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Flooding of agricultural land by hurricane storm surges can have both short-term and long-term effects on both crops and soil structure. While most of the “salt” in seawater is sodium chloride (table salt), it also contains appreciable amounts of magnesium sulfate (Epson's salts) and other elements. After heavy rains, sodium and chloride will be preferentially lost in runoff and leachate. Therefore, within the next two years, much of the agricultural land flooded by last season's storm surges should naturally recover and return to previous levels of productivity. Recovery will occur more quickly in fields that received lower amounts of salt. A few areas that accumulated very high levels of salt are possibly at risk of becoming sodic, and may not recover without help.
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Synthesis
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Agriculture
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Crop Productivity and Health
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Factors Affecting Productivity
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R8: Southern
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Saltwater intrusion can be detrimental to these marshes because water with high salt concentrations can adversely affect vegetation in the marsh. For instance, when highly saline water enters a low-saline or non-saline area, most or all of the native plant life will be destroyed. Because plant root systems are essential in holding the marsh soil together, loss of plant life eventually leads to rapid erosion.
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Effects
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Forests and Ecosystems
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Coastal Ecosystems
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Coastal Wetlands
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R8: Southern
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The continuing effects of saltwater intrusion driven by Katrina can be still seen in the wilting trees and plants far from the coast. The inland saltwater intrusion caused the state's rice crop to decrease by 20 percent this year. The canals that connect the city to the coast allow storm surges to travel inland, bringing salt water that damages the land. An example of such a canal is the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet, which was built in the mid-1960s to be a 76-mile (122-kilometer) shortcut between the Gulf of Mexico and New Orleans. Before the record hurricane season of 2005, salt water brought inland by the canal was fingered as the culprit in the death of thousands of acres of cypress swamp, a natural buffer against storms. When Katrina hit, levee failures on the canal allowed water to pour into St. Bernard Parish and New Orleans East.
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Effects
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Forests and Ecosystems
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Extreme Weather
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Tropical Cyclones
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R8: Southern
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