2002). Autochthonous and allochthonous sources
of nutrients result in high primary productivity and
substantial secondary production that supports sheries.
Anadromous (marine organisms that migrate to breed in
fresh water) and catadromous (freshwater organisms that
breed in the sea) species use major parts of these areas.
Most estuarine species spawn offshore, the young-of-the-
year populations migrating to inshore nurseries. Different
combinations of controlling factors, along with specic
patterns of inshoreoffshore migration of marine forms and
offshore movements of euryhaline species, contribute to the
area-specic characteristics of any estuarine system.
The basic characteristics of a given estuary are partly
determined by physiographic conditions (depth, surface
area, connections to the open ocean) andfreshwater inputs of
dissolved and particulate matter (Livingston 2000, 2002).
Arctic Circle
Tropic of Cancer
Tropic of Capricom
Antarctic Circle
Equator
Fig. 13.1. World map showing existing coastal areas (in bold) signicantly impacted by human activities. Note coastlines bordering
heavily populated, industrialized nations of the northern hemisphere exhibit more extensive impacts than those of the southern
hemisphere. (From Alongi 1998.)
Environmental future of estuaries 189
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Seasonal and interannual cycles of temperature, rainfall and
river ows drive recurrent changes of primary and secondary
productivity. Location-specic ecological responses are tem-
pered by myriad adaptive responses of estuarine species.
Inputs from freshwater and saltwater wetlands (allochthonous
and autochthonous), in situ phytoplankton productivity and
submerged aquatic vegetation all contribute to the rich coastal
food webs. With the exception of a fewspecies that spend their
entire life cycles in estuaries, most species migrate inshore as
larvae and juveniles derived from offshore spawning. Many
commercially important species such as oysters, penaeid
shrimp, blue crabs and various nshes are adapted to rapid
habitat changes. These species use the abundant food
resources of coastal systems while remaining relatively free
from predation by the stenohaline offshore marine species.
Thus, estuaries are often physically stressed but exist as a
highly productive sanctuary for developing stages of offshore
forms, many of which are used directly and indirectly by
humans. Gradients of physical variables, together with food
availability and use, provide the basic components of the
highly complex food webs of inshore marine systems.
Predatorprey interactions thus combine with a dynamic
habitat to produce productive coastal food webs.
Area-specic combinations of the rapidly changing phys-
ical conditions and intermittent (seasonal, interannual) cycling
of organic production, together with biological components
that vary continuously (e.g. predatorprey interactions and
competition), largely control the nal structure of the food
web of each estuary. Biological interactions, in response to
gradients of salinity and primary producers, determine the
specic characteristics of any given coastal system. With
increasing salinity, population distribution becomes more
even, with a corresponding decrease in relative dominance and
an increase in species richness and diversity (Livingston
2002). Seasonal changes of predation pressure as well as
interannual recruitment characteristics modify this general
condition at any given time. Hence, coexisting estuarine
assemblages reach different levels of equilibrium that depend
largely on the exact temporal sequence of key habitat and
productivity factors. The high adaptability of coastal species
often prevents direct (linear) relationships with specic
physical/chemical driving functions. In this way, non-linear
processes contribute to what may appear as chaotic conditions,
even though there is often an underlying organization that is
grounded largely in the trophic responses of existing species to
a continuous series of physical/chemical interventions.
ENVIRONMENTAL FORCING
FACTORS
Human activities and conicting uses in coastal water-
sheds and adjoining estuaries have been responsible for
Table 13.1. Physical and biological impacts of human activities on estuarine and coastal marine environments
Sources Impact categories
Habitat loss and alteration Wetland reclamation, dyking, ditching, canal and dam construction,
silviculture, dredging and lling, bulkheading, domestic and industrial
development, marina and mariculture operations
Shoreline development Shorefront construction, shore-protection structures (bulkheads, sea walls,
sloped revetments, jetties), industrial installations, harbour development
Energy/resource operations Oil, gas and mineral extraction, electric power generation
Altered hydrological regimes Freshwater diversions, reservoirs, dams, channelization projects
Sea-level rise Habitat modication, water-quality changes, altered biotic communities
Land subsidence Shoreline retreat, altered habitat
Boating and shipping Propeller cutting, propeller scarring, vessel groundings, oil spills, chemical
contaminant releases
Recreational and commercial shing Hydraulic dredging, tonging, raking
Overshing Depleted sh and shellsh stocks
Introduced species Non-indigenous invasive species that disrupt endemic biotic communities
Debris/litter Environmental hazards, degraded habitat
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impairment of water quality, loss and alteration of habitat,
diminished productivity and reduction of resources in many
regions around the world (Clark 1992; Goldberg 1994, 1995;
McIntyre 1995; Viles & Spencer 1995; Kennish 1997, 2000,
2001a, b; Alongi 1998; e.g. Chapters 25). Point- and non-
point-source pollution signicantly impair water quality via
nutrient and organic carbon loading, pathogen input and
chemical contamination of estuarine waters (Clark 1992;
Kennish 1997, 2001a). Sewage inux remains a serious
problem in many countries, particularly those that are
economically less developed. Large-scale modications of
coastal watersheds and estuarine basins cause physical
alteration of habitats that are often detrimental to estuarine
organisms (Table 13.1; e.g. Chapters 11, 12 and 14).
Unregulated commercial and recreational shing often
culminate in overharvesting of nsh and shellsh popula-
tions, which can severely deplete resources beyond the limits
of sustainability and result in shifts in biotic community
structure.
Habitat impacts
HABI TAT LOSS AND ALTERATI ON
Physical disturbances associated with human activities
have caused substantial loss and alteration of habitat with
detrimental consequences for estuaries around the world.
Habitat destruction in estuarine embayments and adjacent
watersheds has decimated biotic communities and helped
deplete shery resources (Rose 2000). The anthropogenic
activities that impact the physical integrity of estuaries are
diverse and pervasive. They may be divisible into three
principal categories, namely those on watersheds, shore-
lines and embayments.
WATERSHED CHANGES
The most conspicuous watershed activities with serious
physical impacts on estuaries include residential and com-
mercial development, dyking andditching, canal construction
and channelization, water diversions and impoundments,
wetland reclamation, coastal subsidence (coupled with
groundwater, oil and gas withdrawal), mariculture operations
and dredge-and-ll activities (Boesch et al. 1994; Hopkins
et al. 1995; Simenstad & Fresh 1995; Kennish 1997, 2000,
2001b; Bryant & Chabreck 1998; Chesney et al. 2000; Adam
2002; e.g. Chapters 24). The ecological functioning of
estuaries is adversely affected not only by the habitat trans-
formation, but also by modication of hydrological, nutrient
and sediment regimes. For example, the increase in areal
coverage of impervious surfaces in coastal watersheds hastens
surface runoff, promoting pollutant and nutrient transfer into
estuaries (e.g. Chapters 2, 4 and 9). While human activities in
some catchments accelerate sediment loading to some
neighbouring estuaries (Edgar & Barrett 2002), river diver-
sions and dam construction reduce sediment delivery to
others (Aubrey 1993; Chapter 2).
Activities in adjoining wetlands also bring serious
physical changes in estuarine habitat (Kennish 2001b;
Adam 2002). Reclamation and impoundments have des-
troyed c.50% of the original tidal saltmarsh habitat in the
USA (Pinet 2000; Kennish 2001b). Wetland habitat
destruction is responsible for up to 50% of depleted shing
stocks in the USA (Chesney et al. 2000). Reclamation,
dyking and conversion to polders have eliminated nearly all
the surrounding wetland and mudat habitat along the
mainland coast of the Dutch Wadden Sea. At some loca-
tions in south-east England, saltmarsh habitat decreased by
1044% between 1973 and 1985/1988 (Burd 1992). Salt-
marsh in northern Europe has been altered by an array of
human inuences, including tidal power, tidal barriers,
water storage, evaporative salt production, aquaculture,
pollution, insect control, introduced species and land rec-
lamation (Adam 2002; Chapter 11). More than 50% of the
mangrove forests in South-East Asia and c.75% of the
mangrove forests in Puerto Rico have been lost because of
human activities, most notably mariculture, silviculture
and habitat reclamation (Eisma 1998; Chapter 12). Nearly
50% of the mangroves in the Philippines have been con-
verted to mariculture ponds (Hopkins et al. 1995).
From the mid 1950s to the mid 1970s, destruction of
coastal wetlands in the USA occurred at a rate of c. 225 000
ha per year (Ciupek 1986; Moy & Levin 1991). Domestic,
industrial, agricultural and recreational activities accounted
for much of this habitat loss. Physical decimation of wet-
land habitat can signicantly reduce biodiversity (Dobson
et al. 1997). Dredge-and-ll operations and construction
of levees, dykes, ditches and impoundments physically
destroy wetland habitat and modify hydrologic conditions
that can alter water quality and biotic communities in
estuarine basins (Turner & Lewis 1997). Dredge-and-ll
activities convert wetland areas to open water or upland
habitats, directly impacting the resident biota (see Chapter
11). Dyking, ditching, leveeing and the formation of
impoundments inuence tidal ooding and drainage to
estuaries which can elicit acute changes in the structure
of biotic communities. Impoundments are generally used
to manage hydrologic regimes, such as in the coastal marsh
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habitat of Louisiana (USA) (Boesch et al. 1994; Bryant &
Chabreck 1998).
SHORELI NE DEVELOPMENT
Particularly in urban areas, estuarine shorelines are com-
monly dotted with docks, piers, boat ramps and marinas,
which provide users with easy access, but also mark sites
of physically disturbed natural landscapes. Buildings,
roadways and utilities change the landform conguration
as well as local hydraulic regimes and drainage patterns,
typically increasing runoff and non-point-source pollution
inputs. Shore protection structures (such as bulkheads,
revetments and retaining walls) in these areas also often
interfere with bay-water circulation, sediment ows and
shore bathymetry (Nordstrom & Roman 1996; Nordstrom
2000). Bulkheads may stretch uninterrupted for many
kilometres on the open shore and within protected lagoons.
Construction of buildings, shoreline protection structures
and recreational features places xed structures in a
dynamic estuarine environment. A considerable amount of
estuarine habitat in close proximity to the shorefront
constructions has been lost and altered. Thus many
breakwaters, bridges, retaining walls, jetties and pontoons
added to the waterways around Sydney (Australia) have led
to long-term habitat disturbances (Glasby & Connell
1999). Wooden shoreline structures treated with chro-
mated copper arsenate or other protective compounds are
sources of heavy metals to the water that ultimately
become concentrated in sediments (Weis et al. 1993).
Many shoreline developments and human structures also
frequently and inadvertently create unnatural habitats for
the proliferation of epibenthic communities. It is uncertain
what long-term consequences will arise from the many
structural modications of estuarine shorelines. However,
dredging of estuarine shorelines to maintain navigable
waterways and create lagoons and various permanent
structures profoundly modies or destroys benthic habitat.
Port Phillip Bay in south-eastern Australia provides an
example of an embayment heavily impacted by shoreline
development (Fig. 13.2). Bordered by the cities of
Melbourne and Geelong, Port Phillip Bay is a system
intensively used for a wide array of recreational activities
such as swimming, shing, camping, boating and sailing
(Bird & Cullen 1996). Much of the 256-km shoreline has
been altered to protect beaches, moor boats and enable
public access to bay waters. Articial shoreline structures
(e.g. sea walls, jetties and breakwaters), piers and docks are
common features. Numerous marinas have been con-
structed, and beach restoration projects have been under-
taken in many areas to combat erosion and preserve beach
habitat (Bird 1990). Watershed development and excessive
recreational use of the bay have contributed to extensive
habitat loss and pollution problems. Effective remediation
can only be realized through responsible, long-term coastal
management strategies (J. R. Clark 1995).
ESTUARI NE EMBAYMENT MODI FI CATI ON
In open estuarine environments, dredging and dredged
material disposal impact benthic habitats and communities
in several ways. Dredging removes bottom sediments and
benthic organisms. Mortality of the benthic organisms
increases dramatically during dredging and disposal pro-
cesses owing to mechanical injury by the dredge and
sediment smothering. Recovery of the dredged site for
habitation by the benthic community often requires a year
or more. Dredging roils bottom sediments, mobilizing
nutrients and chemical contaminants that may impair
water quality (Kennish 1997, 2001a). For eutrophic
systems, the release of nutrients can exacerbate impairment
of water quality by stimulating plant growth, raising the
biochemical oxygen demand and potentially contributing
to dissolved-oxygen depletion.
Boat activity can alter water and sediment quality and
benthic habitat structure over extensive areas (Kennish
2002a). Chemical contaminant emissions from motorboat
and watercraft engines including uncombusted fuel and
oil, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and non-
aromatic structures accumulate in sediments and elsewhere
(Albers 2002). Antifouling paints and primer bases on vessel
hulls are sources of trace metals to estuarine waters. Tur-
bulence frompressure waves and propeller wash remobilizes,
resuspends and facilitates dispersal of contaminants from
estuarine oors (Kennish 2002b). Such contaminants
potentially pose lethal and sublethal threats to estuarine
organisms, most prominently in the benthos.
The most serious benthic-habitat impacts of boat use in
estuaries are attributed to propeller scarring and vessel
groundings (Kenworthy et al. 2002; Whiteld et al. 2002).
Propeller cutting of the substrate produces narrow (0.51 m
wide) linear single or twin scars that may extend for tens to
hundreds of metres along the estuarine oor. Vessel
groundings create excavations known as blowholes, which
commonly disturb hundreds to thousands of square metres
of estuarine bottom habitat. Propeller scarring and vessel
groundings most evidently affect seagrass meadows, where
propellers can redistribute bottom sediments and tear and
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excavate leaves, roots and rhizomes (Dunton & Schonberg
2002; Kenworthy et al. 2002; Orth et al. 2002); recovery
may take 510 years (Kennish 2002a). Boating damage of
estuarine habitats is escalating, especially in developed
nations where more afuent societies have greater access to
recreational pursuits.
Fishing-gear impacts are also detrimental to benthic
habitats in estuaries, as in the case of hydraulic clamdredging
(Godcharles 1971), use of bull rakes and pea-digger rakes for
hard clam harvesting (Peterson et al. 1983, 1987), cockle
dredging (De Jonge & De Jonge 1992), scallop dredging
(Fonseca et al. 1984) and trawling (Guillen et al. 1994).
Recovery of scarred beds may take 3 or more years.
Aquaculture is also potentially damaging to estuarine
embayments. For example, shrimp-farm efuents may
cause hypernutrication of estuarine waters, and the
chemicals may adversely affect endemic ora and fauna.
The introduction of aquaculture stocks can disrupt indi-
genous shrimp stocks via escapement and the spread of
diseases. Excessive water use and entrainment of estuarine
organisms at shrimp farms are also detrimental (Hopkins
et al. 1995). Suspended culture of mussels (e.g. Mytilus
edulis and M. trossulus) and net-pen culture of salmonids
enrich the surrounding benthic substrate with organic
carbon through deposition of faeces and pseudofaeces
(Grant et al. 1995), resulting in benthic microbial and
macrofaunal community shifts (Findlay et al. 1995).
Addition of gravel, shell and other substrate to mudats
or sandats to enhance clam production physically alters
the bottom habitat and can also disrupt benthic
PORT PHILLIP BAY
Melbourne
Melbourne
St. Kilda
Brighton
Sandringham
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Cerborus
Black Rock
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concrete outfall
Seaford
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Rosebud
MORNI NGTON
PENI NSULA
marina
Port
docks
Altona
salt works
Werribee
Werribee
Sewerage Farm
Kirk Pt.
The Sand Hummocks
salt works
Norlane
salt works
Pt.
Pt. Richards
ruined
piers
Portarlington
Clifton
St. Leonards
Edwards Pt
Swan I.
Queenscliff
Point
KEY TO SYMBOLS
sea walls
stream inflow
piers and jetties
beach resloration projects
0 5 10 15 20 km.
Lonsdale
Porlsea
Sorrento
Rye
Lonsdale
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PORT
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Fig. 13.2. Map of Port Phillip Bay displaying the location of articial coastline structures and beach restoration projects. (From
J. R. Clark 1995.)
Environmental future of estuaries 193
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communities (Simenstad & Fresh 1995). The adverse effects
of aquaculture activities on estuaries are expected to increase
substantially in future with the growth in aquaculture.
Pollution impacts
Because estuaries are heavily used for recreational and
commercial activities, they are subject to pollution
(GESAMP [Joint Group of Experts on the Scientic
Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection] 1982). Most
marine pollutants derive from the 20% of the worlds
population living in industrialized countries where societal
afuence is greatest (Taylor 1993). The commonly
reported pollutants enter the environment by six principal
pathways: (1) non-point-source runoff from land; (2) direct
pipeline discharges; (3) riverine inow; (4) atmospheric
deposition; (5) maritime transportation; and (6) waste
dumping at sea (McIntyre 1992, 1995; Goldberg 1994,
1995; Kennish 1997). Land-based sources of pollution
predominate, with runoff responsible for 44% of the
inputs, atmospheric deposition for 33%, maritime trans-
portation for 12%, waste dumping for 10%, and offshore
production for 1% (GESAMP 1990).
Nutrient enrichment, organic carbon loading (for
example sewage), oil spills and leakages, and toxic chemicals
(for example PAHs, halogenated hydrocarbons and heavy
metals) account for many of the most acute and insidious
pollution problems in estuaries (Table 13.2). Together with
pathogens, these pollutants can signicantly compromise
water quality, degrade habitats, have lethal and sublethal
impacts on biota and alter the functioning of estuarine sys-
tems. Other pollutants such as litter are more aesthetically
displeasing, but they are also potentially hazardous to marine
mammals, birds and other organisms that ingest or become
entangled in them (Shaw & Day 1994).
NUTRI ENT ENRI CHMENT AND ORGANI C- CARBON
LOADI NG
Estuarine eutrophication is an emerging global problem
associated with nutrient enrichment and organic-carbon
loading (Dederen 1992; Rabalais 1992; McComb 1995;
Nixon 1995; Valiela 1995; National Estuary Programme
1997a, b; Valiela et al. 1997; V. H. Smith et al. 1999;
Livingston 2002). Non-point-source inputs of nutrients to
estuaries, such as agricultural and urban runoff, contribute
signicantly to observed eutrophication problems (Carpenter
et al. 1998). As human coastal populations have increased, the
severity of nutrient enrichment and organic-carbon loading
from watersheds has worsened, with impacts in estuaries
commonly persisting for years (Balls et al. 1995). Acute
imbalances in the trophic structure of estuarine systems
can arise from hypereutrophication (Ingrid et al. 1996;
Livingston 1996, 2000, 2002). Nitrogen and phosphorus
enter estuaries via surface water inows (streams, rivers and
direct land runoff), ocean water, groundwater discharges and
atmospheric deposition (both wet and dry). Anthropogenic
sources include wastewaters, sewer overows, malfunction-
ing septic systems and fertilized lawns and farmlands.
Untreated or partially treated sewage also substantially raises
concentrations of organic carbon, heavy metals and other
contaminants in estuaries (Kennish 1992, 1997). In addition,
it degrades water quality by increasing estuarine biochemical
oxygen demand and densities of pathogenic microorganisms
(Chapman et al. 1996; Kennish 1997; Eganhouse &Sherblom
2001) as, for example, in San Francisco Bay (Livingston
2002).
Treated municipal wastewater and urban stormwater
runoff may contain more than 100 enteric pathogens (NRC
[National Research Council] 1993) and pose a serious
threat to human health, being responsible for cholera and
hepatitis, as well as gastroenteric diseases.
Various acute and insidious impacts are coupled with
nutrient enrichment and organic carbon loading. For
example, nutrient-enriched growth and biomass of micro-
phytes and macrophytes are followed by accelerated organic
carbon decomposition and benthic respiration which
promote widespread and recurring hypoxia (<2 mg per
litre dissolved oxygen) and anoxia (0 mg per litre dissolved
oxygen). These changes often adversely affect the structure
and function of biotic communities (Dauer et al. 1992; Diaz
& Rosenberg 1995; Ritter & Montagna 1999).
Dissolved oxygen is declining in many estuarine
systems worldwide (Holmer 1999) and hypoxia is a wide-
spread problem (Kennish 1997). Other biotic impacts
linked to nutrient and organic-carbon enrichment include
algal blooms, shading effects, mortality of benthic and
pelagic species, reduced biodiversity and habitat
use, diminished secondary production and diminution of
recreational and commercial sheries, as well as altered
species compositions and distributions (Weston 1990;
Costello & Read 1994; Alongi 1998; Kennish 1998a, 2000;
Holmer 1999; Chesney et al. 2000; Howarth et al. 2000b).
Harmful algal blooms have been linked to shellsh
contamination, sh kills and human health impacts
(Burkholder 1998). Phytoplankton blooms in response to
nutrient enrichment create shade conditions unfavourable
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for the proliferation of submerged aquatic vegetation, and
affected locations may gradually become phytoplankton
dominated with the ongoing loss of critically important
benthic habitat.
Nutrient overenrichment of estuarine systems of the
north-eastern Gulf of Mexico (Rabalais 1992) has over sev-
eral decades triggered phytoplankton blooms, destabilization
of plankton populations, dissolved-oxygen depletion,
unbalanced food webs, general reduction of useful product-
ivity and profound alteration of system function (Livingston
2000, 2002). Estuarine eutrophication has been reported for
the Dutch Wadden Sea (Netherlands) (De Jonge 1990;
Kennish 1998a), the HarveyPeel Estuary (Australia)
(McComb 1995), and for portions of the Maryland coastal
bay system (Boynton et al. 1996), Chesapeake Bay (Malone
et al. 1996) and the Barnegat BayLittle Egg Harbor
Estuary in the USA (Kennish 2001c). Shallow poorly ushed
estuaries with long residence times are generally the most
severely impacted by eutrophication.
CHEMI CAL CONTAMI NANTS
Halogenated hydrocarbons, PAHs and heavy metals are
three classes of persistent particle-reactive contaminants.
Being rapidly attached to ne-grained sediments and other
particles (Thomas & Bendell-Young 1999; Turner 2000;
Kennish 2001b), they tend to accumulate in the system
(Kennish 2002b, c). As a result, benthic organisms may be
exposed to elevated concentrations of the contaminants at
heavily impacted sites and in the sea surface microlayer
(see Kucklick & Bidleman 1994).
Because estuarine sediments are a major repository of
chemical contaminants, they have been the target of vari-
ous monitoring and assessment programmes. In the USA,
for example, programmes of the National Oceanic and
Table 13.2. Common pollutants recorded in estuarine environments
(1) Excessive nutrients causing progressive enrichment and periodic eutrophication problems
(2) Sewage and other oxygen-demanding wastes (principally carbonaceous organic matter) which promote anoxia and
hypoxia of coastal waters
(3) Pathogens (e.g. certain bacteria, viruses and parasites) and other infectious agents often associated with sewage
wastes
(4) Petroleum hydrocarbons originating from oil-tanker accidents and other major spillages, routine operations
during oil transportation, efuent from non-petroleum industries, municipal wastes and non-point runoff from
land
(5) Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons entering estuarine and marine ecosystems from sewage and industrial efuents,
urban stormwater runoff, oil spills, creosote oil, combustion of fossil fuels and forest res
(6) Halogenated hydrocarbon compounds (e.g. organochlorine pesticides) principally originating from agricultural and
industrial sources
(7) Heavy metals accumulating from smelting, sewage-sludge dumping, ash and dredged-material disposal, antifouling
paints, seed dressings and slimicides, power-station corrosion products, oil-renery efuents and other industrial
processes
(8) Radioactive substances generated by uranium mining and milling, nuclear power plants, and industrial, medical
and scientic uses of radioactive materials
(9) Thermal loading of natural waters, owing primarily to the discharge of condenser cooling waters from electric
generating stations
(10) Debris/litter and munitions introduced by various land-based and marine activities
(11) Fly ash, colliery wastes, ue-gas desulphurization sludges, boiler bottom ash and mine tailings
(12) Acid mining wastes
(13) Drilling muds and cuttings
(14) Pharmaceuticals and alkali chemicals
(15) Pulp and paper-mill efuents
(16) Suspended solids, turbidity and siltation/sedimentation
Environmental future of estuaries 195
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Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) have investigated chemical
contaminants in sediment and biotic media to detect
changes in environmental quality of estuarine and coastal
marine waters (US EPA 2001). Sediment grabs and cores
have been used to derive information on current and his-
torical chronological records of past contaminant levels in
estuaries (Bricker 1993; Valette-Silver 1993; Daskalakis &
OConnor 1995; Moser & Bopp 2001), and estuarine
sediment toxicity has also been extensively investigated
(Long et al. 1996; Kennish 1997; Thompson et al. 1999;
OConnor & Paul 2000; Winger 2002).
Heavy metals and persistent organic contaminants elicit
an array of adverse responses from estuarine and marine
organisms. Heavy metals have been coupled with feeding,
digestive and respiratory dysfunctions; aberrant physio-
logical, neurological and reproductive activities; tissue
inammation and degeneration; and neoplasm formation
and genetic derangement (Kennish 1992, 1997). In par-
ticular, high-molecular-weight PAHs and halogenated
hydrocarbons have substantial biological impacts and
possess signicant carcinogenic, mutagenic and teratogenic
potential (Eisler 1987, 2000; Kennish 1992; Fernandes
et al. 1997).
It is not merely the concentration of chemical con-
taminants that must be considered when assessing biotic
impacts, but also their bioavailability. This is affected by
the physical and chemical characteristics of environmental
media (Hamelink et al. 1994). Sediment pore-water
chemistry, redox potential, pH, organic matter content,
acid volatile sulphides and sediment particle size all
strongly inuence the bioavailability of contaminants in
estuarine sediments and pore waters (Winger 2002).
Laboratory toxicity testing of estuarine organisms can
effectively augment data derived from measurements in
eld environmental matrices.
Some contaminants, notably halogenated hydrocarbons
such as dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), are also biomagnied in
food chains in addition to being very widespread and
persistent.
Among heavy metals, mercury is a ubiquitous con-
taminant, elevated mercury concentrations occurring in
many estuaries in the USA (OConnor & Beliaeff 1995;
Locarnini & Presley 1996; Kannen et al. 1998; Livingston
2002). Organometal methylmercury is the most toxic form,
posing signicant danger to estuarine and marine organ-
isms, even at parts per billion (ppb) levels of exposure.
Methylmercury also bioaccumulates in aquatic food chains
(Wren et al. 1995), and humans may be at risk from this
process (Kennish 1997). Aside from natural sources of the
element (e.g. volcanic, hydrothermal and geothermal
emissions), various anthropogenic activities, such as com-
bustion of fossil fuels and certain industrial operations,
contribute to the contaminant pool.
Without also dealing with the myriad land-based
sources of estuarine PAHs and heavy metals, remedial
actions to address their impacts are unlikely to be effective
(Eisler 1987, 2000; Bryan & Langston 1992; Kennish 1992,
1997, 1998b; DeGroot 1995; Dickhut & Gustafson 1995;
Wild & Jones 1995; Bothner et al. 1998; Wania et al. 1998;
Cearreta et al. 2000). Chemical contamination problems
have been most acute in urban industrialized estuaries such
as in the USA and Europe, for example the Tees and Tyne
Rivers (UK) (Tapp et al. 1993; Mathiessen et al. 1998), the
Bay of Cadiz, and the Barbate, Odiel and Bilbao Rivers
(Spain) (Drake et al. 1999; Cearreta et al. 2000).
Fisheries overexploitation
Estuaries have suffered severe depletion of sheries
resources (Sissenwine & Rosenberg 1996; Botsford et al.
1997; Rose 2000; Kennish 2002c). Thus, in the USA, various
recreationally and commercially important nsh and
shellsh species have dramatically declined in abundance
owing to intensive shing. For example, several species of
sh in the AlbermarlePamlico Sound system of North
Carolina (Dean 1996), oysters (Crassostrea virginica) in
Chesapeake and Delaware Bays (J. Kraeuter, Rutgers Uni-
versity, personal communication 2001), hard clams (Mer-
cenaria mercenaria) in the Barnegat BayLittle Egg Harbor
Estuary (New Jersey) (Kennish 2002a), red drum (Sciaenops
ocellatus) and sea trout (Cynoscion arenarius and C. nebulosus)
in Tampa Bay (Florida) (Kennish 2000), blue crabs (Calli-
nectes sapidus) in Corpus Christi Bay (National Estuary
Programme 1997c) and major sh species in San Francisco
Bay (Monroe & Kelly 1992; San Francisco Estuary Project
1998; Kennish 2000) have all been shed down.
Overshing also generates imbalances in biotic com-
munity structure and ecosystem function (Menge 1995;
Jennings & Kaiser 1998). It can induce indirect trophic
(food web) interactions that may have far-reaching conse-
quences for biotic systems in estuaries beyond mere
removal of target species (Jennings & Lock 1996; Botsford
et al. 1997; Hall 1999; Pinnegar et al. 2000). In north-
eastern Gulf of Mexico estuaries, shing has caused shifts
196 M. J. KENNI SH ET AL.
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in trophic interactions as a consequence of both topdown
and bottomup food-web effects (Livingston 2002). It is
difcult to understand the cumulative impact of oversh-
ing on multiple species in a region when evaluating biotic
community responses in specic estuarine systems, but
shing may be the anthropogenic factor of overriding
importance in ecological extinctions (Jackson et al. 2001;
Chapter 1).
Freshwater diversions
Development of coastal watersheds typically alters the
amount of fresh water entering estuarine basins. The
increase of impervious cover associated with building and
roadway constructions accelerates freshwater runoff.
Stormwater management systems, notably catchment and
retention structures, decrease freshwater discharge rates.
Reservoirs and dams in upland drainage basins likewise
decrease downstream ows. The implementation of ood
control measures such as channelization also modies
water-ow regimes (Chapters 2 and 4). Impounded marsh
and destruction of wetland habitat can contribute to
changes of natural water-storage capacity in areas border-
ing estuarine shorelines. Wastewater discharges, water
withdrawal for domestic uses and water diversions for
agricultural, municipal and industrial purposes also impact
estuaries. Excessive groundwater withdrawal in coastal
watersheds reduces base ow to tributary streams and
rivers (Chapters 24), signicantly decreasing freshwater
inputs to estuaries (Bryant & Chabreck 1998; Carpenter
et al. 1998; Lane et al. 1999; Chesney et al. 2000; Kennish
2000, 2001b, c).
The water ow from coastal watersheds inuences the
physical, chemical and biological conditions in adjoining
estuaries. Diversion of freshwater ows reduces the resi-
dence time of water in estuaries, which leads to reduction
of the area of habitat suitable for biota (Valiela 1995).
Salinity in estuarine embayments uctuates in response to
variable freshwater input, and with it, estuarine circula-
tion patterns and biotic communities change. The loading
of nutrients, chemical contaminants, sediments and other
particulate matter also varies with the volume of fresh-
water inow, and the ux of these substances can dra-
matically affect the species composition and abundance of
estuarine organisms, as well as the trophodynamics of the
system.
These effects are most conspicuous in estuaries, where
large volumes of fresh water are diverted to meet the
domestic, agricultural and industrial demands of coastal
and inland communities. Human use diverts more than
1.7 10
10
m
3
of fresh water from the supply of San
Francisco Bay each year primarily for irrigation of farm-
lands during the MayOctober dry period. In dry years,
freshwater diversion reduces inow to the bay by 6070%
(Nichols et al. 1986). Biotic effects of the diminished
inow include decreased phytoplankton biomass and
zooplankton abundance in the upper estuary, diminished
reproductive success and variable abundance of some sh
species, and a depressed pelagic food web (Kennish
2000).
In watershed areas surrounding Charlotte Harbor
(Florida), and elsewhere in the USA, diversion of fresh
water for agricultural and domestic needs has signicantly
reduced discharges to estuaries, particularly during the
dry season, resulting in substantially higher salinities and
near-marine conditions. Hydrologic modication (i.e.
channelization) also contributes greatly to the ux of
freshwater ow to Narragansett Bay (Rhode Island). In
Tampa Bay (Florida), altered freshwater inow is mainly
attributed to the damming of rivers for ood control
(Chapters 2 and 4) and hydrologic modication of tidal
creeks (Kennish 2000). Freshwater ows into Galveston
Bay (Texas) are largely ascribed to surface-water with-
drawals and stormwater runoff, both of which are
substantial in nearby watersheds (National Estuary Pro-
gramme 1997b).
Altered freshwater ows in coastal watersheds are linked
to biotic impacts in adjoining estuaries, as in Apalachicola
River and Bay in the Gulf of Mexico coastal system
(Livingston 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002). In the Apalachicola
system, freshwater inow is correlated with nutrient and
organic-carbon loading, salinity levels, phytoplankton
production, and the distribution and abundance of benthic
invertebrates and nsh (Livingston 2001, 2002). Trophic
relationships in the estuary are also indirectly affected by
freshwater inputs, changes in salinity, nutrient concen-
trations, turbidity and other physicalchemical factors
(Livingston et al. 1997). Altered freshwater ows in coastal
watersheds appear to be an emerging global problem (e.g.
Chapters 24) with serious implications for the ecological
well-being of estuaries worldwide.
Major alteration of freshwater and seawater inow
to estuarine systems in the south-west Netherlands has
been implemented to avert ooding, such as that which
killed more than 1800 people in 1953. As a result of
the Delta Plan, three estuaries in the region have
Environmental future of estuaries 197
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been closed off by dykes, notably the Haringvliet,
Grevelingenmeer and Oosterschelde (Fig. 13.3). Subse-
quent to dyking, the Haringvliet basin became a highly
polluted freshwater body, the Grevelingenmeer became a
saltwater system and the Oosterschelde remained a pro-
ductive estuary bordered seaward by a storm-surge bar-
rier. Acute hydrologic modication in the Oosterschelde
associated with construction of a storm-surge barrier
across the estuarine mouth and compartment dams up
estuary clearly demonstrates how anthropogenic controls
can severely alter freshwater and seawater inow to an
estuary and disrupt natural conditions. For example,
saltmarshes and tidal at habitats have declined appre-
ciably in the Oosterschelde owing in large part to the
aforementioned human-induced changes in the system
(J. R. Clark 1995).
Introduced/invasive species
Biotic invasions of estuarine and coastal marine environments
grew markedly during the past century with expansion of
marine transportation, commerce, mariculture and other
human activities (e.g. Chapters 1012). Numerous organisms
have entered new environments accidentally or on the hulls
and in the ballast water of ships; others have been inten-
tionally introduced via mariculture. Few estuaries are not
affected in some way by introduced/invasive species (Carlton
1989; Carlton & Geller 1993).
NORTH SEA
NOORDZEE
STORM - SURGE
BARRIER
Rotterdam
COMPARTMENT
DAMS
Antwerpen
0 10 Km
H
A
R
I
N
G
V
L
I
E
T
GREV
E
L
I
N
G
E
N
M
E
ER
O
O
S
T
E
R
S
C
H
E
L
D
E
W
E
S
T
E
R
S C
H
E
L
D
E
Fig. 13.3. Map of the delta region in the south-west Netherlands illustrating dyke-altered areas of the Haringvliet, Grevelingenmeer and
Oosterschelde systems. (From J. R. Clark 1995.)
198 M. J. KENNI SH ET AL.
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The introduction of exotic species can have profound
effects on estuarine ecosystems, causing: (1) decreases in
abundances and survival of native species; (2) local
extinction of susceptible native ora and fauna through
competition, grazing, predation and habitat modication;
(3) spread of parasitic diseases; and (4) alteration of
nutrient cycling, hydrology and energy budgets of native
ecosystems (Mack et al. 2000). The trophic structure of
heavily invaded systems has often changed, with dominant
species commonly being outcompeted or replaced by non-
indigenous forms. In some cases, invaders have radically
transformed habitats. For example, the European peri-
winkle (Littorina littorea) has been responsible for trans-
forming mudat and saltmarsh habitats to rocky shores
along coastal inlets in the north-east USA (Bertness 1984;
Mack et al. 2000). Invasion of non-endemic marsh grasses
has modied wetland processes, including sediment
transport and deposition, organic-carbon ux and associ-
ated faunal communities. Human-induced biotic invasions
have potentially signicant global impacts as well because
they may collectively pose a threat to biodiversity over
extensive regions or provinces.
Introduced/invasive species have frequently increased
dramatically in abundance in their adapted estuarine
environments because of the lack of natural biotic controls.
Some of these species have been intentionally introduced
to estuaries to establish new recreational or commercial
sheries (Nybakken 1988; Day et al. 1989; Kennish 2000).
An example is the import of the Pacic oyster (Crassostrea
gigas) from Japan to the state of Washington (USA).
However, the remarkable success of introduced/invasive
species can decimate historically important sheries. A
viable strategy to control the spread of non-indigenous
species is to prevent their entry into a new range (Mack
et al. 2000). Post-entry control of invasive species remains
an expensive and generally impractical approach to min-
imize estuarine impacts.
Although most estuaries harbour non-indigenous
species, those that are sites of shipping ports or centres of
aquaculture and commercial shing generally exhibit the
greatest number of biotic invasions (National Estuarine
Research Reserve System 2001). San Francisco Bay, with
nearly 250 introduced species, ranks among the most
heavily invaded estuaries on Earth (Cohen & Carlton 1998;
San Francisco Estuary Project 1998). Non-indigenous
species now comprise 40100% of the benthic and
fouling communities in different areas of the Bay, with
most macroinvertebrate species along the inner shallows
consisting of introduced forms (Kennish 2000, 2001a).
Among the most detrimental invaders in this heavily used
estuary is the Asian clam (Potamocorbula amurensis), which
has greatly impacted the phytoplankton community and
may have signicantly altered bottomup controls in the
system. It has also outcompeted more favourable bivalve
species such as Macoma balthica and Mya arenaria,
attaining densities as high as 30 000 individuals per m
2
,
and disrupting planktonic and benthic communities and
nsh assemblages (San Francisco Estuary Project 1998).
Impacts of the Asian clam cost c. US$ 1 billion each year
(Orsi & Mecum 1986; Cohen & Carlton 1998).
Other prominent invasive species in San Francisco Bay
are the striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and the smooth
cordgrass (Spartina alterniora). Invasive plants include S.
alterniora elsewhere in the USA and in England
(Thompson 1991) and Phragmites australis in the USA
(Weinstein & Kreeger 2000; see Chapter 11), and animals
include the bivalves Perna perna and Dreissena polymorpha
(Carlton & Geller 1993; Kennish 2000). The parasitic
protist Haplosporidium nelsoni has nearly destroyed the
American oyster (Crassostrea virginica) shery in a number
of mid-Atlantic estuaries of the USA. Subtropical ship-
worm species (Teredo bartschi and T. furcifera) have des-
troyed many untreated wooden structures in New Jersey
(Kennish & Lutz 1984). The European green crab
(Carcinus maenas) and Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir
sinensis) have become established in various estuaries of the
USA, disrupting native communities.
Sea-level rise
More than 100 million people now reside within 1 m of mean
sea-level, and thus global sea-level rise poses a great threat to
coastal communities during the twenty-rst century
(Douglas & Peltier 2002). Many coastal watersheds bordering
estuaries are under attack by rising sea level associated with
anthropogenically induced global warming, as well as altered
hydrological and geological processes in the coastal zone
induced by an array of more localized human activities
(Nuttle et al. 1997; Kennish 2001b). By the year 2050, global
warming may result in an overall 10-cm rise in relative sea
level (Titus & Narayanan 1995), but the extent of movement
will depend on vertical displacements of the coastal zone
(Nuttle et al. 1997). In the USA, relative sea-level rise has
been 24 mm per year along the Atlantic coast (Stevenson
et al. 1986) and up to c.10 mm per year in coastal Louisiana
(Boesch et al. 1994). Superimposed on changes in relative
Environmental future of estuaries 199
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sea-level rise are responses of shorter duration, such as sea-
level variations generated by El Nino, hurricanes and other
major storms (Nuttle et al. 1997).
Despite the eustatic rise in sea level, many estuarine
wetland systems in the USA and elsewhere are maintaining
their position or expanding because of high accretion
rates fostered by sediment supply, relatively low wetland
elevation, frequent tidal inundation, nutrient supply, and
high in situ organic-matter production, generally accounting
for more than 90% of the sediment volume (Bricker-Urso
et al. 1989; Nyman et al. 1993).
The eustatic sea-level rise was 1025 cm over the past
century (Douglas & Peltier 2002) and c.1.8 0.3 mm per
year during the 1980s and 1990s (Douglas 1991; Baltuck
et al. 1996; IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change] 1996). The increase in the global mean surface
temperature (0.6 0.2
N and
20
N and 20