Water: Estuaries and Coastal Watersheds

Challenges Facing our Estuaries

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Many different factors can affect the health of watershed habitat. No single factor is responsible. In fact, all human activities in the coastal zone potentially affect these areas, and most problems are exacerbated by the high human population density along the coast. In addition to habitat loss, the National Estuary Program (NEP) has identified key management issues facing all 28 estuaries in the program. These problems, which cause declines in water quality, living resources, and overall ecosystem health, are the result of the interplay of many factors over time and space. The seven key management issues are depicted below. Visit NEP's Challenges page to learn more about these issues. And in the interactive watershed graphic that follows, see how everyday activities in coastal watersheds have the potential to contribute to them.

Fish and Wildlife Declines	Toxic Chemicals	Nutrient Overloading	Habitat Loss
Altered Water Flow	Invasive Species	Pathogen Contamination

Click on an area of activity in the image below to view information in the text box
on how each may contribute to one or more of the key issues facing estuaries.

Text Description of the Contributing Factors Graphic

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Challenges Facing our Estuaries

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