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Sustainability of subtropical coastal zones in southwestern Florida: challenges for urbanized coastal environments threatened by development, pollution, water supply, and storm hazards

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Date Issued:
2003
Summary:
The subtropical Atlantic coastal zone of southeastern Florida supports nearly 7 million inhabitants on a coastal plain conurbation that stretches from West Palm Beach to Miami. About a quarter of the present population originally settled on higher topography along the shore-parallel Atlantic Coastal Ridge. From about the middle 1900s, however, urbanization intensified along the shore and spread westward into freshwater marshlands. Population densities approaching 2500 persons per km-2 along some coastal sectors and dredge and fill operations to create urban land in western marshes degraded coastal environments bringing in question sustainability. Efforts to maintain environmental integrity initially focused on shore protection first via "hard" engineering works, which later on included massive beach renourishment projects along developed coasts subject to critical erosion. Marine algal blooms, led to eutrophication, degraded coastal water quality, and deterioration of coral reefs indicate environmental problems at least as serious as beach erosion. Recognition of a potential eco-catastrophe, collapse of entire marine and coastal wetland ecosystems in southern Florida, led turn to the Everglades Restoration Project, the largest single environmental recovery effort in the world. Cleanup of terrestrial systems is essential to sustainability of marine ecosystems now jeopardized by nutrient loading.
Title: Sustainability of subtropical coastal zones in southwestern Florida: challenges for urbanized coastal environments threatened by development, pollution, water supply, and storm hazards.
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Name(s): Finkl, Charles W., creator
Charlier, R. H., creator
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Article
Issuance: single unit
Date Issued: 2003
Publisher: Coastal Education & Research Foundation, Inc.
Physical Description: text/pdf[12p.]
Language(s): English
Summary: The subtropical Atlantic coastal zone of southeastern Florida supports nearly 7 million inhabitants on a coastal plain conurbation that stretches from West Palm Beach to Miami. About a quarter of the present population originally settled on higher topography along the shore-parallel Atlantic Coastal Ridge. From about the middle 1900s, however, urbanization intensified along the shore and spread westward into freshwater marshlands. Population densities approaching 2500 persons per km-2 along some coastal sectors and dredge and fill operations to create urban land in western marshes degraded coastal environments bringing in question sustainability. Efforts to maintain environmental integrity initially focused on shore protection first via "hard" engineering works, which later on included massive beach renourishment projects along developed coasts subject to critical erosion. Marine algal blooms, led to eutrophication, degraded coastal water quality, and deterioration of coral reefs indicate environmental problems at least as serious as beach erosion. Recognition of a potential eco-catastrophe, collapse of entire marine and coastal wetland ecosystems in southern Florida, led turn to the Everglades Restoration Project, the largest single environmental recovery effort in the world. Cleanup of terrestrial systems is essential to sustainability of marine ecosystems now jeopardized by nutrient loading.
Identifier: 3174203 (digitool), FADT3174203 (IID), fau:2024 (fedora)
FAU Department/College: Department of Geosciences Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/3174203
Restrictions on Access: ©2003 Coastal Education & Research Foundation, Inc.
Host Institution: FAU

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