Presentation by Ose Pauleus

1. Threats to sandy
beach ecosystems: A
review
By Defeo O. et al 2009
Paper discussion
Animator:
Ose Pauleus

2. About the main author
• Omar Defeo
o Faculty lecturer & Investigator
o Member of the National Academy of Sciences of
Uruguay
o Head of Department of Ecology and Evolution.
o FAO Consultant.
o Work on marine ecology and fisheries
management.

3. Key words
• Sandy shore:
o Loose deposits of sand, gravel or shells that cover the
shoreline in many places
oConsist of three entities: surf zones, beaches and dunes,
linked by the interchange of material particularly sand ( Dyer
1986)
oClimate change
a change in global or regional climate patterns, apparently
from the mid to late 20th century onwards and attributed
largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide
produced by the use of fossil fuels
"climate change". Oxford Dictionaries. Oxford University Press, n.d. Web. 26 August 2013.
<http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/climate-change>.

4. Context
• Expansion of human
population
o Shifts toward the coast
(sandy shores)
• Economic progress
o development
• Climate change
o See level arise
http://lsds.co.za/current-clients/

5. Goal
• Wake up call
• Awareness of human (our) pressures on
shoreline.

6. Ecosystem services
• Sediment storage and transport
• Wave dissipation and associated buffering
against extreme events (storms, tsunamis)
• Breakdown of organic materials and
pollutants
• Water filtration and purification
• Nutrient mineralization and recycling
• Water storage in dune aquifers and
groundwater discharge through beaches

7. Ecosystem services
• Maintenance of biodiversity and genetic
resources
• Nursery areas for juvenile fishes
• nesting sites for turtles and shorebirds, and
rookeries for pinnipeds
• Prey resources for birds and terrestrial wildlife
• Scenic vistas and recreational opportunities
• Functional links between terrestrial and
marine environments in the coastal zone

8. Stressors
• Recreation
• Cleaning
• Nourishment
• Pollution
• Exploitation
By Norb Psuty, Rutgers university

9. Stressors
• Biological invasions
• Coastal
development and
engineering
• Mining
• Climate change

10. Conclusion and
recommendation
• Management should be based on existing
knowledge
• More research to better understand marine
ecosystems
• Marine reserves and marine protected areas
• Others????