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appreciably after the wasting disease, or showed major new declines with 

 no subsequent recovery. These areas had known histories of 

 anthropogenic disturbances such as fecal pollution, sediment 

 resuspension, and wastewater loading through either direct discharges or 

 via contaminated groundwater or stream flows. This trend is alarming 

 because, unlike natural disturbances, eelgrass will not recover where 

 human perturbation persists. Furthermore, many of these estuarine areas 

 supported refuge eelgrass populations that facilitated eelgrass recovery 

 after the wasting disease. Because beds in many of these areas have now 

 disappeared, a recurrence of a wasting disease will have a longer 

 lasting impact on the coastline. 



This study adds to the growing literature showing seagrasses may 

 disappear because of water quality decline, and that the disappearance 

 of eelgrass may be a early warning sign that important changes are 

 occurring in a coastal ecosystem. 



Future monitoring 



Throughout much of this report, eelgrass abundance was documented 

 using fragments of information from many sources. A more thorough 

 understanding of eelgrass dynamics can be achieved through continuous 

 monitoring and by analyzing sediment cores. 



The easiest way to monitor changes in eelgrass abundance is 

 through periodic aerial surveys together with some field verification. 

 This is a highly desirable approach because other aspects of coastal 



