1)Boston Harbor The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) claims that t

Question

1)Boston Harbor The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) claims that the $3.8 billion dollar Boston Harbor Cleanup has been a great success. a.) Please present evidence (data) for a specific parameter) that water quality is better in Boston Harbor than it was 25 years ago (and cite the source of this data). Explain why this data supports your claim that water quality is better now. How does this better water quality improve ecosystem functions? b.) What can you do to make the water quality (with respect to this parameter) even better? What could levels of the parameter give above be like 25 years into the future. How clean can Boston Harbor water become (with respect to your measurement)? What controls the trajectory of this parameter?

Explanation / Answer

Over around 20 years ago the Boston Harbor was known as the highly dirtiest harbor in America. But today, it’s known as a Great American Jewel. The $3.8 billion spent in the treatment facilities of Deer Island is a big success and the harbor cleaning is accepted as one of the nation’s utmost environmental achievements.

The Boston Harbor Project comprise innovation and growth of the Deer Island treatment capacity; building of an eleven-foot diameter channel under Boston Harbor to bring sewage from the Nut Island treatment plant to the new plant at Deer Island; and building of a 9.5-mile long, 24-foot diameter channel to entirely eliminate the Deer Island effluent from Boston Harbor and release it beyond offshore in Massachusetts Bay. The MWRA has also carried out related projects to control the combined sewer overflows and to decrease the toxic materials that come into the sewer system.

These water quality enhancements have improved people's use of the harbor as their awareness of its environmental quality has improved.

Widespread checking of Boston Harbor started in 1992 under a monitoring project planned by MWRA. This project measures changes in biological and other conditions in the water column and sediments of the harbor.

Sewage effluent may consist of a large amount of nitrogen and other nutrients, and it can cause surplus algal growth. Algal growth can be calculated by computing the height of their pigments in the water column. Calculation indicates that the amounts of algae in the harbor, has decreased from time to time.

Dissolved oxygen (DO) is another sign of environmental health and water quality. Low amount of DO shows the presence of large amounts of organic matter, like sewage, and can result in localized zones Measurement shows that bottom water DO has increased by around 0.5 milligrams per liter (mg/L), and is constantly well above the state standard of 6.0 mg/L.

Benthic infauna such as the mollusks, worms, and crustaceans, play a serious role in marine ecosystems. These organisms help as a food source for other organisms, stabilize and aerate sediments, and reuse nutrients and organic matter. Benthic infauna are mainly vulnerable to pollution. The large quantity of animals, species diversity, and the types of organisms present can be used as good indication of ecosystem health. Watching benthic infauna in Boston Harbor shows that there is an important improvement with time. The total number of species also increases with time, this also used as an indicator of improving conditions in the harbor.

Reference:-

http://www.mass.gov/envir/massbays/pdf/sob2010/water.pdf

http://www.prenhall.com/divisions/esm/app/nebel/html/updates/update19.html

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