CW2:1299
From Environmental Technology
A.) What are wetlands? How are wetlands characterized? What are some types of wetlands?
Wetlands are the transitional link between the water and the land. Wetlands are characterized by being areas found between land and water,and by their vegetation. Wetlands may be emergent, shrub, or forested, depending on the growth of the vegetation. Some types of wetlands are: estuarine wetlands and palustrine wetlands
B.) What are the functions of wetlands?
Wetlands protect and improve the water quality, help to control flooding and erosion, and also provide habitat for terrestrial and aquatic wildlife.
C.) What is percentage loss of Forest in the Bay area? How many tree and plant species are in the Bay area?
The percentage of forest lost is nearly 100 acres per day. There are 50 different tree species and 2,700 plant species that live in this forest.
D.) What are the functions of the forest?
The forest protects water quality, provides a habitat for wildlife, improves air quality, encourages recreation, and contributes to the economy.
E.)List the types of trophs and categorize them.
Autotrophs: Plants Heterotrophs: Animals
F.) What would happen to the entire system if the planktono were removed? Discuss the losses and problems that this could cause. Also, discuss what would happen if an unnatural overabundance of plankton were to occur in this region.
The prytoplankton are the bay's most abundant food producer. If they were all removed, every other organism that depends on the food that the plankton produce would die. Also, they produce oxygen during photosynthesis, which animals use to breathe. On the other hand, if there were too many plankton, there would not be enough of the nutrients they need to survive.
G.) Wetlands are disappearing from our coastlines at an alarming rate, does this sort of thing occur inland, or is it mainly a coastal problem? Is this really a problem, or should something be done about this? Have there been any other areas where deteriorating wetlands have caused other massive problems, or do you think this is just a Chesapeake Bay problem?
This disappearance of wetlands does occur inland, for many reasons. Often viewed as wastelands, wetlands were drained or filled for farms, residential developments, commercial buildings, highways and roads. I think that more should be done to convince the public to preserve these wetlands and their important ecosystems.
