Freshwater was diverted from the Caroni River to the Guayamare River to provide an irrigation supply to the Caroni rice projects. Freshwater diversion and saltwater encroachment have changed the plant „Reed‟ community (Bacon 1997; Bissessar, 1998). This has now been replaced by et al., mangroves, open saline water bodies, and by saline marshes, dominated by sedges, spp. and the fern The spread of mangroves into the Eleocharis Acrostichum aureum. eastern marshland has been rapid over the past four decades (Figures 6-9). These marshes may eventually be replaced by mangrove forest. Prior to the the major changes to Caroni Swamp were hydrological in nature; 1960‟s, channels were cut, embankments were built, water was diverted away from the wetland, and the Caroni River was dredged and widened. Conduits were constructed to drain the wetland, and these same conduits carried saline water upstream when the embankment fell into disrepair in the (Figure 11). Highways (Churchill Roosevelt and Uriah Butler) 1950‟s were constructed and this also impeded the flow of the rivers into the wetland. There were minor changes in the natural wetland communities (Table 3), while agricultural land increased and built development started. Beyond, the there were major land cover/ land use changes in the Caroni Swamp. 1950‟s The mangrove forest on the northern side of the Caroni River was reclaimed for the construction of the Beetham landfill, WASA sewage treatment plant and ponds, and the Beetham Gardens. Built development expanded along the fringes of the wetland and while agriculture land reverted to marshes, marsh lands were overgrown by mangroves (Figure 9). In 2007, there was a small increase in agriculture land ha), which had (≈ 400 consistently declined form 1957-2003.
Freshwater was diverted from the Caroni River to the Guayamare River to provide an irrigation supply to the Caroni rice projects. Freshwater diversion and saltwater encroachment have changed the „Reed‟ plant community (Bacon et al., 1997; Bissessar, 1998). This has now been replaced by mangroves, open saline water bodies, and by saline marshes, dominated by sedges, Eleocharis spp. and the fern Acrostichum aureum. The spread of mangroves into the eastern marshland has been rapid over the past four decades (Figures 6-9). These marshes may eventually be replaced by mangrove forest. Prior to the 1960‟s, the major changes to Caroni Swamp were hydrological in nature; channels were cut, embankments were built, water was diverted away from the wetland, and the Caroni River was dredged and widened. Conduits were constructed to drain the wetland, and these same conduits carried saline water upstream when the embankment fell into disrepair in the 1950‟s (Figure 11). Highways (Churchill Roosevelt and Uriah Butler) were constructed and this also impeded the flow of the rivers into the wetland. There were minor changes in the natural wetland communities (Table 3), while agricultural land increased and built development started. Beyond, the 1950‟s there were major land cover/ land use changes in the Caroni Swamp. The mangrove forest on the northern side of the Caroni River was reclaimed for the construction of the Beetham landfill, WASA sewage treatment plant and ponds, and the Beetham Gardens. Built development expanded along the fringes of the wetland and while agriculture land reverted to marshes, marsh lands were overgrown by mangroves (Figure 9). In 2007, there was a small increase in agriculture land (≈ 400 ha), which had consistently declined form 1957-2003.