Eel Grass Restoration

The grass beds in the Chesapeake Bay have been extremely hard hit in the past several decades. An overall decline in water quality and higher sedimentation have been major contributors to the decline. Additionally, nutrients from car exhaus

Federal and state laws, which rightly protect SAV beds on public property, also hamper restoration efforts by restricting the harvesting and transplanting of stock to other areas. The 10-acre cove at Shirley Plantation is privately owned, making it easier for watershed organizations to obtain SAV stock to restore aquatic environments. Avoiding state and federal regulatory hurdles, as well as helping local groups take grass restoration projects into their own hands, will speed up the process of recovery for the bay and its waterways.

A major factor in the decline of SAV in the Chesapeake Bay is excessive nutrients in the water. In small amounts, nutrients are a good thing. A healthy estuary is remarkably resilient and can even deal with excessive nutrients up to a point. Uncontrolled nutrient loading, however, causes algae bloom that clouds the water and blocks out sunlight necessary for the growth of SAV.

Another concept The Alliance is pursuing is an emergent aquatic grow-out station for wetlands restoration. In fact, in addition to having a cove adjacent to the mainstem of the James River, the Shirley Plantation property also maintains a large wetland system whose water levels can be artificially maintained. This capability makes the site extremely attractive for using the same concept to grow plant species for wetland restoration projects. The Alliance proposes to plant wetland species, primarily in the form of emergent herbaceous vegetation, as well as some obligate woody species. It is only through innovative ideas like these and the help of dedicated volunteers that they will be able to protect and restore our beautiful Chesapeake Bay.

Research is now being completed on the massive decline of SAV in the Chesapeake Bay. One such study is being performed by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science in which aerial photographs are taken of the bay region to calculate the total coverage of the SAV. Only 11 percent of the bay\'s historic underwater grasses remain. An overall increase in grasses has encouraged biologists over the past few years, but it\'s too early to tell if the trend will be long term. A reduction in nutrients is considered to be the primary reason for the resurgence in grasses. It is tempting to point to restrictions that have been put on industry and other point-source polluters as a factor in the nutrient reduction. However, the present increase in aquatic grasses has occurred during years of drought. Because the streams and rivers have been so low, they transported a much lighter load of nutrients. These nutrients build in the soils of the watershed, only to be flushed out in years of heavy rains.

On April 15th, 2003 the Chesapeake Bay Program approved the new bay grass restoration goal of 185,000 acres. Bay scientists say that this new bay grass goal, when combined with the recently adopted nutrient reduction targets, will a

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