or not to dredge?
According to every environmental studies class ever, dredging is always a bad thing.
But what if it isn't...?
I spent the last 2 days using a modified dredge system to suck up intertidal clams - or try to suck them up.
We found some but not many. We had professional scientific divers to help us.
I mostly pulled up anchors and buoys weighed down with giant chain links (maybe ~30lbs) - now my hands are raw from the ropes, even though I wore gloves.
It was surprising that in order to study disturbance, we had to disturb the environment by sucking up ~3 square feet of clams and sediment.
This is a clash between my biology brain and my enviro-studies brain. One says it's ok, because its for a legitimate study; and the other questions the damage it causes, year after year.
I guess I don't know enough about the disturbance capacity of this environment (subtidal mudflats, mostly) to judge, but it's something to think about. Maybe I'll ask my mentors next time...
~more pictures to come soon~
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