HUMAN-ENHANCED IMPACTS OF A TROPICAL STORM ON NEARSHORE CORAL-REEFS

Land development ranks among the most significant human threats to cor al reefs, causing damage by promoting the erosion and transport of soi l - called sediment once suspended in water. We studied the impacts of sediment on the coral communities of St. Lucia following a tropical s torm. We found more sediment and coral damage on reefs closest to the mouths of large rivers. Coral mortality exceeded 50% at some sites, an d the degree of coral mortality and bleaching depended on the amount o f sediment at the site. Despite exemplary efforts by engineers to redu ce erosion rates, we found more sediment at sites near a road under co nstruction at the time of the storm. Collectively, our data demonstrat ed a major negative impact of land development on coral reefs, a probl em likely to grow in scale given the growing demands for developed lan d and the recent frequency of large storms in the tropical Atlantic.