Posts Tagged ‘Bill-Dennison’
Our New Year’s resolution: Looking after our own backyards
Posted by Bill Dennison.
The recently released Chesapeake Bay Foundation report provided a Bay-wide assessment of the status of Chesapeake Bay as a whole. While this high altitude view of Chesapeake Bay gauged against the John Smith Chesapeake Bay of the early 1600s is useful as a benchmark, it does not readily translate into local action. This is because of the immense scale of Chesapeake Bay, especially considering the scale of the Chesapeake watershed.
Read MoreWhy is Chesapeake Bay so vulnerable (and productive)?
(Posted by Bill Dennison.) Chesapeake Bay is particularly vulnerable to human impacts and incredibly productive for three basic reasons. 1) The first of these reasons is that Chesapeake Bay is an estuary, a place where fresh and salt water mix. 2) The second of these reasons is due to the geographic setting; geomorphology and hydrography…
Read MoreWhy Chesapeake Bay is the Best Studied Estuary in the World
(Posted by Bill Dennison) Chesapeake Bay is one of the best studied coastal regions on the globe. There are several reasons for this intensive research effort. 1) Chesapeake Bay has and continues to be incredibly productive in terms of fisheries resources (particularly crabs, oysters and fish). 2) Chesapeake Bay is one of the largest estuaries…
Read MoreDo We Need Any More Science to Restore Chesapeake Bay?
(Posted by Bill Dennison)
Chesapeake Bay is arguably the best studied estuary in the world, with a long history of scientific research culminating in theses, scientific journal articles, scientific society activities including workshops and conferences. Many of the paradigms on how estuaries work have been developed through studies of Chesapeake Bay. This leads to the question posed in the title, “Do we need any more science to restore Chesapeake Bay?”. Many people have said to me that we know enough already and we don’t need more science, we just need to get on with the restoration. These comments are in part a result of the frustration that we have not more made more progress in Chesapeake restoration. Research can, in fact, be used as a delaying tactic if restoration activities are forced to wait for more data. Researchers can be complicit in the criticism if they allow the perfect to be the enemy of the good or if they simply document the decline and focus solely on the problems, rather than the solutions.
Read More