Coral Reef Restorations Can Be Optimized to Reduce Coastal Flooding Hazards

Coral reefs are effective natural coastal flood barriers that protect adjacent communities. Coral degradation compromises the coastal protection value of reefs while also reducing their other ecosystem services, making them a target for restoration. Here we provide a physics-based evaluation of how coral restoration can reduce coastal flooding for various types of reefs. Wave-driven flooding reduction is greatest for broader, shallower restorations on the upper fore reef and between the middle of the reef flat and the shoreline than for deeper locations on the fore reef or at the reef crest. These results indicate that to increase the coastal hazard risk reduction potential of reef restoration, more physically robust species of coral need to be outplanted to shallower, more energetic locations than more fragile, faster-growing species primarily being grown in coral nurseries. The optimization and quantification of coral reef restoration efforts to reduce coastal flooding may open hazard risk reduction funding for conservation purposes.

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The effectiveness of coral reefs for coastal hazard risk reduction and adaptation

Nature Communications ◽

10.1038/ncomms4794 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 288

Author(s):

Filippo Ferrario ◽

Michael W. Beck ◽

Curt D. Storlazzi ◽

Fiorenza Micheli ◽

Christine C. Shepard ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Coral Reefs ◽

Risk Reduction ◽

Coastal Hazard ◽

Hazard Risk

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The role of the reef–dune system in coastal protection in Puerto Morelos (Mexico)

Natural Hazards and Earth System Science ◽

10.5194/nhess-18-1247-2018 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 1247-1260 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Gemma L. Franklin ◽

Alec Torres-Freyermuth ◽

Gabriela Medellin ◽

María Eugenia Allende-Arandia ◽

Christian M. Appendini

Keyword(s):

Sand Dunes ◽

Coastal Flooding ◽

Water Levels ◽

Coastal Protection ◽

Dune System ◽

Fore Reef ◽

Extreme Water Levels ◽

Reef Environments ◽

Storm Impact

Abstract. Reefs and sand dunes are critical morphological features providing natural coastal protection. Reefs dissipate around 90 % of the incident wave energy through wave breaking, whereas sand dunes provide the final natural barrier against coastal flooding. The storm impact on coastal areas with these features depends on the relative elevation of the extreme water levels with respect to the sand dune morphology. However, despite the importance of barrier reefs and dunes in coastal protection, poor management practices have degraded these ecosystems, increasing their vulnerability to coastal flooding. The present study aims to theoretically investigate the role of the reef–dune system in coastal protection under current climatic conditions at Puerto Morelos, located in the Mexican Caribbean Sea, using a widely validated nonlinear non-hydrostatic numerical model (SWASH). Wave hindcast information, tidal level, and a measured beach profile of the reef–dune system in Puerto Morelos are employed to estimate extreme runup and the storm impact scale for current and theoretical scenarios. The numerical results show the importance of including the storm surge when predicting extreme water levels and also show that ecosystem degradation has important implications for coastal protection against storms with return periods of less than 10 years. The latter highlights the importance of conservation of the system as a mitigation measure to decrease coastal vulnerability and infrastructure losses in coastal areas in the short to medium term. Furthermore, the results are used to evaluate the applicability of runup parameterisations for beaches to reef environments. Numerical analysis of runup dynamics suggests that runup parameterisations for reef environments can be improved by including the fore reef slope. Therefore, future research to develop runup parameterisations incorporating reef geometry features (e.g. reef crest elevation, reef lagoon width, fore reef slope) is warranted.

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Rigorously valuing the impact of projected coral reef degradation on coastal hazard risk in Florida

Open-File Report ◽

10.3133/ofr20211055 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Curt D. Storlazzi ◽

Borja G. Reguero ◽

Kimberly K. Yates ◽

Kristen A. Cumming ◽

Aaron D. Cole ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Coastal Hazard ◽

Hazard Risk ◽

Reef Degradation ◽

Coral Reef Degradation ◽

The Impact

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Rigorously valuing the coastal hazard risks reduction provided by potential coral reef restoration in Florida and Puerto Rico

Open-File Report ◽

10.3133/ofr20211054 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Curt D. Storlazzi ◽

Borja G. Reguero ◽

Kristen A. Cumming ◽

Aaron D. Cole ◽

James B. Shope ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Puerto Rico ◽

Coral Reef ◽

Coastal Hazard ◽

Reef Restoration

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Data-Driven Coral Reef Rehabilitation Using New Biomimicking, Advanced Materials Artificial Reefs

Marine Technology Society Journal ◽

10.4031/mtsj.55.3.13 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 55 (3) ◽

pp. 120-121

Author(s):

Emily Higgins ◽

Konstantin Sobolev

Keyword(s):

Coral Reef ◽

Large Scale ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Artificial Reefs ◽

Advanced Materials ◽

Future Research ◽

Coastal Protection ◽

Reef Restoration ◽

Technological Advances ◽

And Function

Abstract Globally, artificial reefs (ARs) are being increasingly used as a coral reef restoration strategy, and ARs made from conventional substrates (e.g. metal, concrete) have had limited success for coral reef conservation due to structure size and lack of pre-deployment engineering. To curb further deterioration on reefs, technological advances in restoration methods must be quickly tested and applied on a large scale. Here, we present the results of the first IntelliReefs biomimicking “Oceanite” nanotechnology ARs. We compared benthic community composition on three Oceanite ARs 14 months after deployment in Sint Maarten. We also examined fish abundance, diversity, and behaviour on the ARs. The results from this study suggest that Oceanite can enhance local biodiversity, attract coral recruits, provide food and protection for large fish communities, and develop a healthy early coral reef community in 14 months. IntelliReefs' future research will focus on large-scale deployments and further development of site-, species-, and function-specific substrates to optimize AR conservation goals and increase project success. Our Ocean-Shot will deploy durable, bio-enhanced reefs that build resilience to climate change, increase economic benefits, and coastal protection for seaside communities. Oceanite can further be customized for specific stressor mitigation (e.g., pathogens, warming, acidification, reduced water quality, invasive species).

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