Importance of Reefs and Dunes in the Protection of the Coast
The Mexican Caribbean faces hurricanes and beach erosion, threatening tourism and communities. This report explains the critical role of coral reefs and dunes in coastal protection, presenting scientific findings, methodology, and references to guide sustainable management and conservation strategies.
Subject Tags
- Climate adaptation
- Mangroves
- Coastal
Abstract
The Mexican Caribbean has a great biodiversity and it is very important economically for Mexico for the great touristic industry developed there. However, it is a zone exposed to hurricanes and its beaches are subject to erosion processes.
Natural systems, such as seagrasses, coastal dunes and mangroves, are essential elements of coastal dynamics. The degradation of these systems has altered such dynamics causing beach erosion, more flooding derived from heavy rains and more damages from storms’ surge.
The objective of this report is to show the importance of natural systems as means for coastal protection, focusing in coral reefs and coastal dunes through the compilation of recent scientific information, the exposition of the results, the explanation of the methodology used and the compilation of a broad range of scientific references to support it.
Citation
Fajardo, f.s., importance of reefs and dunes in the protection of the coast.
Media Contacts
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The Nature Conservancy