Sand nourishments are widely used in the coastal environment and have been developed to protect the coast and its ecosystems from erosion and sea level rise. Nowadays mega-nourishments are also being used to restore and maintain valuable ecosystems on tidal flats. The latter requires the nourishment practices to be optimized for being eco-friendly.
It is well-known that the presence / absence of soil animals can have a large effect on the erodibility of sediment. Dumping sediment on an existing tidal flat might directly affect the local communities living in these areas by killing them. Moreover, the sediment used for the nourishment of coastal areas is usually deprived of any living organisms, and thus might alter the bio-physical interactions relative to the originally present sediment or facilitate the establishment of invasive species. There is need to gain a generic mechanistic understanding on (1) how benthic communities may affect the long-term development of sand nourishment, (2) how benthic communities respond to different sand nourishment techniques and (3) how this type of measures may be translated to ecosystem services.
Student opportunities:
A way to examine the effects of soil animals on the erodibility of sediment is to compare the properties of sediment with and without benthos. To do so, a large “defaunation” (soil animals removed) experiment has been implemented in the Schelde estuary and will be monitored monthly over the Summer 2016. This experiment is part of a pilot study relative to the Roggenplaat. Environmental data and benthos samples will be collected and measured to answer the following sub-questions (see section sub projects)
Optimisation of sand nourishment techniques for restoring ecological valuable tidal flats: Unravelling the importance of bio-physical interactions
| Start date: | 1 augustus 2016 |
| End date: | 1 februari 2017 |
Results:
Description and evaluation of the process:
| Project | Start date | End date | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benthic community recovery along an elevation gradient at two sites differing in their hydrodynamic exposure | 1 augustus 2016 | 1 februari 2017 | Benthic community recovery along an elevation gradient at two sites differing in their hydrodynamic exposure
Research type: Field research, Laboratory research Research level: bachelor Prerequisite: interest in morphology, ecology |
| Sand nourishments in coastal systems: an Ecosystem-based approach (Literature research) | 1 augustus 2016 | 1 februari 2017 | Sand nourishments in coastal systems: an Ecosystem-based approach (Literature research)
Research type: Literature research Research level: bachelor to master Prerequisite: interest in morphology, ecology |
| The facilitative effect of ‘priming’ on benthic community recovery | 1 augustus 2016 | 1 februari 2017 | The facilitative effect of ‘priming’ on benthic community recovery
Research type: Field research, Laboratory research Research level: bachelor Prerequisite: interest in morphology, ecology |
| The influence of living organisms on sediment erosion | 1 augustus 2016 | 1 februari 2017 | The influence of living organisms on sediment erosion
Research type: Field research, Flume research Research level: bachelor or master Prerequisite: interest in morphology, ecology, hydrodynamics |
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