Algae Population Decreasing

As well as pollution, invasive species are damaging the lake ecosystems and food chains, made fragile by pollution and overfishing. The introduction of a new species throws off the balance of food chains. Some common invasive species include the sea lamprey, Asian carp, and zebra mussels, among many others. Zebra mussels have dramatically influenced and affected stable food chains by reducing the amount of zooplankton and phytoplankton. This presents a problem, as fish mostly feed on the drifters, and so they go hungry and die, leaving no food for larger fish to prey on. In addition to underwater disruption, it affects us as well, but only slightly. Plankton and algae especially are the most productive aquatic producers of oxygen, and by the decreasing population, we lose oxygen as well. The sea lamprey is also a problem, though it is not so influential to ecosystems as the zebra mussel.

The bay has fifty major rivers and streams that drift into it. Nitrogen and Phosphorous are rapidly getting released into the bay. Most of the Nitrogen and Phosphorous comes from agriculture, air, and sewage. The excessive nitrogen and Phosphorus degrade the bay's water quality. Each year roughly three hundred pounds of polluting nitrogen gets into the Chesapeake Bay. Just like the Everglades the Chesapeake's water is in danger.

This article, posted by Kelsy Solway, on “CBC News”. It was published on July 8 2015 regarding the algae growth in Jackfish Lake. The article title is “Yellowknife dump runoff may be causing Jackfish Lake algae blooms” and can be access here. Additional analysis and summaries can be read below.

By recycling the waste, we can protect the bay from pollutants. Recycled waste can also be used to better the environment, rather than worsen it. Conserving water can ensure that water at the wrong temperature does not end up in the bay and it can also prevent excess nutrients from entering the bay and harming it. These steps are just mini steps into a greater plan that can severely help the Bay. Cleaning the Bay of the nutrients that are already in the bay allows the bay to also recover from its current condition.

Impervious surfaces are a problem because they don’t let the water seep through. The water travels over top these surfaces because they are solid. Paved roads, sidewalks, patios, and roofs are all impervious. This is harmful because the storm water builds up speed on impervious surfaces and can cause flooding. They also alter the amount of precipitation

Our watershed, the chesapeake bay stretches more than 64,000 square miles and is home to about 18 million people.The bay provides us with a lot of things like fishes,salt and water for farming etc. But, the bay is starting to get polluted and many organisms in the bay are dying because of sediments, algae blooms etc.

Needless to say, it does not mean that the Bay was out of trouble by only having to deal with the problems of the nutrients runoff. The nitrogen and phosphorus is more than enough to handle the Chesapeake Bay. By the year 1987the Chesapeake Bay was taking in 184,000 metric tons of nitrogen 74,000 metric tons of phosphorus a year from

Types of human activity that affect the Bay's health. Humans either do not see or do not care about the pollution they send into the water. As humans build more factories close to the water or send more waste out of their homes it goes into the Bay causing many problems for the ecosystem. "waste from people's homes, stores, and offices is also treated and discharged into the Bay and its rivers. " (Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem) People do not understand the effects of pollution the Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem says that people believe the water where the pollution is going will dilute the pollution and won’t be as bad. Humans do no understand the problems pollution will cause. The population of the Blue Crabs in the Bay was below average for over 10 years. From 1998 until 2009 the crab ecosystem was so unhealthy they were unable to live and reproduce.

Did you ever wonder how things you do everyday effect the Chesapeake Bay watershed and Its tributaries? Well, It turns out to be not so good. One of the main causes for the Bay’s bad health are nutrients which are caused by excess nitrogen and phosphorus in the air and water. Plants and animals need nutrients to survive but when too many nutrients are in the water they fuel the growth of algae blooms and create conditions that are harmful for aquatic creatures.

Nowadays, people stay away from analyzing how their actions impact the environment producing long lasting consequences. The opportunity to act is right where anyone stands and the closest one to this area is known as the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Therefore, the amount of nutrients going into the Chesapeake Bay should be reduced since the use of fertilizers has increased dramatically over time causing water pollution and the death of many species.

Throughout the years, humans have definitely increased their capacity to innovate and improve. With the industrial revolution, humans could produce things at a much faster and efficient way. By increasing the amount of production, the environment has undergone a huge impact to support the various activities of humankind. One small example of this is the impacts on the Chesapeake Bay. There are various effects on the Bay all causes of human activity. To formulate a plan to restore the health of Chesapeake Bay, we must first understand which causes are impacting the health of the ecosystem and which measures can be taken to restore the Bay back to health.

The Virginia General Assembly enacted the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act in 1988 in an effort to promote “the general welfare of the people of the commonwealth.” The act is effective in 84 different localities throughout Virginia. This act was designed to have a positive impact on water quality of the bay itself, and also water throughout Virginia that feed into the bay. Along with improving water quality, it was designed to still allow reasonable development to continue taking place. The act is designed around the theory that land can be used and developed in a way that minimizes negative impacts on water quality. There is a balance between state and local economic interests and water quality that is implemented by a cooperative partnership between the state and Tidewater local government. This partnership helps reduce and prevent nonpoint source pollution.

Farms, and cities are the most responsible for the pollution affecting the bay. And with no surprise, farmers, home builders, and chemical companies fight against the restoration idea every day. According to Moyers & Company, ¨The top three spenders — the American Farm Bureau, Fertilizer Institute and the National Association of Home Builders — gave over $4 million to national-level politicians and spent over $18.5 million on lobbying¨. Even the President of the place we live in, Donald Trump, proposed a budget that would completely eliminate the federal funding for the cleanup of the bay. Okay, so, let me get this straight, you don't want clean water? Or care about the thousands of life forms currently residing in the Chesapeake? Without this funding, the restoration process would come to an end, and the restoration could not be possible. Put your money where your mouth is! (Drinking clean water and possibly eating fish, or other seafood).

Spanning lengths over 300,000 meters, this it is a watershed that extends over six states, the District of Columbia, and meets the needs of over 15 million individuals. With its high rate of productivity, its economic and social importance to the surrounding areas, and its close proximity to the U.S. capital, the Chesapeake has the recipient of significant attention for quite some time(Boesch, Donald). One of the issues that threatens this important estuary is eutrophication. For the majority of the 20th century, research, guidelines, and management activity were focused on other issues like wetland loss, over harvesting of fisheries, infectious wastes, etc (Davidson et al, 1997). It took until the final quarter of the century for widespread realization to hit that eutrophication had deteriorated the Bay, with extreme consequences for the Bay’s resources(Malone et al., 1993). After awareness of the impact of eutrophication on water bodies began to increase, when it came to making policies and managing the Chesapeake Bay, eutrophication reduction took precedence over any other issues. As the Bay remains a very important body of water, the significance of understanding one of the major processes responsible for its degradation remains as well. This paper aims to understand the contributing factors of eutrophication in the Chesapeake Bay, with a special focus on the effects of air and

The main rivers of the Chesapeake Bay is the Susquehanna, Potomac, James, Rappahannock, Chester, Nanticoke, Patuxent, and the Choptank rivers (Sprague et al 2000). The main rivers of the Chesapeake Bay watershed send about 51 billion gallons of freshwater into the Bay each day (Chesapeake Bay Program n.d.). These rivers are homes to many fish, amphibians, invertebrates, and other animals. Not only do aquatic animals live in these rivers, plenty of aquatic plants live there too (Chesapeake Bay Program n.d.). There are many factors that could affect the health of the Chesapeake Bay including litter, debris, sediment pollution, chemical contaminants, and any man made objects (Chesapeake Bay Program n.d.). Any litter and debris will work its way up to the Bay from the rivers and smother any grass beds along with bottom dwelling creators and add chemical contaminants to the water. Any excess nutrients that come from urban runoff or vehicle emissions will cause harmful algae to grow which blocks sunlight and does not allow plants to grow due to low oxygen dead zones