Abstract
In deltaic marshes, mineral sediment promotes positive elevation change and counters subsidence and sea level rise. In many such marshes sediment deficits result in wetland loss. One new way to address sediment deficiency is to supply marshes with sediments in a slurry that deposits the sediment in a thin layer over a large area. The long-term effects of this strategy are poorly understood. In a rapidly submerging,Spartina alterniflora salt marsh, we tested how different amounts of sediment ameliorated the effects of sea level rise and subsidence over 7 yr (1992–1998). Sediment slurry enrichment likely affected plants and soils by two mechanisms. It increased elevation and soil bulk density, leading to increased plant vigor and soil condition. These effects were long lasting, such that by 1998 areas receiving moderate amounts of sediment (5–12 cm relative elevation) had better plant vigor and soil condition compared to areas not receiving sediment (55% cover versus 20%; bulk densities of 0.4–1.0 g cm−3 versus 0.2 g cm−3; 0 mM hydrogen sulfide versus > 1.0 mM). The sediment slurry also had high nutrient content, which resulted in a pulse of growth, especially in areas receiving the most sediment (areas > 12 cm relative elevation initially had >90% cover and canopy heights >1.6 m). This nutrient-induced growth spurt was short lived and faded after 3 yr, at which point the long lasting effects of increased elevation probably became the dominant factor promoting plant vigor and soil condition. Moderate levels of sediment generated the most beneficial and long lasting effects to the vegetation and soils. This degree of sediment slurry addition countered the effects of subsidence and sea level rise, but not so much as to surpass the intertidal position to whichS. alterniflora is best adapted.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
Literature Cited
Barras, J., S. Beville, D. Britsch, S. Hartley, S. Hawes, J. Johnston, P. Kemp, Q. Kinler, A. Martucci, J. Porthouse, D. Reed, K. Roy, S. Sapkota, and J. Suhayda. 2003. Historical and projected coastal Louisiana land changes: 1978–2050. U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report 03-334. http://www. nwrc.usgs.gov/special/NewHistoricalland.pdf
Baumann, R. H., J. W. Day, Jr., andC. A. Miller. 1984. Mississippi deltaic wetland survival: Sedimentation versus coastal submergence.Science 224:1093–1095.
Brady, N. C. andR. R. Weil. 1996. The Nature and Properties of Soils, 11th edition. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey
Buresh, R. J., R. D. Delaune, andW. H. Patrick, Jr. 1980. Nitrogen and phosphorus distribution and utilization bySpartina alterniflora in a Louisiana Gulf Coast marsh.Estuaries 3:111–121.
Cahoon, D. R. andJ. H. Cowan, Jr. 1988. Environmental impacts and regulatory policy implications of spray disposal of dredge material in Louisiana wetlands.Coastal Management 16:341–362.
Costa-Pierce, B. A. andM. P. Weinstein. 2002. Use of dredged materials for coastal restoration.Ecological Engineering 19:181–186.
Dawes, C. J. 1998. Marine Botany, 2nd edition, John Wiley and Sons, New York.
Day, J. W., D. Pont, P. F. Hensel, andC. Ibanez. 1995. Impacts of sea-level rise on deltas in the Gulf of Mexico and the Mediterranean—The importance of pulsing events to sustainability.Estuaries 18:636–647.
DeLaune, R. D., R. J. Buresh, andW. H. Patrick, Jr. 1979. Relationship of soil properties to standing crop biomass ofSpartina alterniflora in a Louisiana marsh.Estuarine and Coastal Marine Science 8:477–487.
DeLaune, R. D., S. R. Pezeshki, J. H. Pardue, J. H. Whitcomb, andW. H. Patrick, Jr. 1990. Some influences of sediment addition to a deteriorating salt marsh in the Mississippi River deltaic plain: A pilot study.Journal of Coastal Research 6:181–188.
Dunbar, J. B., L. D. Britsch, and E. B. Kemp, Iii. 1992. Land loss rates. Report 3: Louisiana coastal plain. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Waterways Experiment Station, Technical Report GL-90-2, Vicksburg, Mississippi.
Edwards, K. R. andC. E. Proffitt. 2003. Comparison of wetland structural characteristics between created and natural salt marshes in southwest Louisiana, USA.Wetlands 23:344–356.
Ford, M. A., D. D. Cahoon, andJ. C. Lynch. 1999. Restoring marsh elevation in a rapidly subsiding salt marsh by thin layer deposition of dredged material.Ecological Engineering 12:189–205.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. 2001. Climate Change 2001: The Scientific Basis. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
King, G. M., M. J. Klug, R. G. Wiegert, andA. G. Chalmers. 1982. Relation of soil water movement and sulfide concentration toSpartina alterniflora production in a Georgia salt marsh.Science 218:61–63.
Koch, M. S. andI. A. Mendelssohn. 1989. Sulphide as a soil phytotoxin: Differential responses in two marsh species.Journal of Ecology 77:565–578.
Koch, M. S., I. A. Mendelssohn, andK. L. McKee. 1990. Mechanism for the hydrogen sulfide-induced growth limitation in wetland macrophytes.Limnology and Oceanography 35:399–408.
McManus, J. 2002. Deltaic responses to changes in river regimes.Marine Chemistry 79:155–170.
Mendelssohn, I. A. andN. L. Kuhn. 2003. Sediment subsidy: Effects on soil-plant responses in a rapidly submerging coastal salt marsh.Ecological Engineering 21:115–128.
Mendelssohn, I. A. andK. L. McKee. 1988.Spartina alterniflora die-back in Louisiana: Time-course investigation of soil water-logging effects.Journal of Ecology 76:509–521.
Mendelssohn, I. A., K. L. McKee, andW. H. Patrick, Jr. 1981. Oxygen deficiency inSpartina alterniflora roots: Metabolic adaptation to anoxia.Science 214:439–441.
Mendelssohn, I. A. andJ. T. Morris. 2000. Eco-physiological constraints on the primary productivity ofSpartina alterniflora, p. 59–80.In M. P. Weinstein and D. A. Kreeger (eds.), Concepts and Controversies of Tidal Marsh Ecology. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, The Netherlands.
Minello, T. J. 2000. Temporal development of salt marsh value for nekton and epifauna: Utilization of dredged material marshes in Galveston Bay, Texas, USA.Wetlands Ecology and Management 8:327–342.
Minello, T. J. andJ. W. Webb, Jr. 1997. Use of natural and createdSpartina alterniflora salt marshes by fishery species and other aquatic fauna in Galveston Bay, Texas, USA.Marine Ecology Program Series 151:165–179.
Mitsch, W. J. andJ. G. Gosselink. 2000. Wetlands. 3rd edition Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York.
Morton, R. A. and N. A. Purcell. 2001. Wetland subsidence, fault reactivation, and hydrocarbon production in the U. S. Gulf Coast region. U.S. Geological Survey, Fact Sheet 091-01. http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs091-01
Nyman, J. A., R. D. DeLaune, andW. H. Patrick, Jr. 1990. Wetland soil formation in the rapidly subsiding Mississippi River deltaic plain: Mineral and organic matter relationships.Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science 31:57–69.
Patrick, W. H. andR. Wyatt. 1964. Soil nitrogen loss as a result of alternate submergence and drying.Soil Science Society of America Proceedings 28:647–653.
Penland, S. andK. E. Ramsey. 1990. Relative sea level rise in Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico 1908–1988.Journal of Coastal Research 6:323–342.
Proffitt, C. E. andJ. Young. 1999. Salt marsh plant colonization, growth, and dominance on large mudflats created using dredged sediments, p. 218–228.In L. P. Rozas, J. A. Nyman, C. E. Proffitt, N. N. Rabalais, D. J. Reed, and R. E. Turner (eds.), Proceedings. Recent Research in Coastal Louisiana: Natural System Function and Response to Human Influence. Louisiana Sea Grant College Program, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Reed, D. J. andD. R. Cahoon. 1992. The relationship between marsh surface topography, hydroperiod, and growth ofSpartina alterniflora in a deteriorating Louisiana salt marsh.Journal of Coastal Research 8:77–87.
Reimold, R. J., M. A. Hardisky, and P. C. Adams. 1978. The effects of smothering aSpartina alterniflora salt marsh with dredged material. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Technical Report D-78-38, Washington, D.C.
SAS Institute, Inc. 1990. SAS/STAT User’s Guide, version 6, 4th edition SAS Institute, Inc., Cary, North Carolina.
Shafer, D. J. andW. J. Streever. 2000. A comparison of 28 natural and dredged material salt marshes in Texas with an emphasis on geomorphological variables.Wetlands Ecology and Management 8:353–366.
Stanley, D. J. andA. G. Warne. 1993. Nile Delta—Recent geological evolution and human impact.Science 260:628–634.
Streever, W. J. 2000.Spartina alterniflora marshes on dredged materials: A critical review of the ongoing debate over success.Wetlands Ecology and Management 8:295–316.
Swenson, E. M. andR. E. Turner. 1987. Spoil banks: Effects on a coastal marsh water-level regime.Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science 24:599–609.
Turner, R. E. 1997. Wetland loss in the northern Gulf of Mexico: Multiple working hypotheses.Estuaries 20:1–13.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). 1979. Methods for chemical analysis of water and wastes. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Wadhams, P. andW. Munk. 2004. Ocean freshening, sea level rising, sea ice melting.Geophysical Research Letters 31:L11311.
Wilber, P. 1993. Environmental Effects of Dredging Technical Notes: Managing of dredged material via thin-layer disposal in costal marshes. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Technical Note EEDP-01-32. http://el.erdc.usace.army.mil/dots/pdfs/eedp01-32.pdf
Wilsey, B. J., K. L. McKee, andI. A. Mendelssohn. 1992. Effects of increased elevation and macro- and micronutrient additions onSpartina alterniflora transplant success in salt-marsh dieback areas in Louisiana.Environmental Management 16:505–511.
Yang, S. L., I. M. Belkin, A. I. Belkina, Q. Y. Zhao, J. Zhu, andP. Ding. 2003. Delta response to decline in sediment supply from the Yangtze River: Evidence of the recent four decades and expectations for the next half-century.Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science 57:689–699.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Slocum, M.G., Mendelssohn, I.A. & Kuhn, N.L. Effects of sediment slurry enrichment on salt marsh rehabilitation: Plant and soil responses over seven years. Estuaries 28, 519–528 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02696063
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02696063