Environmental Stewardship for Paddlers Series – Habitat Protection
Habitat Protection
By Gina Lemieux
There are many habitats we are privileged to explore while paddling such as rocky reefs, kelp forests, mudflats and estuaries. Some of these are more sensitive than others, such as eelgrass beds in the intertidal and shallow subtidal zones and salt marsh in the intertidal zone.
Both are important estuarine and nearshore habitats, together offering a variety of ecological services and functions such as the provision of structural habitat, nutrients, prey items, and spawning, nursery, rearing, and shelter/refuge habitat for a myriad of species including salmon, herring and Dungeness crab. Plus they contribute greatly to carbon sequestration, oxygen production, binding and removal of contaminants, reduction of coastal erosion and much more.
Exercise extra care and avoid walking through and placing paddling watercraft and gear on eelgrass, salt marsh and other habitat areas.
