A geostatistical model for estimating edge effects and cumulative human disturbance in wetlands and coastal waters |
| |
| Authors: | John M Humphreys Amirsassan Mahjoor Kelly Chinners Reiss Andres Arias Uribe Mark T Brown |
| |
| Institution: | 1. Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University , East Lansing, MI, USA jmh09r@my.fsu.edu;3. Department of Geography, Florida State University , Tallahassee, FL, USA;4. Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences, University of Florida , Gainesville, FL, USA;5. School of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, American Public University , Charles Town, WV, USA;6. Division of Water Resources, Florida Department of Environmental Protection , Tallahassee, FL, USA;7. Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences, University of Florida , Gainesville, FL, USA |
| |
| Abstract: | ABSTRACT The modification of landscapes for agriculture, residential housing, and other human uses has the potential to alter ecosystem function, reduce native biodiversity, and to diminish the capacity of natural systems to provide essential goods and services. Resultantly, methods aimed at quantifying disturbance intensity at the intersection of anthropogenic and natural lands are important to applied aspects of landscape planning and natural resource management, as well as theoretical facets of spatial ecology. Tools to appraise human disturbance in wetlands and coastal waters are especially needed because the topographic settings of surface waters make them particularly susceptible to pollutant accumulation, hydrologic alteration, and other influences from the surrounding landscape. Assuming a water resources focus, we developed a novel geostatistical method to quantify and visualize edge effects and cumulative human disturbance for all wetlands and coastal waters in the State of Florida (USA). Model validation revealed that estimated disturbance intensity was strongly correlated to species richness, levels of heavy metal contamination, and persistent organic pollutant concentration. The presented modeling framework offers a flexible means to assess human disturbance across spatial scales and could be readily applied to prioritize conservation land acquisition and to anticipate future impacts from the proposed development. |
| |
| Keywords: | Human environment systems geostatistics landscape development intensity wetlands water resources |
|
|
