Georgia shrimp, crab crop suffering from salty water

BRUNSWICK - Shrimpers and crabbers along the estuaries of coastal Georgia say that salty water is driving them to the brink of financial ruin. <br> <br> A five-year drought and the growth of upstream reservoirs have made the inland waterways much more salty because the flow of fresh water has decreased. <br> <br> An increase in salinity drives saltwater crabs and shrimp upstream making them harder for fishermen to catch. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s ruining us. We&#39;re down on the ropes,&#39;&#39; said Kenny Atwood, a longtime McIntosh County shrimper and past president of the shrimpers association. <br> <br> ``During my best year ... back when the salinity was closer to normal, I caught about $300,000 of shrimp. I caught less than $100,000 of shrimp last year,&#39;&#39; he said. <br> <br> Last year, about 2.6 million pounds of shrimp were harvested, down from an average harvest range of 4 million to 7 million pounds. <br> <br> Crabbers are doing worse. Last year, about 2.7 million pounds of crabs were harvested statewide, a record low. At one time, the annual crab harvest totaled about 10 million pounds in Georgia. <br> <br> Scientists attribute the decline to a lethal crab disease that flourishes in waters with higher-than-normal salinity. The disease poses no threat to humans because the crabs ``don&#39;t live long enough to make it to market,&#39;&#39; said Susan Shipman, director of the Coastal Resources Division for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. <br> <br> The few remaining crabs have sought refuge from the high-salinity waters in areas that can&#39;t be legally fished by commercial crabbers. <br> <br> ``It used to be that with a piece of string, a chicken neck and a net, you could catch a mess of crabs,&#39;&#39; said James Holland, founder of Altamaha Riverkeeper, an organization dedicated to the preservation and restoration of the Altamaha. ``Unless things turn around this year, there won&#39;t be a crab industry next year.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> State scientists and environmental activists say the rising salinity is due in part to the damming of rivers to make reservoirs. That reduces the flow of freshwater downstream, and the draining of freshwater wetlands for commercial development along the coast has made the problem worse. <br> <br> As long as salinity remains above normal in the estuaries and temperatures remain warm, shrimp will remain inland instead of migrating offshore, Atwood said. <br> <br> ``We need freshwater to flush the shrimp out of the upper estuaries and sounds offshore where we can get at them,&#39;&#39; he said. ``If they&#39;re not moving out into the ocean, it doesn&#39;t matter how many shrimp there are because we can&#39;t get at them.&#39;&#39; <br> <br>