A low cost transplanting procedure for sediment stabilization and habitat development using eelgrass (Zostera marina)

Abstract

Eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) has long been recognized for its role in sediment stability and in biological productivity. Therefore seagrass transplanting has gained increasing attention as a method of reducing detrimental impacts on subtidal habitats in the coastal zone. Our transplanting technique consists of attaching whole, vegetative shoots, ’rinsed free of sediment, to 25 cm L-shaped steel rods, which are then inserted into the sediment. Harvest rate from high current areas equals 18,000 shoots per man hour (mh). Whole shoots from high current areas yield a superior shoot generation rate in comparison to shoots from low current areas. Planting units (PU) can be fabricated by hand with a recommended 15 shoots/PU at 100 PU/mh and planted at 150/PU mh. Planting should be done during October in the Beaufort, North Carolina, area. Total labor requirements are 250 and 493 mh/ha in low and high current areas, respectively. Sediment stabilization is dependent on current velocity reduction and wave dampening, which are functions of meadow size and ambient current and wave regimes. Colonization is more susceptible to sediment erosion before root mat development has begun.Z. marina is capable of trapping and maintaining at least 90 m3 of sand/ha of bottom covered.