Ebook: Ecological Studies in the Middle Reach of Chesapeake Bay: Calvert Cliffs

The decision to build a nuclear power plant at Calvert Cliffs on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in southern Maryland resulted in a Iandmark legal decision (Calvert Cliffs Coordinating Committee vs Atomic Energy Commission) and began one ofthe mostintensive long-term studies ever carried out in an American estuarine system. In the pages that follow we describe the major results and findings from studies conducted over more than a decade by scientists from The Academy of Natural Seiences of Philadelphia (ANSP). These studies were designed to assess the potential effects that operation ofthe Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant (CCNPP) might have on the mid-portion of Chesapeake Bay. The approach taken was to study major biotic components of the system over an area and a time period sufficient to allow comparison of conditions between preoperational and operational periods within a sampling locality, and comparisons of conditions at reference sites with those at impact sites afterplant operations began. Elementschosen for detailed study included: species composition and production rates of major primary producers; water chemistry; zooplankton, benthos and finfish abundance and species composition; the abundance and growth rates of commercially important shellfish (clams, oysters and blue crabs); and the colonization sequences of invertebrates on artificial substrates.

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This volume describes the major results and findings from a long-term study on the potential effects that the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant might have on the biology of the mid-portion of Chesapeake Bay. The data base is sufficiently large to permit characterization of dominant physical, chemical and biological processes in this portion of the Bay and it permits the exploration of the relationships between nutrient availability and primary production, between primary and secondary production and between climatic variation and biological response.

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This volume describes the major results and findings from a long-term study on the potential effects that the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant might have on the biology of the mid-portion of Chesapeake Bay. The data base is sufficiently large to permit characterization of dominant physical, chemical and biological processes in this portion of the Bay and it permits the exploration of the relationships between nutrient availability and primary production, between primary and secondary production and between climatic variation and biological response.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages N2-VI
General Characteristics of the Chesapeake Bay and Study Area....Pages 1-10
Front Matter....Pages 11-11
Phytoplankton: Relationships Between Phytoplankton, Nutrients, Oxygen Flux and Secondary Producers....Pages 12-37
Zooplankton....Pages 38-81
Epifauna....Pages 82-96
Benthos....Pages 97-110
Shellfish....Pages 111-166
Fish....Pages 167-224
Front Matter....Pages 225-225
Entrainment Studies....Pages 226-253
Impingement Studies....Pages 254-269
Thermal and Other Discharge-Related Effects on the Bay Ecosystem....Pages 270-275
Summary and Conclusions....Pages 276-284
Back Matter....Pages 285-287

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This volume describes the major results and findings from a long-term study on the potential effects that the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant might have on the biology of the mid-portion of Chesapeake Bay. The data base is sufficiently large to permit characterization of dominant physical, chemical and biological processes in this portion of the Bay and it permits the exploration of the relationships between nutrient availability and primary production, between primary and secondary production and between climatic variation and biological response.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages N2-VI
General Characteristics of the Chesapeake Bay and Study Area....Pages 1-10
Front Matter....Pages 11-11
Phytoplankton: Relationships Between Phytoplankton, Nutrients, Oxygen Flux and Secondary Producers....Pages 12-37
Zooplankton....Pages 38-81
Epifauna....Pages 82-96
Benthos....Pages 97-110
Shellfish....Pages 111-166
Fish....Pages 167-224
Front Matter....Pages 225-225
Entrainment Studies....Pages 226-253
Impingement Studies....Pages 254-269
Thermal and Other Discharge-Related Effects on the Bay Ecosystem....Pages 270-275
Summary and Conclusions....Pages 276-284
Back Matter....Pages 285-287
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