Evaluación cualitativa de los servicios ambientales del litoral norte del municipio de Ilheus, Bahia, Brasil

El municipio de Ilhéus, zona sur del estado de Bahía, presenta ecosistemas de gran relevancia. Sin embargo, el municipio viene sufriendo una gran especulación inmobiliaria, principalmente debido a la expansión urbana de la ciudad de Ilhéus, al crecimiento del turismo, y más recientemente, al proyecto de instalación del Complexo Porto Sul (puertos, ferrocarril y aeropuerto). El objetivo principal del presente estudio fue valorar cualitativamente servicios ambientales costeros en este importante sector del litoral de Brasil utilizando un conjunto de indicadores ambientales estandarizados. Los servicios fueran divididos de acuerdo con sus funciones ecosistémicas y agrupados en tres clases generales: Servicios de Regulación y Soporte, Servicios de Provisión, y Servicios de Información y Culturales. Cada servicio fue valorado como bajo (valor 1), medio (valor 2) o alto (valor 3). El estudio muestra que la mayoría de las playas presentó buenos índices de servicios ambientales (medio y alto). La playa de Ponta da Tulha (sector 2) fue una excepción, donde los servicios de soporte y regulación fueron bajos, lo que repercutió en la reducción de la oferta de servicios de provisión, información y culturales. Correlacionando los índices de servicios ambientales con lo uso actual y ocupación del suelo, se observó también que la urbanización suprimiendo los ambientes naturales resultó en menor variedad y cualidad de los servicios ambientales disponibles. Por último, este estudio evidenció la eficiencia de valorar servicios ambientales utilizando un conjunto estandarizado y flexible de indicadores ambientales

CLASSIFICAÇÃO MORFODINÂMICA DA PRAIA DO GONZAGA, SANTOS, SÃO PAULO, BRASIL

A cidade de Santos (SP) está localizada no interior da Baía de Santos, que possui abertura voltada para SSE. Sua linha de praia apresenta, aproximadamente, 7 km extensão e, dentre as praias de Santos, a praia do Gonzaga é uma das mais expostas à ação de frentes frias. Durante três dias (29/set, 20/out e 27/out) no ano de 2010, foi efetuado o monitoramento do perfil praial na praia do Gonzaga. Foram coletados dados de incidência, período, altura e tipo de onda na arrebentação, altura da coluna d’água na arrebentação, direção e velocidade das correntes longitudinais, largura da zona de surfe e espraiamento das ondas. Foi observado ao longo do período que a classificação morfodinâmica da praia estava inicialmente saindo de um estado dissipativo e evoluindo para o estado de banco e calha longitudinal, porém com as entradas de frentes frias, a praia retornou ao estado de extremo erosivo

Del Compromiso Presencial al Virtual: Adaptaciones de un Proceso Participativo para el Diseño de una Política Pública de Basura Marina en Brasil

Marine litter is a transversal issue that affects the envi- ronment and society in a multitude of ways. As such, solutions to this problem are complex and demand the engagement of multiple sectors of society. The São Paulo Strategic Plan for Monitoring and Assessment of Marine Litter (PEMALM) is the first public policy of its kind, seeking to establish indicators and build knowledge to move towards a plan to combat marine litter in the most populous state in Brazil. From its inception, PEMALM has sought to establish a participative construction frame- work, involving key stakeholders at each step. When the Covid-19 pandemic struck, the participative construction process had to be adapted. Here we present and discuss the strategies applied in the participatory process of PEMALM to guarantee the remote engagement of stakeholders. Three participatory milestones were part of the final policy-making process: a first in-person workshop which gathered stakeholders in a single location, a series of in-person meetings in which the project team travelled to where the stake- holders are located, and, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, an entirely virtual workshop. Sector participation was found to be alike for online and on-site events, with higher participation of the public sector, followed by academia, NGOs and the private sector in both. The adjustments and the adaptive effort placed on the participatory process due to the Covid-19 pandemic, such as being dedicated and attentive to the needs of attendees, expanding the modes of interaction and promoting a flexible and light schedule to reduce online fatigue, guaranteed the quality of stakeholder engagement and participation. The positive accomplishments of the hybrid strategy used in building PEMALM as a public policy exemplifies ways to facilitate and broaden participation in the co-construction under mobility restrictions.Marine litter is a transversal issue that affects the envi- ronment and society in a multitude of ways. As such, solutions to this problem are complex and demand the engagement of multiple sectors of society. The São Paulo Strategic Plan for Monitoring and Assessment of Marine Litter (PEMALM) is the first public policy of its kind, seeking to establish indicators and build knowledge to move towards a plan to combat marine litter in the most populous state in Brazil. From its inception, PEMALM has sought to establish a participative construction frame- work, involving key stakeholders at each step. When the Covid-19 pandemic struck, the participative construction process had to be adapted. Here we present and discuss the strategies applied in the participatory process of PEMALM to guarantee the remote engagement of stakeholders. Three participatory milestones were part of the final policy-making process: a first in-person workshop which gathered stakeholders in a single location, a series of in-person meetings in which the project team travelled to where the stake- holders are located, and, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, an entirely virtual workshop. Sector participation was found to be alike for online and on-site events, with higher participation of the public sector, followed by academia, NGOs and the private sector in both. The adjustments and the adaptive effort placed on the participatory process due to the Covid-19 pandemic, such as being dedicated and attentive to the needs of attendees, expanding the modes of interaction and promoting a flexible and light schedule to reduce online fatigue, guaranteed the quality of stakeholder engagement and participation. The positive accomplishments of the hybrid strategy used in building PEMALM as a public policy exemplifies ways to facilitate and broaden participation in the co-construction under mobility restrictions

Serviços ecossistêmicos prestados por recifes de coral nas ilhas de Tinharé e Boipeba, Baixo Sul da Bahia, Brasil

Coral reefs provide important ecosystem services to coastal communities. The Archipelago of Tinhar?e and Boipeba, Bahia, Brazil, are mostly surrounded by fringing reefs, which have undergone several chronic human impacts. The objective of the present study was to apply an ecosystem-based approach by analyzing the ecosystem services provided by the coral reefs of the Archipelago of Tinhar?e and Boipeba in order to support management actions and serve as a tool for coastal management. Ecosystem services were assessed through the observation of environmental indicators of their occurrence and by using a suite of models from the Integrated Valuation of Environmental Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) software combined with data from the Atlantic and Gulf Rapid Reef Assessment (AGRRA) protocol database. The services of greatest occurrence were food provision, habitat maintenance, shoreline protection and recreation. While the main stressful factors were tourism activities, the absence of a sewage system and fisheries. The coral reefs presented potential for shoreline protection along 50.5% of the islands. Moreover, 46.8% of the shoreline would present moderate to high vulnerability in case of coral reef disappearance. The coincidence of areas with high risk of loss in the capacity to provide services and high vulnerability in the scenario of absence of reefs is concerning. Thus, the current model for tourism used in the area should be altered, as should new management strategies be implemented, which can bring benefits and avoid reef decline

Ecosystem-based management of coastal zones in face of climate change impacts: Challenges and inequalities

Climate change effects have the potential of affecting both ocean and atmospheric processes. These changes pose serious threats to the millions of people that live by the coast. Thus, the objective of the present review is to discuss how climate change is altering (and will continue to alter) atmospheric and oceanic processes, what are the main implications of these alterations along the coastline, and which are the ecosystem-based management (EBM) strategies that have been proposed and applied to address these issues. While ocean warming, ocean acidification and increasing sea level have been more extensively studied, investigations on the effects of climate change to wind and wave climates are less frequent. Coastal ecosystems and their respective natural resources will respond differently according to location, environmental drivers and coastal processes. EBM strategies have mostly concentrated on improving ecosystem services, which can be used to assist in mitigating climate change effects. The main challenge for developing nations regards gaps in information and scarcity of resources. Thus, for effective management and adaptive EBM strategies to be developed worldwide, information at a local level is greatly needed

Degree of pollution by benthic litter in beaches in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

Benthic litter has become a problem not only to the environment, but also to managers, due to its difficult access. Thus, little is still known about its impacts and behaviors as a type of pollution. The objective of the present study was to carry out a quali-quantitative analysis of the benthic litter of three beaches in Salvador, Brazil, so to investigate the sources of the pollution and possible mitigating actions. Three sampling campaigns were carried out between the years of 2012 and 2013. Transects measuring 100 m were placed perpendicularly to the coastline at each beach and, using scuba diving equipment, all benthic litter was gathered up to 1 m to each side of the axis cable. All items were sorted and analyzed regarding the type of material and possible sources. An adapted CCI was used to classify each beach and variance was analyzed through the Kruskal-Wallis test among sites and dates. During this period the beaches varied from very clean to extremely dirty regarding the accumulation of benthic litter. Plastic was the most common type of material and factors such as proximity with possible sources of pollution and hydrodynamics played an important role in the observed results. There were no significant differences among sites and dates. Actions to promote public awareness among the population that frequents these beaches are crucial to mitigate the situation, considering that the main litter sources were local. Moreover, current public beach cleaning efforts have shown to be ineffective

Ecosystem-based management of coastal zones in face of climate change impacts: Challenges and inequalities

Climate change effects have the potential of affecting both ocean and atmospheric processes. These changes pose serious threats to the millions of people that live by the coast. Thus, the objective of the present review is to discuss how climate change is altering (and will continue to alter) atmospheric and oceanic processes, what are the main implications of these alterations along the coastline, and which are the ecosystem-based management (EBM) strategies that have been proposed and applied to address these issues. While ocean warming, ocean acidification and increasing sea level have been more extensively studied, investigations on the effects of climate change to wind and wave climates are less frequent. Coastal ecosystems and their respective natural resources will respond differently according to location, environmental drivers and coastal processes. EBM strategies have mostly concentrated on improving ecosystem services, which can be used to assist in mitigating climate change effects. The main challenge for developing nations regards gaps in information and scarcity of resources. Thus, for effective management and adaptive EBM strategies to be developed worldwide, information at a local level is greatly needed