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Chen W, Staneva J, Jacob B, Sánchez-Artús X, Wurpts A. What-if nature-based storm buffers on mitigating coastal erosion. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 928:172247. [PMID: 38599407 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 01/29/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
Creating ecosystem buffers in intertidal zones, such as seagrass meadows, has gained increasing attention as a nature-based solution for mitigating storm-driven coastal erosion. This study presents what-if scenarios using an integrated model framework to determine the effectiveness and strategies for planting seagrass to reduce coastal erosion. The framework comprises two levels of simulation packages. The first level is a regional-scale coupled hydrodynamic model that simulates the processes of a specific storm and provides boundary forces for the morphodynamic model XBeach to apply at the next level, which simulates nearshore morphological evolution. The framework is applied to the open coast of Norderney in the German Bight of the North Sea. We demonstrate that optimising the location and size of seagrass meadows is crucial to increase the efficiency of onshore sediment erosion mitigation. For a specific depth range, depending on the storm's intensity, the most significant reduction in erosion may not be achieved by starting the meadow at the depth that permits the largest meadow size. To maintain a significant coastal protection effect, seagrass density and stem height should be considered together, ensuring erosion reduction by at least 80 % compared to the unprotected coast. This study provides valuable insights for the design and implementation of seagrass transplantation as a nature-based solution, highlighting the importance of considering location, size, density, and stem height when using seagrass meadows for coastal protection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Chen
- Institute of Coastal Systems-Analysis and Modeling, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Max-Planck-Straße 1, Geesthacht 21502, Germany.
| | - Joanna Staneva
- Institute of Coastal Systems-Analysis and Modeling, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Max-Planck-Straße 1, Geesthacht 21502, Germany
| | - Benjamin Jacob
- Institute of Coastal Systems-Analysis and Modeling, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Max-Planck-Straße 1, Geesthacht 21502, Germany
| | - Xavier Sánchez-Artús
- Departament d'Enginyeria Civili Ambiental, Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (UPC), Barcelona 08034, Spain
| | - Andreas Wurpts
- The Coastal Research Center, Niedersachsischer Landesbetrieb fur Wasserwirtschaft, Jahnstraße 1, Norden 26506, Germany
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Gambi C, Corinaldesi C, Dell'Anno A, Danovaro R. Effects of seagrass (Cymodocea nodosa) restoration on nematode biodiversity. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 193:106301. [PMID: 38113588 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2023.106301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Revised: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/10/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
Seagrass meadows are hot spots of biodiversity and play a key role in the provisioning of ecosystem goods and services but are often subjected to a regression due to a combination of multiple anthropogenic and climate-induced impacts. The ecological restoration of these habitat-forming species is a priority to reverse biodiversity loss and for the recovery of key ecosystem functions. Here we investigated the effects of seagrass (Cymodocea nodosa) restoration action on benthic biodiversity recovery assessed by a time-series analysis carried out for one year. We used nematode assemblages, the most widespread metazoan on global sediments, as a proxy of benthic biodiversity and compared the species richness, expected species number (ES51) and composition in donor and in restored seagrasses and in the adjacent unvegetated sediments. One year after the intervention, nematode biodiversity in restored seagrasses was more similar to that of the donor site than in unvegetated sediments, suggesting a progressive recovery. Overall, the nematode biodiversity of the restored seagrasses resulted in an intermediate level between unvegetated and pristine seagrass meadows, providing evidence that restoration intervention contributed to biodiversity recovery. Pristine and restored seagrass meadows hosted a high number of exclusive species, which resulted in an increase in the overall biodiversity in the investigated location. Our results indicate that the restoration of seagrass meadows has positive effects on benthic biodiversity and contributes to enhance the local biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Gambi
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Polytechnic University of Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy.
| | - Cinzia Corinaldesi
- Department of Materials, Environmental Sciences and Urban Planning, Polytechnic University of Marche, 60131, Ancona, Italy; National Biodiversity Future Centre (NBFC), Palermo, Italy
| | - Antonio Dell'Anno
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Polytechnic University of Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy; National Biodiversity Future Centre (NBFC), Palermo, Italy
| | - Roberto Danovaro
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Polytechnic University of Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy; National Biodiversity Future Centre (NBFC), Palermo, Italy
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Unguendoli S, Biolchi LG, Aguzzi M, Pillai UPA, Alessandri J, Valentini A. A modeling application of integrated nature based solutions (NBS) for coastal erosion and flooding mitigation in the Emilia-Romagna coastline (Northeast Italy). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 867:161357. [PMID: 36603618 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.161357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 12/23/2022] [Accepted: 12/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Worldwide, climate change adaptation in coastal areas is a growing challenge. The most common solutions such as seawalls and breakwaters are expensive and often lead to unexpected disastrous effects on the neighboring unprotected areas. In recent years, this awareness has guided coastal managers to adopt alternative solutions with lower environmental impact to protect coastal areas, defined as Nature-Based Solutions (NBSs). NBS are quite popular around the world but are often analyzed and implemented individually at pilot sites. This contribution analyzes the effectiveness of two NBS to mitigate coastal impacts (coastal flooding and erosion) under three historical storms along the Emilia-Romagna coasts and the induced improvements due to their potential integration. Through numerical simulations with XBeach, this study demonstrated that the presence of seagrass meadows of Zostera marina produces an average attenuation of 32 % of the storm peak with a maximum attenuation of 89 % in incoming wave height. Seagrass also mitigates flooded areas and maximum inundation depths by 37 % and 58 % respectively. The artificial dune leads to higher mitigation in terms of inundation of the lagoon (up to 75 %), also avoiding any morphological variations behind it. Seagrass has also been shown to be able to reduce beach erosion volumes up to 55 %. The synergic effect of the two NBS improves the capacity to mitigate both inundation (with a benefit of up to 77 % for flooded area attenuation with respect to cases without any defenses) and coastal erosion. Results of the study suggest that the two NBS will work together to produce co-benefits in terms of preservation of their efficiency, development of habitats for organisms and vegetation species, and thereby offering an important social value in terms of possible tourism, recreation and research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Unguendoli
- Hydro-Meteo-Climate Structure of the Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Arpae-SIMC, Bologna 40122, Italy.
| | - Luis Germano Biolchi
- Hydro-Meteo-Climate Structure of the Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Arpae-SIMC, Bologna 40122, Italy
| | - Margherita Aguzzi
- Hydro-Meteo-Climate Structure of the Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Arpae-SIMC, Bologna 40122, Italy
| | | | - Jacopo Alessandri
- Hydro-Meteo-Climate Structure of the Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Arpae-SIMC, Bologna 40122, Italy; Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Bologna, Bologna 40127, Italy
| | - Andrea Valentini
- Hydro-Meteo-Climate Structure of the Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Arpae-SIMC, Bologna 40122, Italy
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Changes in Macrozoobenthos Community after Aquatic Plant Restoration in the Northern Venice Lagoon (IT). INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:ijerph19084838. [PMID: 35457703 PMCID: PMC9029909 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19084838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Revised: 04/13/2022] [Accepted: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Responses of the macrozoobenthic community to an ecological restoration activity in the northern Venice lagoon were studied, within the scope of the project LIFE SEagrass RESTOration aimed at recreating aquatic phanerogam meadows largely reduced in recent decades. Transplants were successful in almost all project areas. Macrozoobenthos was sampled in eight stations before (2014) and after (2015, 2016, 2017) transplanting activities. An increase in abundance and fluctuations in richness and univariate ecological indices (Shannon’s, Margalef’s, Pielou’s indices) resulted during the years. Comparing non-vegetated and vegetated samples in 2017, every index except Pielou’s increased in the latter. Multivariate analysis (hierarchical cluster analysis, MDS, PERMDISP, SIMPER) grouped samples by localization rather than years, with differences between stations due to the abundance of common species. In 2017, results were also grouped by the presence or absence of aquatic plants, with differences in the abundance of grazer and filter-feeding species. Results of ecological index M-AMBI depicted conditions from moderate to good ecological status (sensu Dir.2000/60/EC) with similar fluctuations, as presented by univariate indices from 2014 to 2017. Responses of the macrozoobenthic community were more evident when comparing vegetated and non-vegetated samples, with the vegetated areas sustaining communities with greater abundance and diversity than non-vegetated samples, thus demonstrating the supporting function of aquatic plants to benthic communities.
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Danovaro R, Aronson J, Cimino R, Gambi C, Snelgrove PVR, Van Dover C. Marine ecosystem restoration in a changing ocean. Restor Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.13432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Roberto Danovaro
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente Università Politecnica delle Marche Ancona 60131 Italy
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn Naples 80121 Italy
| | - James Aronson
- Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development Missouri Botanical Garden 4344 Shaw Boulevard St Louis MO 63110 U.S.A
- EcoHealth Network 1330 Beacon St, Suite 355a Brookline MA 02446 U.S.A
| | - Roberto Cimino
- ENI S.p.A., Development, Operations & Technology (DOT) Milan Italy
| | - Cristina Gambi
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente Università Politecnica delle Marche Ancona 60131 Italy
| | | | - Cindy Van Dover
- Division of Marine Science and Conservation, Nicholas School of the Environment Duke University 135 Duke Marine Lab Road Beaufort NC 28516 U.S.A
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Restoration of Seagrass Meadows in the Mediterranean Sea: A Critical Review of Effectiveness and Ethical Issues. WATER 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/w13081034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Some species of seagrasses (e.g., Zostera marina and Posidonia oceanica) have declined in the Mediterranean, at least locally. Others are progressing, helped by sea warming, such as Cymodocea nodosa and the non-native Halophila stipulacea. The decline of one seagrass can favor another seagrass. All in all, the decline of seagrasses could be less extensive and less general than claimed by some authors. Natural recolonization (cuttings and seedlings) has been more rapid and more widespread than was thought in the 20th century; however, it is sometimes insufficient, which justifies transplanting operations. Many techniques have been proposed to restore Mediterranean seagrass meadows. However, setting aside the short-term failure or half-success of experimental operations, long-term monitoring has usually been lacking, suggesting that possible failures were considered not worthy of a scientific paper. Many transplanting operations (e.g., P. oceanica) have been carried out at sites where the species had never previously been present. Replacing the natural ecosystem (e.g., sandy bottoms, sublittoral reefs) with P. oceanica is obviously inappropriate in most cases. This presupposes ignorance of the fact that the diversity of ecosystems is one of the bases of the biodiversity concept. In order to prevent the possibility of seagrass transplanting from being misused as a pretext for further destruction, a guide for the proper conduct of transplanting is proposed.
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