Eutrophication is when you get excess nitrogen and phosphates in the water due to run off, pollution or dumping. Some common causes are from sewage and fertilizer. This causes “dead zones” which are areas with no life due to the pollution cutting off the oxygen in the water. Charles Yarish came up with a plan to save the Bronx river. His plan is to bring seaweed and shellfish to use up the excess nitrogen and phosphates. He explained that the seaweed would use the materialized substances and the shellfish would use the natural aspects of the pollution. Although this plan would cost about 2.4 million dollars it could save the river. He wants to use red seaweed which would work well the spring and fall and also bring in kelp which would work in the winter. The shellfish used will be mussels. After some time the seaweed and mussels will slowly be removed as the water begins to clean up. Scientist will then study them and see just what they have picked up while there. They expect to find biochemicals, animal feed in the seaweed and mussels. His goal is to clean up the river, prevent dead zones from forming. He fears that with the nearby wastewater treatment plant that he will never be able to raise species that edible species.
This photo exhibits people trying to clean up the river. It shows that the newyork environment in the background is still there and that some of the pollution comes form the vegetation in the back of the picture.
My reaction: I feel this is a great idea. People are constantly doing things that affect our environment and they don’t think twice about it. It is important for people to take charge and attempt to fix things and that’s exactly what Charles Yarish is doing. I think it was a good idea to bring in seaweed and mussels to eliminate the unnatural problem in a natural way. One concern I do have is what affect the organism will have to the current environment. I said that it will create a “multi-trophic aquaculture” if successful. He hopes that people could use the fish in the river one day. Although this project is very expensive and risky I think it is worth it to try and prevent the water getting worse and creating dead zones.
Questions
1. How do you feel about bringing in different species to the river
2. Do you think that bringing these organisms will affect the ecosystem in a negative way? Why? How?
3. Do you think that this is a waste of money? How much is to much to spend for a project like this?
4. What other precautions could be taken to prevent further pollution?
I think that this sounds like a good idea in theory because dead zones could cause a big problem in many aquatic ecosystems. The only big problem with this is how costly it would be and it is sad but in reality not enough people care about this problem to support it. If they could get this plan approved then it would greatly benefit the river and save many species of plant and animal life
ReplyDelete3. I don't think that it is a complete waste of money, but it is really costly for this type of project. I think that they would have more success and support if they found a cheaper way to get it done. For two reasons, the public would be way more likely to support it and if by any chance it doesn't work, then they wouldn't be as far in the hole. Overall I don't think it is a waste of money, but they would be better off with an equally effective, lower cost option.
I think this is a good thought to help the river, but there could be some negative affects. In class we just learned about invasive species and some of the bad things they could cause. There is a possibility that those species could get out of control and take over the area. They could also beat out any surviving species in the area. As long as the experts keep everything in control i'm sure it will be fine.
ReplyDelete4. To prevent further pollution in the river they could monitor dumping more closely. They could also work out a plan with the nearby waste treatment plant so that they don't let any waste or runoff into the river.
Personally, I think it's a wonderful idea in theory! When I was younger I always wondered why people complained about the water ways being unclean because I always thought you could buy a filter, like for a fish tank and it would make the water healthy for the fish and environment. Being older and more educated, I can see how that doesn’t work at all. So I think the mussels and seaweed brought in will make a significant effect on this environment, good and bad however. As it may eliminate the unwanted unnatural problems, this will be an invasive species. This species, as Syd said, could get out of control and take over which is what I was thinking. The experts who would put this project in go would have to indeed, pay a very close attention to how the invasive species is affecting the native species and be able to keep it under control.
ReplyDeleteQuestion 1: As I said above, I feel that bringing in this invasive species could be fairly risky, but with the right experts who know what they're doing and how to fix a problem if the species tried to take over, then it would ok.
I also feel that this is a great idea despite the price. We should try really hard to help save the environment, before it becomes to late. As a child I attended Pennypack Elementary school, and each year as a school we would go out side and clean out the Pennypack river together. More kids should have that experience and learn the dangers of pollution.
ReplyDeleteIn response to question two, I think that bringing these invasive species into this ecosystem will not have any huge negative effects. Since the purpose of the seaweed and shellfish is to use up the excess nitrogen and phosphates, I think this is exactly what they will do. Hopefully, if this plan ever takes place, there will be no harmful effects that could happen to an ecosystem with invasive species like we learned about in class.