ESTUARIES AND COASTAL ZONES 



3. Possibilities for beneficial ef- 

 fects from man's activities. 



(a) Planned addition and dis- 

 persion of nutrients. 



(b) Selective warming by use 

 of water discharged from 

 power plants. 



(c) Control of unwanted species 

 by manipulation of appro- 

 priate variables. 



Political, Social, and Economic — 

 How are diverse value measurements 

 equated for the several benefits that 

 may be derived from an estuary? 

 What is the biological value of clean 

 water? The aesthetic value? What is 

 the value of a recreational fishery? 



Gaps in Existing Knowledge 



If the fisheries constitute only one 

 of the values to be realized from an 

 estuary, then satisfactory manage- 

 ment of the entire system cannot 

 be achieved unless there is a means 

 of judging the other values and of 

 expressing the possible interactions 

 to be expected as the renewable and 

 nonrenewable resources are har- 

 vested. Relative values cannot be 

 judged unless there is comprehensive 

 knowledge available about the es- 

 tuary. 



Descriptive Information — There is 

 an immediate need for more descrip- 

 tive information about Puget Sound. 

 Patterns of water circulation need 

 particular study, including the amount 

 of fresh water in the system, amount 

 and location of runoff, tides, winds, 

 and density differences. Such infor- 

 mation will be indispensable if the 

 fisheries are to be protected from 

 planned and unplanned disposal of 

 waste in Puget Sound. It is entirely 

 possible that the judicious addition 

 of nutrients from domestic and agri- 

 cultural sources might be accom- 

 plished in a manner to enhance the 

 productivity of the fisheries. The 

 extent of nonrenewable resources (oil, 

 sand, aggregate) within Puget Sound 

 should be more fully known. Di- 



rectly or indirectly, their extraction 

 could have a significant effect on 

 the fisheries. 



Baseline Studies — To fill another 

 large gap in existing knowledge of 

 Puget Sound, comprehensive baseline 

 studies of present conditions — chemi- 

 cal, physical, and biological — are 

 needed. Man-caused changes can 

 hardly be evaluated unless a norm 

 is known against which the devia- 

 tions may be judged. Time-series 

 studies of physical and chemical fac- 

 tors are required, as well as deter- 

 mination of the amounts and kinds 

 of organisms and appropriate infor- 

 mation on their condition. These 

 basic studies would necessarily deal 

 with each phase of an organism's 

 life cycle in order to uncover, for 

 particular species (e.g., English sole), 

 the requirements while on the spawn- 

 ing grounds, in the planktonic phase, 

 in nursery areas, and as a growing 

 juvenile and adult. It is also vital to 

 learn how much deviation in habitat 

 conditions a fish or shellfish can 

 tolerate and to know the optimum 

 preferred level of each important en- 

 vironmental parameter. The lower 

 trophic levels would also require de- 

 tailed attention, inasmuch as they are 



indispensable to the continued har- 

 vest of fish and shellfish. 



Economic Values — Until better 

 economic measures are developed for 

 evaluating the fishery resource, fish 

 and shellfish species more frequently 

 than not will continue to receive 

 relatively low priority when com- 

 pared to other competitive and detri- 

 mental uses of the Puget Sound es- 

 tuary. Figure VIII— 10 presents data 

 for a similar situation in Corpus 

 Christi Bay. 



Modeling Studies — After suitable 

 data are at hand, a modeling study 

 should be conducted. By this means 

 the organic-matter budget of Puget 

 Sound could be simulated. The prob- 

 able role of organisms as indicators 

 of a changing environment could be 

 studied. Furthermore, a theoretical 

 treatment could be expected to aid in 

 establishing an effective long-term 

 sampling plan and in implementing 

 a reasonably good predictive ability 

 concerning changes in fish popula- 

 tions. Economic values and socio- 

 political considerations must also be 

 used in such a model if all areas of 

 consideration for decisionmakers are 

 to be included. 



Figure VII 1—1 — VALUE OF ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES IN CORPUS CHRIST! BAY 



The chart gives an estimate of the dollar value of major activities in Corpus 

 Christi Bay during 1958. No one user was predominant, so no claim could be 

 made for predominant right to use of the bay on economic grounds. Note the 

 small dollar value of commercial fishing and the large value of aesthetic and 

 mining uses. 



249 



