Everglades Flooding Essay, Research Paper

Perhaps we take it for granted that our beautiful homeland will be forever

changed because of the effects of modern civilizations. The environment, local

animals, plants, and neighboring niches are all being affected by a few factors.

The insensitivity of humans towards our fellow living creatures has caused the

Everglades to shrink dramatically in the last one hundred years. The health of

the everglades has been compromised because we as humans need more space to live

on, bigger roads, and adventures on which we embark. In the following

paragraphs, I will explain one of the most threatening factors to Florida’s

Everglades, habitat loss. Originally, the Everglades consisted of nearly 8,100

square miles, now, it has been reduced to about 2,300 square miles of which

about three-fifths is in set-designated water conservation areas. Two-thirds of

the original everglades is the water that falls on one-thirds of the original

watershed. In simpler terms, the water in the Everglades is being washed into

the ocean at a faster rate than the animal and plant life can adapt to. If this

problem continues on the same route it is on, the death toll of animals and

plants will reach catastrophic proportions. Many years ago, the Everglades was

much deeper than it is now and the wet season lasted many months. Now, huge

amounts of water come in short intervals and are dried up more quickly than it

can be replaced due to drainage. Grasses who survive in deep water are being

killed rapidly. Due to the death of these grasses, several species of fish have

decreased dramatically in number. The loss of these grasses allows the melalueca

to dominate these areas as the supreme species of plants. Fourteen animal

species in the everglades are endangered and many more are threatened. The loss

of habitat and overcrowding of certain species are disturbing animal population.

Since the 1900’s, ninety percent of the bird population has died. In 1988 a

serious drought left many animal species homeless and many dead. Food loss due

to lack of water killed many plant species. By 1989, only 5,000 bird nests and

15 colonies were present in the watershed of the everglades. In only one year,

that number dropped to 1,000 nests. As we all know and love, the food web

explains how countless animal and plants are co-dependents of each other and how

the domino effect can change each and every one of those species. Many

conservation efforts have been done to save the everglades, yet they have all

failed miserably in a feeble attempt to erase the damage cause by the most

abundant predator to any species world wide, mankind. The Everglade Agriculture

Area has been set up to enrich the soil in the Everglades, hopefully restoring

the animal and plant life to the original numbers that they used to be. When the

water levels plummet and new nutrients are added, the soil is exposed to large

amounts of oxygen. This speeds up the bacterial growth and can further harm

plant life. The soil can then turn to fine dust and lower the water level

several feet. Another effort to save the everglades it to kill the melalueca

trees, which suck up large quantities of water. Cutting down the trees was first

attempted, but that effort further spread the melalueca seeds. Another method

was tried, poison. Poisons are being developed to kill small islands of

melalueca trees with out harming the neighboring plants. Everyone can agree on

one thing, the distribution of melalueca trees in the Everglades by humans is

one of the worst ideas to plague the Everglades epidemic. Overall, vast amounts

of money have been spent to save the Everglades. The Clinton administration has

donated 1.5 billion dollars on conservation efforts. The 13 billion-dollar

tourism industry to the Everglades and the Keys has helped with funds for the

Everglades Wildlife Fund and other organizations. On average, the amount of

money donated per year to Everglade’s conservation efforts is about 2 billion

dollars. The reason I chose to do this report on the Everglade is because I got

an offhand look at how the Everglades is being destroyed slowly. While going on

an airboat tour of the Everglades, I saw an alligator, which got its leg cut off

from a boat propeller. While this greatly disturbed me, the airboat driver

jokingly referred to the alligator as stumpy. I hope that one day, the

Everglades wildlife and humans can co-exist.

Muller, Peter O. (1992) The World Book Encyclopedia: Everglades. Chicago, IL:

World Book, Inc. National Geographic Interactive (1998) [Computer Program].

Washington, D.C: The Learning Company Everglades Ecosystem (1999). www.nps.gov/ever/eco.[World

Wide Web]. Viewed: September 22, 1999. World Wildlife Federation (1999).

www.wwf.org. [World Wide Web]. Viewed: September 22, 1999