The United States has been known throughout history to have an obsession with expansion: When we discover a patch of unused land, we seize it and mold it until it suits our needs. Since people have been largely unable to appreciate nature for nature’s sake without destroying it, we have had to create national parks for this purpose. A similar situation exists with salt marshes. I believe that we as humans have an innate need for instant gratification and we change what doesn’t immediately serve us. Therefore, the destruction of the salt marshes appears to me a representation of a lack of values and thoughtless action towards the environment.

We have been modifying salt marshes since as early as the 17th century. Dutch settlers needed land to survive so they installed dikes in salt marsh areas to prevent flooding. Mud banks and dikes were also built in order to create a landscape conducive to the production of salt hay. Early settlers discovered that salt hay was useful for bedding for horses and cattle, thatch for barn roofs, road traction, among many other things (Salt Marshes, 92). The destruction of salt marshes in earlier times seems less of an act of thoughtlessness than in the present day. Settlers had fewer resources and technology, and salt marshes were necessary sources for their survival. They probably had also had less knowledge regarding environmental consequences of their actions, and this makes their modification of the marshes seem more condonable.

In current times, however, we have taken what earlier settlers started and gone completely overboard. Now that we are an industrialized society, we have turned to salt marshes for urban development. For example, marshes have been filled to create airports and highways (Salt Marshes, 95), entities not necessary for our survival. Also, in recent years people have taken to the idea of living by the ocean and to do so have removed vegetation from the salt marsh borders. This destroys the habitats of the organisms in the marshes and the marsh itself. Other consequences come about as well, such as chemical changes in the soil (96). Neighborhoods are destined to develop but we now have the knowledge and the tools to choose where and how to construct them. We disregard the natural environment when making such decisions because it satisfies us in the moment.

One of the most troubling parts of salt marsh destruction is pollution. Human beings are notorious for polluting Mother Earth and salt marshes are no exception. We dump pesticides and the like into salt marshes because it gratifies us in some other way. We know what we are doing, as Weis and Butler state on page 128, but we do it anyway. The label of Scourge, an insecticide used to combat salt marsh mosquitoes, reads, “This product is toxic to fish and birds. Do not apply to lakes, streams, or ponds. ” Scourge is still being applied. We are also presented with healthier alternatives, such as organic methods, but because they require more time and effort, we ignore them. These pollutants affect our health as well so it makes little sense that we are so careless. Overall, while the settlers had less to work with and their alteration of the marshes makes more sense, our present obsession with what serves us in the moment (in spite of our increased knowledge and tools) and lack of environmental ethics have led to the massive destruction of the marshes.