What Coastal Marsh Sediments Reveal About Land Use Change; Bodega Bay, CA

The Rail Ponds coastal marsh was separated from Bodega Harbor in 1963 when Westside Road was constructed. As a result, the marshes are now less tidally influenced, have brackish water, and contain more dense vegetation. My project explores the impacts of road construction on the Rail Ponds marsh using grain size and color analyses and also evaluates biological indicators of a transition in the marsh. Coastal wetlands are an important terrestrial carbon sink, since primary productivity is high and carbon is stored at high rates by the anoxic sediments. However, land use change in California has played a large role in the destruction of coastal wetlands: over 80% have been filled or diked to make way for agriculture, urban development, or salt production. This study explores the effects of land use change on coastal wetlands in terms of sediment deposition, biological productivity, and carbon storage