Sub: Biology Topic: Ecology

Question:
Why are estuaries, such as the Pamlico Estuary, so important?

ClassOf1 provides exert guidance for College, Graduate and High school homework and live online tutoring on subjects like
Finance, Marketing, Statistics, Economics and others. Check out more solved problems in our Solution Library.

Solution:

Estuary:

Estuary by definition is the adjoining place where freshwater joins and mixes with saltwater.
Estuary is more typically defined as a partially enclosed coastal body of water holding an open connection
with the ocean, for instance the open connection could be a river where the saltwater from the sea is
mixed with inland freshwater.
Types of estuaries:
North Carolina’s estuaries can be divided into
(i) trunk estuaries,
(ii) tributary estuaries and
(iii) back barrier sounds
Trunk estuaries:
Trunk estuaries run perpendicular to the coast, in line with the rivers that feed them.
Tributary estuaries:
Tributary estuaries flow into trunk estuaries.
Back barrier sounds:
Back barrier sounds lie parallel to the coast, between the mainland shore and the barrier islands.

www.classof1.com
Sub: Biology Topic: Ecology

Pamlico Estuary:
Six different sounds and ten major rivers make up the ‘Albemarle-Pamlico Estuary’. The largest
North Carolina estuary is Pamlico Sound. Water drains into this system from eastern North Carolina and
southeastern Virginia, from the Chowan, Roanoke, Pasquotank, Pamlico, and Neuse Rivers, from
marshes, swamps, forests, and grasslands. The estuary is one of the cradles of the ocean’s harvest; more
than 90 percent of the important species of fish depend on the estuary. The coasts included in this estuary
are North Carolina Coast and a portion of the Virginia Coast. Most of the land in this area remains rural
and people share similar lifestyles: farming, fishing, and logging.
Important facts about the estuary:
The estuary drains a 30,000 square mile area comprised of five major river basins.
About 2 million people population is approaching estuary
The estuary represents the region’s key resource base through commercial fishing, tourism,
recreation and resort development.
Agriculture and forestry are major land use activities.
Over $2 billion is generated annually from tourism.
More than 90 percent of all commercially important finfish and shellfish depend on the
Albemarle-Pamlico Estuary.
Approximately one million recreational fishermen fish North Carolina coastal
waters annually.
Health impact on the estuary:
Freshwater rivers and streams are impaired which are mainly due to sediment.
Dissolved oxygen level was found to be low.
Chemical contamination like dioxin and mercury was found.

www.classof1.com
Sub: Biology Topic: Ecology

Most fish kill events appear to be related to low oxygen levels and chemical contamination.
Pfiesteria has been linked to a number of fish kills in the Neuse and Pamlico Estuaries.
Physical damage, natural events, excessive harvest pressure, changes in stream flows, and water
quality degradation have impaired habitat.
Overfishing is believed to be a major cause of declining fish stocks.
Three of the region’s five major river basins (Neuse, Tar-Pamlico and Chowan) are designated as
Nutrient Sensitive Waters.
A ten-year fish consumption advisory for dioxin was lifted in 2000, for a 50-mile stretch of the
Chowan River.

Importance of Pamlico Estuary:

As discussed earlier, Pamlico estuary is the largest estuary among North Carolina’s estuaries and
is made up of six different sounds and ten major rivers. Water drains into this system from eastern North
Carolina and southeastern Virginia, from the Chowan, Roanoke, Pasquotank, Pamlico, and Neuse Rivers,
from marshes, swamps, forests, and grasslands.

It serves as one of the cradles of the ocean’s harvest; more than 90 percent of the
important species of fish depend on the estuary.
It helps to control erosion and reduce flooding of the mainland.
Sand bars over the estuary buffer the impact of waves.
Plants and shellfish beds in the estuary anchor the shore against tides.
Swamps and marshes take the initial impact of high winds and release the extra water
gradually into rivers and groundwater supplies.

www.classof1.com
 Sub: Biology Topic: Ecology

It acts as environmental filters, in a way that plants and animals in the estuary helps to
filter the contaminants entering the estuary.
Oysters in the estuaries filter impurities out of water as they eat, collecting the
contaminants in their bodies.
Bacteria eat organic matter found in the sediment and in turn release carbon dioxide,
hydrogen sulfate and methane into the atmosphere.
The plants and animals in an estuary are richly interconnected and every species depends
on several other species to survive, in this way estuary maintains the ecosystem properly.
A number of birds and animals in danger of extinction depend on North Carolina’s
estuaries.
These are the few reasons which accomplishes Pamlico estuary to be so important.

** End of the Solution **

ClassOf1 provides exert guidance for College, Graduate and High school homework and live online tutoring on subjects like
Finance, Marketing, Statistics, Economics and others. Check out more solved problems in our Solution Library.

www.classof1.com