Long-Term Erosional Trends Along Channelized Salt Marsh Edges

Abstract

Salt marshes provide important habitats for many species in the estuaries along the east and Gulf coasts of North America. With many species dependent on these coastal marshlands and extensive documentation that these marshlands are disappearing, a clear understanding of the mechanisms causing loss is critical. Much of the salt marsh was lost to reclamation and construction before these activities were curtailed circa 1970; however, losses due to other causes have continued and multiple hypothesized causes have been proposed, not all mutually exclusive. Yet it remains unclear whether there are legacy effects from the reclamation projects. When the edges of salt marshes are cut into, and gentle vegetated slopes are replaced by sharp edges adjoining deep water of 2 m or more, erosion could accelerate and could continue for many years. One method that may help shed light on the relative importance of the various causes of salt marsh erosion would be to compare the erosion rates of specific edges within a marshland that are exposed to particular conditions. We therefore used several sets of aerial photography spanning 84 years to track the changes at specific edge locations along marsh edges and then make comparisons between anthropogenically created edges and naturally created edges, including comparisons within use and width categories of navigational channels. Erosion rates were found to remain significantly higher on channelized edges than along otherwise similar wetland edges even several decades after modification. Likely reasons include the continued exposure of underlying layers that lack reinforcing plant root systems, vertical edges that are more vulnerable to undermining from wave action, and increased erosion related to altered tidal flows.