Vulnerability of an arid zone coastal wetland landscape to sea level rise and intense storms

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine E. Lovelock ◽  
Ruth Reef ◽  
Pere Masqué
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Coastal Wetland ◽  
Arid Zone ◽  
Wetland Landscape

scholarly journals Impact of Barrier Breaching on Wetland Ecosystems under the Influence of Storm Surge, Sea-Level Rise and Freshwater Discharge

Wetlands ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 771-785 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaorong Li ◽  
Nicoletta Leonardi ◽  
Andrew J. Plater
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
River Discharge ◽  
Coastal Wetland ◽  
Storm Surges ◽  
Wetland Ecology ◽  
Barrier Beach ◽  
Wetland Ecosystems ◽  
Wetland Habitats

Abstract Coastal wetland ecosystems and biodiversity are susceptible to changes in salinity brought about by the local effects of climate change, meteorological extremes, coastal evolution and human intervention. This study investigates changes in the salinity of surface water and the associated impacts on back-barrier wetlands as a result of breaching of a barrier beach and under the compound action of different surge heights, accelerated sea-level rise (SLR), river discharge and rainfall. We show that barrier breaching can have significant effects in terms of vegetation die-back even without the occurrence of large storm surges or in the absence of SLR, and that rainfall alone is unlikely to be sufficient to mitigate increased salinity due to direct tidal flushing. Results demonstrate that an increase in sea level corresponding to the RCP8.5 scenario for year 2100 causes a greater impact in terms of reedbed loss than storm surges up to 2 m with no SLR. In mitigation of the consequent changes in wetland ecology, regulation of relatively small and continuous river discharge can be regarded as a strategy for the management of coastal back-barrier wetland habitats and for the maintenance of brackish ecosystems. As such, this study provides a tool for scoping the potential impacts of storms, climate change and alternative management strategies on existing wetland habitats and species.

scholarly journals Beyond just sea-level rise: considering macroclimatic drivers within coastal wetland vulnerability assessments to climate change

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Osland ◽  
Nicholas M. Enwright ◽  
Richard H. Day ◽  
Christopher A. Gabler ◽  
Camille L. Stagg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Coastal Wetland ◽  
Vulnerability Assessments

scholarly journals Modelling Actual and Future Seawater Intrusion in the Variconi Coastal Wetland (Italy) Due to Climate and Landscape Changes

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 1502 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mastrocicco ◽  
Busico ◽  
Colombani ◽  
Vigliotti ◽  
Ruberti
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Seawater Intrusion ◽  
Coastal Wetland ◽  
Coastal Lagoons ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
Climate Change Effects ◽  
Modelling Framework ◽  
Groundwater Overexploitation

Coastal freshwater resources are commonly under high risk of being contaminated from seawater. The main processes that affect seawater intrusion are groundwater overexploitation, land use change, and climate change effects. In this context coastal lagoons represent the more sensitive environments prone to seawater intrusion. Numerical modelling is a useful tool to understand and predict seawater intrusion. In this study, a three-dimensional SEAWAT model is employed to simulate the seawater intrusion to coastal aquifers of Variconi Oasis (Italy). The present simulation was divided into a calibration and a validation model, then the model was used to predict the salinization trend up to 2050. Results show the role of the sea in salinizing the beach front, while the retrodunal environment is characterized by transitional environments. Future seawater intrusion scenarios considering only climate data showed no significative differences in respect to the actual situation. The same happens considering also a low sea level rise prediction. On the contrary, the worst scenario (high sea level rise prediction), depicts a quite different situation, with a saline intrusion in the Variconi oasis that will severely affect the fragile transitional ecosystem. This modelling framework can be used to quantify the effects of climate changes in similar coastal environments.

Coastal wetland adaptation to sea level rise: Quantifying potential for landward migration and coastal squeeze

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 2876-2887 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sinéad M. Borchert ◽  
Michael J. Osland ◽  
Nicholas M. Enwright ◽  
Kereen T. Griffith
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Coastal Wetland ◽  
Coastal Squeeze

scholarly journals The status and future of tidal marshes in New Jersey faced with sea level rise

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 168-192
Author(s):  
Judith S. Weis ◽  
Elizabeth Burke Watson ◽  
Beth Ravit ◽  
Charles Harman ◽  
Metthea Yepsen
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Salt Marshes ◽  
Coastal Wetland ◽  
Storm Surges ◽  
Tidal Marshes ◽  
Wetland Ecosystems ◽  
Marsh Loss ◽  
Migration Pathways

Salt marshes are key coastal ecosystems that provide habitats for wildlife, including invertebrates, fishes, and birds. They provide ecosystem services such as protection from storm surges and waves, attenuation of flooding, sequestration of pollutants (e.g., blue carbon), and nutrient removal. They are currently under great threat from sea level rise (SLR). We collected information about trends in the horizontal extent (acreage) of New Jersey salt marshes and recent elevation changes compared with the current local rate of SLR in New Jersey, which is between 5 and 6 mm year−1. We found pervasive, although variable, rates of marsh loss that resulted from both anthropogenic disturbance as well as edge erosion and interior ponding expected from SLR. Elevation trends suggest that the current rates of SLR exceed most marsh elevation gains, although some Phragmites-dominated marshes keep pace with SLR. Four potential remedies to address current coastal trends of marsh loss were described in the context of New Jersey’s regulatory and management environment: protection of marsh inland migration pathways, altered management of Phragmites, thin layer sediment placement, and living shoreline installations. Proactive steps are necessary if coastal wetland ecosystems are to be maintained over the next few decades.

scholarly journals Reply to “Global coastal wetland expansion under accelerated sea-level rise is unlikely”

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Schuerch ◽  
Tom Spencer ◽  
Stijn Temmerman ◽  
Matthew Kirwan ◽  
Claudia Wolff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Coastal Wetland

scholarly journals U.S. Pacific coastal wetland resilience and vulnerability to sea-level rise

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. eaao3270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Thorne ◽  
Glen MacDonald ◽  
Glenn Guntenspergen ◽  
Richard Ambrose ◽  
Kevin Buffington ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level Rise ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Coastal Wetland
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