Hurricane Katrina has had a huge impact on the ecosystem of the Gulf Coast. Because of the loss of wetlands, the hurricane’s impact was huge. The influx of salt water will greatly damage the habitats of many plants and animals in the area. The chemical plants in New Orleans could have had a devastating effect if they had been hit by the eye of the storm. Finally, wildlife in the area will have no home to return to. All these things will cause problems in the ecosystem of the Gulf Coast for years to come.
The loss of wetlands due to coastal erosion definitely increased the effect of the hurricane. Louisiana has lost more than 1,000,000 acres of coastal wetlands in the past seven decades, which has made New Orleans very vulnerable to hurricanes such as Katrina. All of the buffers south of Louisiana, such as the swamps and the bayous, would have absorbed the surge of the hurricane, if the loss of these areas wasn’t so dramatic. All the high levees surrounding New Orleans, that were designed to help stop flood waters coming down the Mississippi River, only made things worse. In a hurricane, there is a chance that the levees will break, which they did. Also, if the levees didn’t break, the water still could have toppled over the levees. Before the levees were built, the Mississippi River would overflow, leaving silt that nourished the plants and kept the land just above sea level. The levees prevent the Mississippi River from depositing silt naturally on the land. The current path of the river is unnatural due to the levees. The coastal land has continued to erode away, because the river can’t carry silt into the wetlands. Because of all these problems, New Orleans did not have much of a buffer to protect it from the blow of the hurricane.
The influx of salt water due to the hurricane will have a devastating impact on the ecosystem. Freshwater ecosystems, like rivers, ponds, and lakes, cannot survive in an environment with high salt concentrations. Too much of this salt can kill vegetation. Because the dead plants won’t be able to hold the soil together, the land will lose a ton of dirt from the dead plants being uprooted, which will cause even more erosion of the land. Increased salinity in the water causes a lower oxygen level in the water. A lot of invertebrates, such as clams, are highly affected by this and die. These clams aren’t killed by the high salt concentrations, but by the low oxygen levels in the water. In the low forests around New Orleans, many trees, such as the Cypress trees that dominates the area, can’t tolerate high salt concentrations and die.
The numerous chemical plants along the rim of New Orleans were not damaged severely, and shouldn’t have a big effect on the ecosystem. The biggest chemical refineries to the south and east of the city were spared a direct hit from Hurricane Katrina. If the hurricane would have knocked these plants and refineries over, these facilities might have spilled very dangerous petroleum, hydrocarbons, and chlorine gas. The environmental contamination of toxic fluids and gases could have been much worse. An advantage is that there is so much water in the city that the water dilutes the chemicals, making them not as potent. (This is kind of like putting a chlorine tablet in a pool). The big problem now in New Orleans is that the water that covers the city is full of sewage, gasoline from gas stations, solvents from dry cleaners, and chemicals from household cleaners. If the highly toxic chemicals from the chemical plants would have been added to this mix, the scenario would have been much worse.
The wildlife that lost their habitats is a big problem in the hurricane destroyed states. Hurricane Katrina had an immeasurable effect on the animals in this region. Thousands of farm animals on the coast have been killed due to the storm surge and flooding from Katrina’s heavy rains. Alligators and snakes that previously lived in the lagoons, that were destroyed, now can be seen floating past residential areas. Most of the wildlife that lived on the land probably died, such as the deer. The animals that could have gotten up in the trees had a better chance of living. One creature that surely survived the aftermath of Katrina is the mosquito. All of the sitting water is a perfect place for the mosquitoes to breed, which is a major health problem because of West Niles Virus. Many of the animals that have survived the hurricane will eventually die because they their habitats have been destroyed. Scientists say, though, that animals have co-existed with hurricanes for thousands of years, and most species will be able to recover.
Hurricane Katrina was one of the biggest natural disasters this country has ever seen. The ecosystem of the Gulf Coast will be permanently changed because of this storm. Even with millions of dollars and help from many people, it will take many, many years for these Gulf Coast states to recover from this devastating hurricane.
