Download preview PDF. Skip to main content. This service is more advanced with JavaScript available. Advertisement Hide. Authors Authors and affiliations R. Ramesh S. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves. This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access. Ali A Storm surges in Bangladesh.
Amarasingha MD Socio-economic status of human communities of selected mangrove areas on the west coast of Sri Lanka. Dassanayake H Environmental assessment of Sri Lanka.
In addition to contemporary pressures from human influences, coastal ecosystems are susceptible to global climate change. Global sea level rise could accelerate from a variety of factors Misdorp et al. Local sea level changes from subsidence of coastal areas from freshwater withdrawal, erosion, movements of Earth's crust, and thermal expansion of seawater Roemmich, could add to global effects Stewart et al.
Regardless of their source, sea level rises cause significant shoreline inundation, overstepping of barrier islands, loss of intertidal wetlands, and increased salinization of coastal embayments. Of all the potential effects of global climate change on coastal environments, the effects of sea level rise have received perhaps the most attention, but other effects of climate change may be even more important.
These include the potential for increased tropical storm intensity and frequency; changes in precipitation patterns and river flow; changes in seawater temperature range and seasonality; alteration of coastal currents and upwelling Bakun, ; van Geen et al.
The coastal zone presents risks as well as benefits to those who populate or visit the shore and those who work or recreate in coastal areas.
Although weather forecasting and public education now prevent the massive loss of life that previously occurred as a result of hurricanes and other coastal storms, more accurate and reliable forecasting and reporting of present conditions would help.
Beaches buffer coastal land and habitats from assault by the ocean and lakes, providing the most effective means of preventing coastal erosion and habitat destruction. The principal source of sediment to the coastline is from rivers and streams Komar, ; thus, changes in land use and stream hydrology can affect the supply of sediments to beaches and, consequently, shoreline erosion Inman, ; Kuhn and Shepard, Shoreline erosion is also influenced by coastal processes resulting in offshore and alongshore transport of sediments.
Changing patterns in coastal storm climate can change the direction of sediment transport by altering the intensity and direction of waves incident to a beach. For example, over the last century the alongshore direction of net sediment transport in the Southern California Bight has been southwest because of the prevailing wave approach from the northwest as a result of storms off Alaska Inman and Frautshy, The coastal storm climate was much different in the early s, however, with a prevailing wave approach from the southwest from storms off Baja California Dana, This change has altered sediment movement and the resulting nature of the coastline Shepard and Kuhn, Shoreline erosion and hazardous storms are affected in a complex manner by land-use decisions and climate change and, conversely, can greatly affect coastal environmental quality.
Studies of global climate change and improvements in the predictability of climate variability see previous section are crucial for predicting and mitigating the impacts of shoreline erosion and hazardous storms.
Human health may be at risk as a result of exposure to toxicants or pathogens in coastal waters or the consumption of undercooked or raw seafood harvested from those waters IOM, ; NRC, a. Coastal population growth has resulted in the increasing flux of pathogens viruses, bacteria, and parasites to coastal waters, primarily from sewage outfalls Alderslade, There are two public health issues involved: 1 the induction of illness through exposures of recreational swimmers, divers, and boaters to pathogens and 2 the consumption of undercooked or raw seafoods primarily bivalve molluscs that have accumulated pathogens or toxin-bearing algae from the environmental waters.
There are few national, state, or local monitoring programs for pathogens or toxic materials, particularly to maintain human health. Although use of the fecal coliform test to judge the suitability of coastal waters for swimming and shellfish harvest has provided a significant level of protection i.
For example, the Norwalk virus is responsible for one-half of the epidemic occurrences of nonbacterial gastroenteritis in the United States Goldberg, b. In the case of toxic phytoplankton, coastal monitoring occurs on a local basis, often by local health departments, as well as by the Food and Drug Administration.
Seafood safety is an issue emerging as a significant concern to the nation IOM, Paralytic, diarrhetic, neurotoxic, and amnesic shellfish poisonings are all caused by biotoxins accumulated from algae. Outbreaks of poisoning due to domoic acid and various neurotoxins accumulated by shellfish and fish have occurred several times in the past few years, possibly due to the increasing incidence of harmful algal blooms Anderson, ; Hallegraff, The emerging and widespread environmental threats discussed above pose new challenges to environmental policy, management, and science, requiring different approaches than those used for past coastal problems, such as point-source discharges of industrial or municipal effluents, coastal land use, direct habitat destruction, and oil spills.
These issues have not been eliminated, although some of their effects are relatively well understood, and significant advances have been made in their management in several developed countries, including the United States. Concern is shifting from issues amenable to single-factor risk assessment to approaches involving multiple- stressor e. Understanding such coastal problems requires approaches that focus on ecosystems, populations of organisms, and communities of species.
There is now greater concern about the response of ecosystems to the effects of exploitation of resources, nutrient enrichment as opposed to direct organic loadings , and the indirect effects of human activities on coastal habitats see Box 1.
The development of initiatives to solve these problems will require more flexibility from the scientific community, universities, and funding agencies to promote interdisciplinary science. This book describes critical environmental issues that face coastal ocean and Great Lakes areas, including eutrophication, habitat modification, hydrologic and hydrodynamic disruption, exploitation of resources, toxic effects on ecosystems and humans, introduction of nonindigenous species, global climate change and variability, and shoreline erosion and hazardous storms.
These issues can be approached through science activities including research, monitoring, and modeling discussed in this book and through coordination among federal agencies. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.
Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.
Switch between the Original Pages , where you can read the report as it appeared in print, and Text Pages for the web version, where you can highlight and search the text. To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter. Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.
Do you enjoy reading reports from the Academies online for free? Sign up for email notifications and we'll let you know about new publications in your areas of interest when they're released. Get This Book. Visit NAP. Looking for other ways to read this? No thanks. Priorities for Coastal Ecosystem Science. Page 18 Share Cite. Page 19 Share Cite. Page 20 Share Cite. Page 21 Share Cite. Page 22 Share Cite. Page 23 Share Cite. Page 24 Share Cite. Page 25 Share Cite. Page 26 Share Cite.
Page 27 Share Cite. Page 28 Share Cite. Page 17 Share Cite. Login or Register to save! Climate change and rising sea levels are likely to have a severe impact on the UK coast by The total rise in sea levels off the UK coast may exceed one metre and could potentially reach two metres.
The frequency of intense storm events is expected to increase and, along with the rise in sea level, to lead to more coastal flooding.
Temperatures are expected to rise, particularly in the south and east of the UK. Winter precipitation is likely to increase markedly on the northern and western UK coastline.
Coastal erosion is also expected to increase, partly due to sea level rise. Low-lying and soft-sediment coasts will be most vulnerable e. The most exposed locations and estuaries may be particularly vulnerable. The study identified a range of areas where future sea level rise is expected to be particularly rapid or have the greatest impact because it will be combined with an increase in storminess and erosion. However, it should be noted that climate and coastal change impacts will be felt along the whole of the UK coast.
The particularly vulnerable areas were identified mainly to select case study areas that provided a range of coastal and climate situations — i. The impacts of sea level rise and storminess, together with terrestrial processes acting at the coast, present significant threats to coastal communities.
These threats will be felt particularly keenly by communities that rely on the immediate coastal area for their residence, communications and economic and social activity.
Very little research has been carried out to date on the potential social impacts of climate change on the UK coast. Flooding already poses a risk to life and health in coastal areas, and this is expected to increase with climate change. Although mortality rates are fairly low, the repercussions of flooding can severely affect mental health. Heatwaves will particularly affect those who have pre-existing health problems, are very elderly or live in poor-quality housing.
Although heatwaves will not just affect the coast, coastal areas have a disproportionate number of older people and poor-quality homes, which may mean more severe impacts than in other areas.
The literature also suggests that climate change will impact on coastal livelihoods, particularly for those who depend on the coast for employment e. Agricultural land near the coast may also be affected by flooding and erosion, putting pressure on local farmers and potentially affecting food supplies elsewhere in the country. Extreme events associated with climate change such as storms and flooding are likely to affect key public infrastructure such as health and emergency services and public transport along the coast.
For coastal areas that are already isolated, including island communities, the impacts on transport and infrastructure could be particularly serious. Climate change is also likely to have longer-term impacts on particular neighbourhoods. Areas that suffer from extreme flooding events or are considered to be at high risk may be affected by blight and a reduction in housing values, development and investment.
Focus groups and interviews with residents in the case-study areas explored perceptions of climate change. Participants were asked who they thought might be most affected by climate change in their community. All the focus groups identified older people as likely to be most significantly affected.
In Skegness and Great Yarmouth, people with disabilities were mentioned as particularly vulnerable. Participants in Great Yarmouth were the only group to mention children. In Benbecula, participants did not highlight any particular demographic group, but predicted that those who depended on agriculture for a living would feel the worst impacts.
0コメント