|
Last week our teams reported great news - water quality in the Severn River is excellent. There is plenty of oxygen throughout the water column and there were no indication of any hypoxic spots (very low oxygen).
We can thank the unusually windy weather and the lack of rain for this good news. Wind is the most powerful mixing agent on the river and these sea breezes have been churning up the water and diluting the hypoxic zones (areas with less than 2 mg/L of dissolved oxygen) that usually form this time of year. The lack of rain helps boost water quality, too, because less rain means less stormwater runoff, the number one pollutant source for the Severn River.
There's another benefit to the lack of rain - it boosts the salinity in the river. The oysters on our restoration reefs do best with salinity exceeding 10 parts per thousand (ppt). Salinity most recently measured 7.28 ppt at our Wade oyster restoration reef. Once it gets closer to 10 ppt we will be able to plant the oyster larvae and spat-on-shell mentioned in the opening section.
SRA is always looking for more volunteers to help track the health of the river. We host tours Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings. These three-hour tours run through the end of October. It's a great way to learn about the river, contribute to science and meet new friends. For more information, email SRA's Program Officer, Tom Guay.
| 
