The Asian Tsunami: A Protective Role for Coastal Vegetation

Danielsen, Finn; Sørensen, Mads Sølvsten; Olwig, Mette Fog; Selvam, V.; Parish, Faizal; Burgess, Neil D.; Hiraishi, Tetsuya; Karunagaran, V. M.; Rasmussen, Michael Schultz; Hansen, L.; Quarto, Alfredo; Suryadiputra, Nyoman

doi:10.1126/science.1118387

Cited by 716 publications

(324 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…One example is the loss of coastal barrier systems including coastal mangroves, coral reefs, vegetated dunes, and coastal wetlands. These systems can lessen storm surge and attenuate wave energy, thereby reducing morbidity and mortality from coastal storms or tsunamis (38)(39)(40)(41). Their global destruction puts in harm's way roughly a third of humanity who live within 100 km of the shore and at less than 50 m above sea level (42) at the same time that sea level rise and more extreme tropical storms increase the threat of storm surge and coastal flooding.…”

Section: Highlights Of the Recent Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Human health impacts of ecosystem alteration

Myers

Gaffikin²,

Golden

et al. 2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

382

261

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Human activity is rapidly transforming most of Earth's natural systems. How this transformation is impacting human health, whose health is at greatest risk, and the magnitude of the associated disease burden are relatively new subjects within the field of environmental health. We discuss what is known about the human health implications of changes in the structure and function of natural systems and propose that these changes are affecting human health in a variety of important ways. We identify several gaps and limitations in the research that has been done to date and propose a more systematic and comprehensive approach to applied research in this field. Such efforts could lead to a more robust understanding of the human health impacts of accelerating environmental change and inform decision making in the land-use planning, environmental conservation, and public health policy realms.At least since Hippocrates wrote On Airs, Waters, and Places, the natural environment has been viewed as an important determinant of human health. However, over the last century, the field of environmental health has focused increasingly on quantifying exposure-response relationships for toxins encountered in the human-dominated environment: from an initial focus on workplace exposures, to a population-level focus on radiation, heavy metals, air and water pollution, and more recently, to exposure to endocrinedisrupting chemicals. Over this period, relatively little attention has been paid to how changes in the structure and function of Earth's natural systems might affect human health. Growing evidence that changes in these natural systems can affect human health in a variety of important ways and the increasing pace and extent of these changes has prompted this Perspective. In it, we review current understanding of this field, identify some of its gaps and limitations, and suggest an approach to expanding our understanding.Human activity is transforming nearly all of Earth's natural systems. With the human population now exceeding 7 billion people and rapid growth in per capita consumption of goods and services, humanity's growing ecological footprint is altering the planet's land cover, rivers and oceans, climate system, biogeochemical cycles, and the

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Section: Highlights Of the Recent Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Human health impacts of ecosystem alteration

Myers

Gaffikin²,

Golden

et al. 2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

382

261

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“…9), including seagrasses, corals, and oysters (2,6,10). The loss of these species often leads to a direct reduction in ecosystem services critical to human well-being (11)(12)(13), and the local demise of taxa that provide those services (14,15). The brown algae known as kelps (Order Laminariales) are globally important foundation species that occupy 43% of the world's marine ecoregions (defined in ref.…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Global patterns of kelp forest change over the past half-century

Krumhansl

Okamoto

Rassweiler

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

595

524

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Kelp forests (Order Laminariales) form key biogenic habitats in coastal regions of temperate and Arctic seas worldwide, providing ecosystem services valued in the range of billions of dollars annually. Although local evidence suggests that kelp forests are increasingly threatened by a variety of stressors, no comprehensive global analysis of change in kelp abundances currently exists.Here, we build and analyze a global database of kelp time series spanning the past half-century to assess regional and global trends in kelp abundances. We detected a high degree of geographic variation in trends, with regional variability in the direction and magnitude of change far exceeding a small global average decline (instantaneous rate of change = −0.018 y −1 ). Our analysis identified declines in 38% of ecoregions for which there are data (−0.015 to −0.18 y −1 ), increases in 27% of ecoregions (0.015 to 0.11 y −1 ), and no detectable change in 35% of ecoregions. These spatially variable trajectories reflected regional differences in the drivers of change, uncertainty in some regions owing to poor spatial and temporal data coverage, and the dynamic nature of kelp populations. We conclude that although global drivers could be affecting kelp forests at multiple scales, local stressors and regional variation in the effects of these drivers dominate kelp dynamics, in contrast to many other marine and terrestrial foundation species. A ssessing ecosystem change on a global scale has been instrumental in highlighting the magnitude of human impacts on natural ecosystems. For example, awareness of global declines in fish populations (1), coral reefs (2), and tropical rainforests (3) has substantially increased public interest and subsequent political motivation for environmental conservation. In some cases, global assessments have highlighted complex patterns of change (4, 5), which often reflect variable trajectories among regions (4). SignificanceKelp forests support diverse and productive ecological communities throughout temperate and arctic regions worldwide, providing numerous ecosystem services to humans. Literature suggests that kelp forests are increasingly threatened by a variety of human impacts, including climate change, overfishing, and direct harvest. We provide the first globally comprehensive analysis of kelp forest change over the past 50 y, identifying a high degree of variation in the magnitude and direction of change across the geographic range of kelps. These results suggest region-specific responses to global change, with local drivers playing an important role in driving patterns of kelp abundance. Increased monitoring aimed at understanding regional kelp forest dynamics is likely to prove most effective for the adaptive management of these important ecosystems.

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“…Post-tsunami field studies have supported these accounts, suggesting that villages behind coastal systems (i.e., mangroves, reefs and dunes) were better protected than those in more exposed locations (Danielsen et al 2005, Kathiresan and Rajendran 2005, Chang et al 2006, Ranasinghe and Kallesoe 2006 and that the aerial root system of mangroves increased drag force and trapped floating objects (Tanaka et al 2007). Additionally, simulated experiments and some theoretical models have concluded a protective value for coastal forests (Harada et al 2002, Irtem et al 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 68%

Modelling ecological and other risk factors influencing the outcome of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka

2012

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Abstract. The 2004 Asian tsunami caused widespread devastation across the Indian Ocean. Damage from the waves was influenced by complex interplay of many factors. Using regression models incorporating different impact indicators (occurrence of inundation, inundation distance, and human deaths), we examined factors that significantly influenced tsunami damage in southern Sri Lanka. Land elevation (which is positively correlated with forest presence), sand dunes and coastal convexity (which deflects waves), were protective factors, in terms of whether the tsunami wave inundated within an arbitrary distance of 15 m inland. Water bodies, saltpans and built-up areas (e.g., roads, development) increased wave inundation distance, while beaches and sand dunes were ameliorative. Built-up areas also increased death toll. Bathymetry, a proxy for wave height and force, was the only significant factor in all three multivariable models. Coastal areas with a steeper seaward bathymetric slope gradient were less prone to inundation and human fatalities, which is consistent other tsunami research. The presence of coral reefs was highly correlated with bathymetric slope gradient, implying a potentially protective role by coral reefs. Many factors showing greatest protective effect against tsunami damage are geographical features that cannot easily be modified. However, some defence factors identified, such as sand dunes, could potentially be protected. Given the wide-ranging ecosystem services, unrelated to tsunami protection, ongoing loss/degradation of natural systems including mangroves (not a significant factor in the multivariable models), could be damaging. This might impede certain future coastal development options in post-tsunami Sri Lanka.

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The Asian Tsunami: A Protective Role for Coastal Vegetation

Cited by 716 publications

References 3 publications

Human health impacts of ecosystem alteration

Human health impacts of ecosystem alteration

Global patterns of kelp forest change over the past half-century

Modelling ecological and other risk factors influencing the outcome of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka

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