SALT MARSHES

• According to a study conducted by researchers at the Marine Biological Laboratory, more than 90% of the world's salt marshes may be lost to sea level rise by the end of the century.

What are Salt Marshes

• The salt water brought in by the tides floods and drains salt marshes, which are coastal wetlands. They are marshy because the soil may be made up of peat and deep mud.
• Peat is a thick layer of decomposing plant debris. Peat is extremely spongy, wet, and populated with roots.
• Oxygen levels in the peat can be quite low, a situation known as hypoxia because salt marshes are constantly flooded by the tides and contain a lot of plant matter that is degrading.
• The bacterial proliferation that results in hypoxia is what gives marshes and mud flats their characteristic sulphurous, rotten-egg odour.
• The majority of salt marshes are found in moderate to high latitudes. They frequently inhabit estuaries, where they thrive along sheltered shorelines. On every coast of the United States, salt marshes can be found. The Gulf Coast has around half of the country's salt marshes.

Advantage

• These intertidal habitats are crucial for the sustainability of our fisheries, coasts, and communities. They also play a significant role in our way of life and economy. More than 75% of fishery species, including shrimp, blue crab, and numerous finfish, depend on them for food, shelter, or nascent habitat.
• The wetland is a region of land that has either been completely or heavily flooded by water.
• Groundwater that has seeped up from an aquifer or spring is frequently present.
• Water for a wetland might also come from a lake or river close by.
• Moreover, seawater can generate wetlands, particularly in locations with strong tides that are coastal.
• Wetlands are defined as "areas of marsh, fen, peat land, whether natural or manmade, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish, or salt, including areas of seawater the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six metres."
• These are the zones where terrestrial (on land) and aquatic (on water) zones meet. dampen the effects of wave action and catch sediments, salt marshes also help to prevent shorelines from eroding. By delaying and absorbing rainwater, they prevent flooding and maintain water quality by filtering runoff and metabolising excess nutrients.

About Wetland Ecosystem

• A wetland is a region of land that has either been completely or heavily flooded by water.
• Groundwater that has seeped up from an aquifer or spring is frequently present.
• Water for a wetland might also come from a lake or river close by.
• Moreover, seawater can generate wetlands, particularly in locations with strong tides that are coastal. Wetlands are defined as "areas of marsh, fen, peat land, whether natural or manmade, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish, or salt, including areas of seawater the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six metres."
• These are the zones where terrestrial (on land) and aquatic (on water) zones meet.

Significance of Wetland

• All ecosystem services connected to water are particularly well-provided by wetlands.
• Plants, animals, and wetland agriculture all thrive in wetlands.
• Most waterbirds in the world live in wetlands, which are also important habitats for migratory species.
• One essential food source is wetlands.

Wetlands are highly valuable for recreation, history, science, and culture.

Read More: Conservation of Wetlands