Estuaries are increasingly threatened not only by rising sea levels but also by human interventions which cause changes in sediment supply. Remote sensing data analysis shows that estuarine intertidal area development is associated with minimum turbidity levels, where areas with larger tidal ranges require higher turbidity for their maintenance.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals
Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription
$29.99 / 30 days
cancel any time
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Temmerman, S. et al. Ecosystem-based coastal defence in the face of global change. Nature 504, 79–83 (2013). This article highlights the sustainability of intertidal ecosystems for flood protection over conventional methods.
Murray, N. J. et al. High-resolution mapping of losses and gains of Earth’s tidal wetlands. Science 376, 744–749 (2022). This article shows a net decline in global tidal wetlands which are substantially impacted by human activities.
Best, J. Anthropogenic stresses on the world’s big rivers. Nat. Geosci. 12, 7–21 (2019). A review article that discusses the challenges and anthropogenic stressors facing the world’s major rivers which result in declining sediment supply.
Blum, M. D. & Roberts, H. H. Drowning of the Mississippi Delta due to insufficient sediment supply and global sea-level rise. Nat. Geosci. 2, 488–491 (2009). This letter examines the sediment deficit of the Mississippi Delta, highlighting the need for high sediment loads for land restoration amid rising sea levels.
Leuven, J. R. F. W., Pierik, H. J., van der Vegt, M., Bouma, T. J. & Kleinhans, M. G. Sea-level-rise-induced threats depend on the size of tide-influenced estuaries worldwide. Nat. Clim. Chang. 9, 986–992 (2019). This article studies the effects of sea-level rise on estuary morphology, emphasizing that changes in tidal range critically influence the adaptive responses of large versus small estuaries.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
This is a summary of: Grandjean, T. J. et al. Critical turbidity thresholds for maintenance of estuarine tidal flats worldwide. Nat. Geosci. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-024-01431-3 (2024).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Minimum turbidity levels for the maintenance of intertidal areas. Nat. Geosci. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-024-01435-z
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-024-01435-z
