Subsidence. accretion. and sea level rise in south San Francisco Bay marshes

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Abstract
Accelerated sea level rise that is predicted to occur as a result of the greenhouse effect is likely to have a significant effect on the world’s salt marshes. For salt‐marsh vegetation to remain productive and even to survive in a period of rising sea level, the marsh must accrete sufficient sediment to maintain the marsh surface within an appropriate tidal range. Accretion and subsidence were studied in three south San Francisco Bay salt marshes that differed greatly in subsidence over the past few decades. Marsh accretion as a result of sedimentation and peat formation has been able to compensate for high rates of subsidence and the low rate of sea level rise and to maintain the elevation of the marsh surface above mean high water (MHW). South San Francisco Bay appears to be a sediment‐rich system that transports enough sediment by tidal action and during storm events to compensate for sea level rise and subsidence in the fringing salt marshes.

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