130 



hydrological or physiological reasons for the absence of eelgrass in 

 these areas, transplant efforts to these areas often fail (Ranwell et 

 al., 1978). 



Nonetheless, sufficient number of projects have succeeded in 

 reestablishing eelgrass where it has been removed. This approach, while 

 experimental, has a role in coastal management. For example, 

 transplantation may facilitate a more rapid recovery of eelgrass 

 populations where there have been large losses due to storms, disease, 

 or pollution. Transplanting as a form of mitigation, however, should 

 not be used to rationalize incremental permanent loss of habitat. 



Future managemeDt 



Eelgrass beds are not well protected under current Massachusetts 

 regulations, and a coherent management policy regarding eelgrass beds 

 should be formulated, especially because eelgrass is declining in some 

 Bays. Because salt marshes are rigorously protected in Massachusetts, 

 as maps of eelgrass abundance become available, the question will arise: 

 should eelgrass beds be regulated as carefully as salt marshes? To 

 answer this question, comparisons between the two communities can 

 highlight potential management strategies. 



Eelgrass beds are more abundant and productive than salt marshes, 

 and are a dominant feature of nearshore waters in Buzzards Bay. These 

 two ecosystems are host to different communities of organisms, and each 

 serves a different ecological role. Salt marshes build dense layers of 

 peat over decades and centuries which become an intrinsic part of the 

 stability and biology of those communities. Eelgrass beds do not form 



