Table 7. --Number, type, and location of proposed private construction projects in 

 western Gulf of Mexico coastal areas reviewed during fiscal year 1967 



1/ 



Includes pipelines, wharves, piers, bridges, and jetties. 



studies revealed that penaeid shrimp and many 

 important species of finfish used the intertidal 

 marsh zones and the beds of submerged aquatic 

 vegetation extensively as nursery habitat. 

 Bottom sediments were relatively stable and 

 similar in the two areas, and the water was 

 clear for extended periods. 



In the area being developed, the shoreline 

 has been bulkheaded and marsh elevations are 

 being raised by pumping mud and sand fronn 

 nearby shallow- water areas (fig. 16). A channel 

 has been dredged between the construction site 

 and the deeper waters of the outer bay. Spoil 

 has been dumped in large piles beside the 

 channel, producing a widespread unstable layer 

 of fine sand and silty clay which has made the 

 water highly turbid for long periods. The 

 occurrence, abundance, and distribution of 

 marine fauna, particularly young penaeid 

 shrimp, has decreased markedly. Also, the 



quantity and quality of submerged aquatic 

 vegetation have been reduced significantly. 



Habitat Rehabilitation 



Because hydraulic spoil dumped on a vege- 

 tated shoreline or on beds of submerged 

 aquatic vegetation completely rearranges and 

 destroys productive estuarine habitat, we 

 have begun a study to develop methods for 

 establishing aquatic and marsh vegetation on 

 barren spoil areas. This vegetation will reduce 

 the area's vulnerability to erosion from wave 

 action and will re-create a natural "edge" 

 effect. Our first efforts were to transplant 

 smooth cord grass, Spartina alterniflora, in 

 the intertidal zone of a recent spoil deposit 

 (fig. 17). To date, our first transplantings 

 appear to be growing and spreading beyond 

 the original planting site. 



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