Anthropocene Coasts最新文献

Removal of sediment whether from navigation channels or for specific construction projects, requires dredging. In Denmark, current options are to bypass the dredged marine sediment, use it (e.g. filling or feeding coast), or if the sediment cannot be used for any of these purposed or is contaminated (but below relevant action levels), it is typically dumped at sea. This option can have adverse impacts for the ecosystems receiving the sediment, yet in Denmark, most of the dredged marine sediment is dumped at sea. Instead of being regarded as a waste, dredged marine sediment needs to be considered a valuable resource. In this way, dredged marine sediment can benefit society and the environment, and have a'beneficial use'. The reasons why beneficial use of sediments is not yet a common practice is many folds and requires a change to long-established dredging and dumping practices. In this article we will update options for beneficial use of dredged marine sediment that are available worldwide, while as much as possible suggesting its applicability in Denmark as an example to hopefully stimulate beneficial use practices of dredged marine sediment.

The coastal zone plays a crucial role in the Earth system, connecting terrestrial and marine environments and serving as a hub for economic and societal development. In recent years, with the development of the economy and society and the increase of human activities, China's coastal zones confront a series of problems such as environmental pollution, biodiversity destruction, and disorderly development. To address these challenges posed by natural and anthropogenic factors in coastal zones to achieve sustainable development, conducting coastal geological survey guided by the principles of Earth System Science (ESS) is essential preliminary work. This paper presents in detail the important position and function of the coastal zone in the Earth system. It analyzes the new requirements for ESS in coastal geological survey developments while systematically summarizing China's achievements over 40 years from four perspectives: survey contents, survey techniques, research methods, and service concepts. Finally, this paper suggests that the future coastal geological survey guided by ESS should focus on the four dimensions of survey, monitor, research and service, while expanding the content of natural resources and environmental ecological survey, establishing a network of Earth system scientific observation stations, emphasizing the research on the coupling of coastal zones and human activities, and serving the integrated management of coastal zones and scientific decision-making, this ultimately will help to attain sustainable high-quality development periods within these regions.

Blue carbon ecosystems (BCEs), such as salt marshes, are critical in climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation and their ecosystem services. However, due to a lack of research, their carbon sequestration potential in Mexico remains poorly understood. La Ribera, Baja California Sur, exemplifies an under-researched salt marsh that provides essential benefits, including surface water for drinking, habitat, and cultural services. Besides, a recent training offered by Chinese institutions such as East China Normal University in 2024 has contributed to BCEs carbon estimation by supporting training to some researchers and practitioners from the Global South. These kinds of initiatives could enhance research capabilities and promote cost-effective conservation strategies. Although salt marshes cover less area than mangroves and seagrass meadows, their preservation is vital for climate action. Global efforts to protect these ecosystems will support carbon sequestration and safeguard other critical ecosystem services for future generations.

This study was conducted in parts of Ghana and The Gambia using remote sensing and participatory geographic information system (PGIS) to map mangrove vegetation and associated land use land cover types. The selected sites support shellfishery activities, and mangrove loss threatens ecosystem functionality and local communities' livelihoods. The results revealed that mangroves are more fragmented and declining in Ghana sites, while in The Gambia, they are more extensive and stable, with a clear zonation of Rhizophora and Avicennia species. PGIS revealed that communities value mangrove species differently, informing the management systems. Avicennia species that were more abundant in Ghana sites were mainly used for livelihood activities such as fuelwood and the construction of fish traps. Rhizophora species that were more dominant in The Gambia sites have better oyster attachments due to their root systems and were more valued by the shellfishing communities. Triangulated results from remote sensing and PGIS established various drivers and threats to mangrove vegetation, including mangrove dieback, illegal harvesting, soil salinity, land use changes/conversion, waste dumping/pollution, and the effects of climate change. Lessons for sustainable mangrove area co-management included context-specific interventions based on livelihood needs, continuous community awareness, capacity development for effective mangrove restoration and conservation, and diversification of livelihood options. It is also crucial to develop the enabling environment through policies that strengthen co-management, local and national governance systems, and enforcement of existing policies. The study reiterated the value of integrated resource mapping and results validation with stakeholders who are either users or managers of these resources.

Cliffed (and rocky) coasts are geomorphic features occurring in about 80% of the coastline of the world and are strongly influenced by a broad range of both natural and anthropogenic processes that may cause serious erosion problems. Since the sea wave motion is a fundamental driver of cliff erosion, the cliffs become sensitive to increasing of global sea levels and to extreme weather events, which are both associated with global warming. Because of its importance, a considerable amount of investigations on coastal cliff erosion (CCE) were reported during the last decades. A bibliometric analysis is an useful tool to identify patterns of a given theme from a large body of academic literature. There is no previous evidence of a global bibliometric analysis in the literature in English on themes of CCE. Therefore, the aim of this article was to carry out a bibliometric analysis from Scopus database of CCE for the period 2000–2023. Once obtained, two filtering steps for selection of documents consisting of a custom R script implementation and a careful reading of the remaining documents were applied. During the search, a dynamic approach that puts emphasis on the processes operating on rocky coasts was selected instead of an evolutionary geological perspective. The final list reached 583 documents. A second aim was to discuss the research trends and challenges based on the latest highly-cited documents. As main result, the trend of the scientific production in the theme of CCE had an increasing interest over the last years, with an average compound annual growth rate of 15.6%. On the other side, the results demonstrated that even though the USA took the second place, European countries (United Kingdom, Italy, France, Portugal, Spain and Poland) lead the ranking; therefore, there is a scarcity of knowledge about the theme in large regions such as South America and Africa where seacliffs are dominants.

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) worldwide are under increasing pressure to balance biodiversity conservation with the growing demands of tourism, often exacerbated by anthropogenic impacts on coastal ecosystems. Exogenous shocks, such as environmental or policy-driven events, can offer opportunities for shifts in natural resource governance. This longitudinal study examines how a 2016 tourism ban in Mexico Islas Marietas National Park, prompted by coral reef degradation, influenced its polycentric governance. We use a mixed-methods approach, analyzing data from 53 governance meetings held before (March 2015 to April 2016) and after (May 2016 to November 2017) the regulatory shock. We compare stakeholder participation, affiliation networks, rules, and institutions to assess changes in the polycentric governance system. Our results show an increase in stakeholder engagement and two new decision-making forums have emerged. Network analysis reveals a rise in network density and social ties, suggesting enhanced trust and collaboration among stakeholders, although individual stakeholder responses to the shock varied. The tourism ban triggered a shift towards formalizing collaboration agreements, increasing stakeholder involvement in shaping public use norms, and decentralizing revenue generation. The coastal MPA also implemented a specific regulatory framework with recalculated carrying capacity, improved monitoring, and stricter accountability for tour operators. The Islas Marietas case offers valuable insights into coastal management in the Anthropocene, emphasizing the need for adaptive polycentric governance approaches that foster collaboration, and empower stakeholders to safeguard the long-term sustainability of both marine commons and livelihoods.

Small islands are particularly vulnerable to climate change risks due to their geographical isolation from the mainland and limited resources. The development of coastal areas can efficiently address socio-economic and environmental objectives. An illustration of this is the coastal areas located on various small islands within the Karimunjawa Islands, which have attained considerable popularity among tourists. This study aims to analyze the distribution of multi-hazards arising from climate change and identify a suitable coastal environmental management strategy for implementation on the small islands of Karimunjawa. The variables encompass landform, wave exposure, tidal range, coastal ecosystems, sediment equilibrium, and storm climate. The findings reveal that the majority of coastal areas in Karimunjawa's small islands exhibit a moderate level of ecosystem disruption and coastal erosion, whereas the lower level includes gradual inundation, seawater intrusion, and coastal flooding. The elements of landform and sediment balance substantially influence the multi-hazard classification in this area. Coastal areas situated on steep landforms with a surplus of sediment typically exhibit a low multi-hazard classification, and vice versa. Possible management strategies to alleviate the impacts of ecosystem disruption encompass coastal zoning, ecosystem-based management, and inaction. Adopting a "do nothing" management strategy also effectively alleviates the effects of gradual inundation and coastal flooding. Also, using management strategies like growing Scaevola taccada and combining mangroves with structures that protect the coast can greatly lessen the effects of coastal erosion on areas that are more likely to be affected. If adequate resources are available, we can implement alternative management strategies such as the construction of seawalls, dikes, or revetments combined with breakwaters.

Marine fishing is critical for coastal livelihoods, sustainability transitions, and the attainment of sustainable development goals. With a long coastline and unique marine fish species, marine fishing could drive sustainable development in Africa. However, with increasing human-environmental challenges in tropical fishing zones, the projected sustainability benefits from Africa’s fisheries resources are threatened. This is worsened by the limited research to understand how these challenges have persisted or could be realigned to suit blue transformations in the marine fisheries sector. We sourced 1066 documents from Scopus, which were analyzed using bibliometrics to (i) analyze research trends and (ii) understand intricate networks and critical themes in research and policy regarding marine fisheries. Findings on research trends reveal a decline in research on marine fishing, domination of research by non-African authors, and institutions, and limited publications in reputable journals. Complex networks persist, worsened by the limited funding of transdisciplinary research. Most researchers and research institutions in Africa prefer marine fisheries science research. Limited marine sociological research has been conducted. Key themes are not prioritizing current governance pathways, and there is limited collaboration among coastal African countries, authors, and institutions in research. To build a new aura for sustainability, a Priority Action Pathway (PAP) has been developed that includes six (6) priority actions to drive sustainable transformations. With increased collaborations, focus on transdisciplinary marine fishing research and a shift in fisheries policy research emphasis to focus on the understanding of socioecological complexities, possibilities for identifying and promoting sustainability transformations (including in sustainable financing) in the sector are possible. This can be through an increased focus on collecting and integrating marine social science with marine fisheries science research. This can help identify/create novel perspectives from tropical coastal communities needed to co-design sustainable priority actions and mechanisms in coastal fishing zones.

Microplastics (MPs) were investigated in four fish species viz., paradise threadfin (Polynemus paradiseus), corsula mullet (Rhinomugil corsula), flathead sillago (Sillaginopsis panijus) and king gobyeel (Taenioides sandwipi), which were collected from the Meghna River estuary in Bangladesh. The gastrointestinal tracts (GITs) of fishes (n = 80 in total) were examined for the presence of MPs following alkali digestion, microscopic observation and μ-FTIR analysis. A total of 573 MPs were detected across all four fish species, indicating the presence of MPs in 81.3% of the fish samples. On average, there were 7.16 ± 4.33 MP items/fish, 2.16 ± 1.76 items/g of GIT and 0.15 ± 0.12 items/g of body weight. Polyethylene, polypropylene and nylon were the most abundant polymers, comprising 47%, 23% and 19%, respectively, according to μ-FTIR analysis. The majority of MPs were fibers (62.48%), with white being the dominant color. R. corsula demonstrated the highest number of MPs in the < 500 μm size range, suggesting that smaller particles are more bio-available to pelagic fish. The findings confirm the contamination of the Meghna River estuary by MPs, and their presence in local fish raises concerns about potential public health risks through the food chain.