Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply
<p>There is an increasing demand for the creation and restoration of tidal marshes around the world, as they provide highly valued ecosystem services. Yet restored tidal marshes are strongly vulnerable to factors such as sea level rise and declining sediment supply. How fast the restored ecosy...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2022-06-01
|
| Series: | Earth Surface Dynamics |
| Online Access: | https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/10/531/2022/esurf-10-531-2022.pdf |
| _version_ | 1818539749453856768 |
|---|---|
| author | O. Gourgue O. Gourgue J. van Belzen J. van Belzen C. Schwarz C. Schwarz W. Vandenbruwaene J. Vanlede J.-P. Belliard S. Fagherazzi T. J. Bouma T. J. Bouma J. van de Koppel J. van de Koppel S. Temmerman |
| author_facet | O. Gourgue O. Gourgue J. van Belzen J. van Belzen C. Schwarz C. Schwarz W. Vandenbruwaene J. Vanlede J.-P. Belliard S. Fagherazzi T. J. Bouma T. J. Bouma J. van de Koppel J. van de Koppel S. Temmerman |
| author_sort | O. Gourgue |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p>There is an increasing demand for the creation and restoration of tidal marshes around the world, as they provide highly valued ecosystem services. Yet restored tidal marshes are strongly vulnerable to factors such as sea level rise and declining sediment supply. How fast the restored ecosystem
develops, how resilient it is to sea level rise, and how this can be steered by restoration design are key questions that are typically challenging to assess due to the complex biogeomorphic feedback processes involved. In this paper, we apply a biogeomorphic model to a specific tidal-marsh restoration project planned by dike breaching. Our modeling approach integrates tidal hydrodynamics, sediment transport, and vegetation dynamics, accounting for relevant fine-scale flow–vegetation interactions (less than 1 <span class="inline-formula">m<sup>2</sup></span>) and their impact on vegetation and landform development at the landscape scale (several <span class="inline-formula">km<sup>2</sup></span>) and in the long term (several decades). Our model performance is positively evaluated against observations of vegetation and geomorphic development in adjacent tidal marshes. Model scenarios demonstrate that the restored tidal marsh can keep pace with realistic rates of sea level rise and that its resilience is more sensitive to the availability of suspended sediments than to the rate of sea level rise. We further demonstrate that restoration design options can steer marsh resilience, as they affect the rates and spatial patterns of biogeomorphic development. By varying the width of two dike breaches, which serve as tidal inlets to the restored marsh, we show that a larger difference in the width of the two inlets leads to higher biogeomorphic diversity in restored habitats. This study showcases that biogeomorphic modeling can support management choices in restoration design to optimize tidal-marsh development towards sustainable restoration goals.</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:46:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8885e642b878424aba259f7ae18c5517 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2196-6311 2196-632X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:46:13Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
| publisher | Copernicus Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Earth Surface Dynamics |
| spelling | doaj.art-8885e642b878424aba259f7ae18c55172022-12-22T00:49:36ZengCopernicus PublicationsEarth Surface Dynamics2196-63112196-632X2022-06-011053155310.5194/esurf-10-531-2022Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supplyO. Gourgue0O. Gourgue1J. van Belzen2J. van Belzen3C. Schwarz4C. Schwarz5W. Vandenbruwaene6J. Vanlede7J.-P. Belliard8S. Fagherazzi9T. J. Bouma10T. J. Bouma11J. van de Koppel12J. van de Koppel13S. Temmerman14ECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, BelgiumDepartment of Earth and Environment, Boston University, Boston, MA, USAECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, BelgiumDepartment of Estuarine and Delta Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), Yerseke, the NetherlandsDepartment of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering Science, KU Leuven, Leuven, BelgiumDivision of Geography and Tourism, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, BelgiumFlanders Hydraulics Research, Antwerp, BelgiumFlanders Hydraulics Research, Antwerp, BelgiumECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, BelgiumDepartment of Earth and Environment, Boston University, Boston, MA, USADepartment of Estuarine and Delta Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), Yerseke, the NetherlandsDepartment of Physical Geography, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the NetherlandsDepartment of Estuarine and Delta Systems, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), Yerseke, the NetherlandsGroningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, the NetherlandsECOSPHERE Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium<p>There is an increasing demand for the creation and restoration of tidal marshes around the world, as they provide highly valued ecosystem services. Yet restored tidal marshes are strongly vulnerable to factors such as sea level rise and declining sediment supply. How fast the restored ecosystem develops, how resilient it is to sea level rise, and how this can be steered by restoration design are key questions that are typically challenging to assess due to the complex biogeomorphic feedback processes involved. In this paper, we apply a biogeomorphic model to a specific tidal-marsh restoration project planned by dike breaching. Our modeling approach integrates tidal hydrodynamics, sediment transport, and vegetation dynamics, accounting for relevant fine-scale flow–vegetation interactions (less than 1 <span class="inline-formula">m<sup>2</sup></span>) and their impact on vegetation and landform development at the landscape scale (several <span class="inline-formula">km<sup>2</sup></span>) and in the long term (several decades). Our model performance is positively evaluated against observations of vegetation and geomorphic development in adjacent tidal marshes. Model scenarios demonstrate that the restored tidal marsh can keep pace with realistic rates of sea level rise and that its resilience is more sensitive to the availability of suspended sediments than to the rate of sea level rise. We further demonstrate that restoration design options can steer marsh resilience, as they affect the rates and spatial patterns of biogeomorphic development. By varying the width of two dike breaches, which serve as tidal inlets to the restored marsh, we show that a larger difference in the width of the two inlets leads to higher biogeomorphic diversity in restored habitats. This study showcases that biogeomorphic modeling can support management choices in restoration design to optimize tidal-marsh development towards sustainable restoration goals.</p>https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/10/531/2022/esurf-10-531-2022.pdf |
| spellingShingle | O. Gourgue O. Gourgue J. van Belzen J. van Belzen C. Schwarz C. Schwarz W. Vandenbruwaene J. Vanlede J.-P. Belliard S. Fagherazzi T. J. Bouma T. J. Bouma J. van de Koppel J. van de Koppel S. Temmerman Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply Earth Surface Dynamics |
| title | Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply |
| title_full | Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply |
| title_fullStr | Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply |
| title_full_unstemmed | Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply |
| title_short | Biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal-marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply |
| title_sort | biogeomorphic modeling to assess the resilience of tidal marsh restoration to sea level rise and sediment supply |
| url | https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/10/531/2022/esurf-10-531-2022.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ogourgue biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT ogourgue biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT jvanbelzen biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT jvanbelzen biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT cschwarz biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT cschwarz biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT wvandenbruwaene biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT jvanlede biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT jpbelliard biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT sfagherazzi biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT tjbouma biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT tjbouma biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT jvandekoppel biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT jvandekoppel biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply AT stemmerman biogeomorphicmodelingtoassesstheresilienceoftidalmarshrestorationtosealevelriseandsedimentsupply |