• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Wednesday, October 8, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Biology

Place-based management can protect coral reefs in a changing climate

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
April 25, 2019
in Biology
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0
IMAGE
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

IMAGE

Credit: Kostantinos Stamoulis 

Researchers from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa (UH Mānoa) and the State of Hawai’i Department of Health have developed and applied a new technology in Hawai’i that identifies where coral reef ecosystems and associated fisheries are vulnerable to human activities and where to focus management actions to minimize anthropogenic impacts.

The authors of the newly published study in the journal Ecological Applications identified specific locations on land where improved wastewater management and landscape practices would yield the greatest benefits for downstream reefs in terms of mitigating harm to coral communities and associated reef fish populations.

Human activities on land and in the ocean often have cascading effects on marine ecosystems. Expansion of coastal development, along with wastewater discharge and fertilizers, can harm coral reefs and their fisheries through increases in sediment and nutrient runoff. Consequent reef degradation directly affects ecological resilience, food security, human well-being, and cultural practices in tropical island communities around the world.

The researchers focused on the ahupua’a (land divisions) of Hā?ena on Kaua’i and Ka’?p?lehu on Hawai’i Island, at opposite ends of the main Hawaiian Islands, where native Hawaiian communities are taking action to manage their resources through a place-based management approach.

To determine where management on land can most effectively support current community-led efforts to restore reef health and abundance, the researchers built a fine-scale, linked land-and-sea computer model that integrates existing land-use with coral reef condition and fisheries health. The team then simulated various future coastal development and climate change scenarios to pinpoint areas in each ahupua’a where upgrading cesspools and reducing fertilizer application would provide the greatest benefits to downstream coral reefs.

In every scenario, the tool confirmed that coral reefs on wave-sheltered shores with low circulation are more vulnerable to land-based source pollution under a changing climate, but also revealed that some reef areas on wave-exposed shores are vulnerable at the local scale. This has important implications for future development in these areas and shows that fine scale decision support tools are necessary to reveal spatial nuances between places and inform targeted marine and terrestrial management actions.

Dr. Jade Delevaux and Dr. Kostantinos Stamoulis from UH Mānoa, co-lead authors of the study explain, “This technology can be applied across the main Hawaiian Islands as well as in more data-limited regions worldwide, where satellite data are becoming more freely available. The products of this tool provide a platform for dialogue among decision makers and inform management of linked land and sea areas.”

“Cesspools in coastal areas can be detrimental to the health of coral reefs and nearshore fisheries, which is a huge issue right now,” said Dr. Kawika Winter, manager of the He’eia National Estuarine Research Reserve and a co-author of the study, who also sits onis also a member of the State’s Cesspool Conversion Working Group. “This research will help us to prioritize where we should focus resources when it comes to cesspool conversion in Hawai’i.”

Beyond Hawai’i, these new methods are especially relevant for many indigenous island communities across Oceania seeking to revitalize customary ridge-to-reef management systems and for governments that recognize the need to apply integrated land-sea planning approaches.

Dr. Tamara Ticktin, professor of botany at UH Mānoa, principal investigator on the National Science Foundation grant that funded the research, and co-author of the study, added: “This technology is widely applicable to other Pacific Islands, and is exciting because it demonstrates that resilience of coral reefs to global climate change can be promoted by coordinating local actions across land and sea, thereby empowering local people to become better stewards over their resources.”

###

Media Contact
Marcie Grabowski
[email protected]

Related Journal Article

http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/eap.1891

Tags: BiodiversityBiologyClimate ChangeDevelopmental/Reproductive BiologyEcology/EnvironmentMarine/Freshwater BiologyOceanographyPopulation Biology
Share12Tweet8Share2ShareShareShare2

Related Posts

blank

New Insights into Evolution Revealed Through Lizard Genetics

October 8, 2025
blank

Cell-Free DNA Reflects Tumor Transcription Factor Activity

October 8, 2025

New Method to Monitor Wild Reindeer Populations Could Boost Conservation Efforts

October 8, 2025

New Molecular Method Detects Varroa Destructor in Nigeria

October 8, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • Sperm MicroRNAs: Crucial Mediators of Paternal Exercise Capacity Transmission

    1053 shares
    Share 421 Tweet 263
  • New Study Reveals the Science Behind Exercise and Weight Loss

    99 shares
    Share 40 Tweet 25
  • New Study Indicates Children’s Risk of Long COVID Could Double Following a Second Infection – The Lancet Infectious Diseases

    95 shares
    Share 38 Tweet 24
  • Ohio State Study Reveals Protein Quality Control Breakdown as Key Factor in Cancer Immunotherapy Failure

    78 shares
    Share 31 Tweet 20

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Analyzing Methadone Levels in Post-Mortem Cases

New Vaccine Demonstrates Potential Against Typhoid and Invasive Salmonella in Initial Human Trial

Innovative 3D Printing Technique ‘Grows’ Ultra-Strong Materials

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Success! An email was just sent to confirm your subscription. Please find the email now and click 'Confirm' to start subscribing.

Join 63 other subscribers
  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.