Sea level rise (SLR) is among the most prominent and dramatic consequences of global warming. Over the last three decades, sea level has increased at a rate of 3.3 mm per year globally, showing clear signs of acceleration. SLR has significant consequences for coastal wetlands, including increased sediment erosion, flooding of coastlines, and the promotion of saltwater intrusion into groundwater. This can lead to severe impacts on biodiversity and the services provided by the ecosystems, such as flood control, blue carbon storage and sequestration, water quality for consumption and irrigation, and habitat availability for commercially valuable fish and shellfish. Coastal wetlands may adapt to SLR through landward migration and vertical sediment accretion due to particle trapping by salt marshes and mangroves. However, in humanised areas, such resilience is often compromised by the construction of coastal defences, such as dikes, embankments, and seawalls, and the reduction of sediment supply due to river dams.
This project will address SLR impacts in the Sado estuary using a multidisciplinary approach that combines remote sensing, animal ecology, and ecotoxicology. We expect to accomplish the following objectives: (1) quantifying changes in the distribution and topography of tidal flats; (2) quantifying changes in the distribution, biomass, and surface elevation of salt marshes; (3) quantifying changes in tidal flat sediments and responses of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages; (4) identifying constraints imposed on shorebirds by the erosion of tidal flats and the loss of roosting sites; (5) evaluating if erosion of tidal flats is contributing to the mobilization of heavy metals and metalloids stored in the sediments into the ecosystem.
