Over the course of time, we have discovered that many things that we innocently do have detrimental effects. Smoking is bad for one’s health, so we must stop; overhunting is bad since it leads to extinction, so we must stop. However, the case with swamp marshes is not nearly as black and white. While ideally salt marshes should return to their original condition with their native plants, it is also complete wishful thinking. I think that allowing non-native plants to recolonize, while carefully monitoring them, is a much more feasible option, that can better ensure the survival of natural salt marshes.
Restoring a salt marsh to its complete former glory entails a tremendous amount of effort. Salt marshes have experienced changes in their salinity, thereby giving rise to Phragmites, a plant that, by nature, is invasive. No longer are there as many Spartina plants, for the Phragmites are dominating this particular ecosystem. A restoration would require that the Phragmites be completely removed (by bulldozing). Then, Spartina plants could be grown by either planting its seeds or by uprooting and replanting Spartina from other salt marshes. Suddenly, what was innocuously considered a “restoration” might be more appropriately labeled an “upheaval”.
Changing the current status of salt marshes is much easier in theory than it is in its actual implementation. For one, getting people to actually carry through with such painstaking work would be difficult. In fact, Weis and Butler note that the people currently dedicated to such labor are students and volunteers. So few individuals cannot accomplish this sheer volume of work, at least with some noticeable impact. Besides for people, actual legislation is lax when it comes to carrying through with restoration. In 2007, for example, Louisiana did not follow through with a law passed due to rising costs. In short, time and money are key factors in limiting any potential restoration progress.
If nature could provide immediate results to the restoration of salt marshes, people might be more willing to help out. However, restoring salt marsh with Spartina plants does not guarantee successful results. To thrive, Spartina need proper tidal flow and proper salinity; if they are planted in the wrong conditions, they will not grow. While we can attempt to manipulate where plants grow, we are still susceptible to nature’s fickleness in all our efforts.
Humans might have good intentions by restoring, but they must also take the organisms’ well being into account. Indeed, the salt marsh has changed, but organisms, by nature, learn to adapt. Therefore, many have adapted to the presence of the Phragmites, and have learned to use it as shelter. It would be counterintuitive to change the salt marsh environment, to that of which it used to be; organisms would, once again, have to readapt.
Ultimately, Sheehan’s statement of Phragmites, it’s green most of the time, and it ain’t condos” bears much validity. While phragmites are not an ideal part of a salt marsh, they are still an organic element in this ecosystem. It is far better to have a plant than a building in one of the most crucial settings in nature. We deal with many other plants that are a nuisance, such as weeds and vines, but never by completely uprooting and redesigning an area. Humans are fallible and still do not know everything about how nature runs; perhaps restructuring might be detrimental in the long run. Rather, we should monitor the current situation of salt marshes. That way we can still exert human control in a positive way, all while using our resources efficiently.
