Galveston Bay

This post is going to be a little sadder than usual. Recently roughly 168,000 gallons of oil was spilled in Galveston Bay in Texas. This is especially terrible because, since it is so near to land, the saltwater marshes that are critical to the ecosystem are in danger of being affected. Current cleanup is trying to keep the oil away from the marshes, because the oil will suffocate the saltwater grasses. Not only would this have an effect on the ecosystem, wildlide, and fisheries (and thus the local economy), the grass dying means the land held by their roots will simply drift away, making Texas smaller. In addition, the impact of storms from sea will be worse, as saltwater marshes serve to weaken them. To make matters worse, the spill happened just as birds were migrating through the region.