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Ducks Unlimited Canada Restores Salt Marsh in Musquash
Musquash, New Brunswick, December 20, 2004 – Today Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) began an extensive salt marsh restoration project at the Musquash Estuary in Musquash, New Brunswick. This project will restore 38 acres of diked land to functioning salt marsh.
The Musquash Estuary contains the largest salt marsh on the New Brunswick side of the Bay of Fundy. It consists of approximately 1150 acres of salt marsh and 339 acres of diked lands. The majority of the wetlands at Musquash are owned by DUC, the Province of New Brunswick and the Nature Conservancy of Canada.
DUC, with its partners, the Province of New Brunswick, the Eastern Joint Habitat Venture, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, the Gulf of Maine Council, Environment Canada, Acadia University and Mount Allison University will restore 38 acres of diked land to its original salt marsh state. This will be accomplished by removing an abandoned railway bed and a short agricultural dike. Nature has already started this process as high tides have breeched the railway bed in a number of areas.
This project presents an excellent opportunity to monitor and document the changes that occur over the period of salt marsh re-establishment. This is the first comprehensive and systematic research project on salt marsh restoration in the Bay of Fundy.
“The planning and evaluation of the salt marsh restoration at Musquash will provide valuable information that will help to predict the outcomes of tidal wetland restoration at other locations,” explains Joe Harvey, habitat specialist with DUC.
Deane Meadus, manager of conservation programs with DUC, adds, “In Atlantic Canada, 65 per cent of salt marshes have been altered or destroyed. This number reaches 85 per cent when you look at the Upper Bay of Fundy region. This is one of the main reasons why this restoration project is significant.”
DUC conserves, restores and manages wetlands and their associated habitats for the benefit of North America’s waterfowl. These habitats—nature’s water filters—also benefit other wildlife and people.
For more information, please contact:
Lucy Uberoi, l_uberoi@ducks.ca
Regional Manager of Marketing and Communications
Ducks Unlimited Canada
Phone: (902) 667-8726
