Why Study the Lafayette River Watershed?

The Lafayette River is a microtidal urban estuary that is surrounded by the city of Norfolk, VA. This river has faced several environmental challenges, including eutrophication, harmful algal blooms, microplastic contamination in both water and sediment, and contamination from local industries (Hale et al., 2018).

Lafayette River watershed is Norfolk’s largest and only drains land within the city limits. It covers almost 14 square miles and is home to over 40% of Norfolk’s residents (City of Norfolk, n.d.). Once lined with miles of wetlands that filtered excess nutrients from the water, provided habitat for wildlife, and kept shorelines from eroding, the area has undergone immense growth over the years (Solyst, 2022). Today, habitat fragmentation and urbanization has had a significant effect on biodiversity and the ecosystem. Infrastructure such as commercial buildings, roadways, bridges, and homes continue to create problems for biodiversity. There are small green ways, but they are so small and spread out that I am afraid that they do not provide much refuge for local wildlife. The Lafayette River runs through the area, but pollution from surrounding development and ship repairs has had a lasting negative effect on the waterway and the surrounding wetlands. Norfolk is also one of the most vulnerable areas of the Chesapeake Bay watershed to flooding due to sea level rise and land subsidence (Solyst, 2022).

 

City of Norfolk. No Date. Lafayette River. https://www.norfolk.gov/2360/Lafayette-River

Hale, R.P., Alvarado, A.g., Waggoner, D.C., Noffke, N.K., Hatcher, P. 2018. Microplastics in the Lafayette River estuary, Norfolk, Virginia, USA. American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2018. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2018AGUFM.H33Q2299H/abstract

Solyst, Jake. 2022. Harnessing people power to restore Lafayette River Wetlands. Chesapeake Bay Program. https://www.chesapeakebay.net/news/blog/harnessing-people-power-to-restore-lafayette-river-wetlands