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Stream flow composition and sediment yield comparison between partially urbanized and undisturbed coastal watersheds—case study: St. John, US Virgin Islands

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Abstract

In steep dry-tropical islands, rural and urban development can lead to accelerated soil erosion and the delivery of land-based materials into marine ecosystems. The objective of this paper was to compare stream water composition, clay minerology, and sediment yield between a partially urbanized (Coral Bay) and an undisturbed (Lameshur) coastal watersheds in St. John, US Virgin Islands (USVI). The saturation index of streamflow water samples was calculated using “The Geochemist’s Workbench” software and most likely precipitated minerals from observed storm events was then compared with X-ray diffraction on soil clay mineralogy. The spatial distribution on both annual mean (2010) erosion rates and storm event–wise (Hurricane Otto) sediment yield among the two study watersheds were modeled using the revised and modified universal soil loss equations (RUSLE; MUSLE), respectively. Cations concentration in stream flow water samples and sediment yield were higher for the partially urbanized (Coral Bay) compared to the undisturbed (Lameshur) watershed. Our findings suggest that rural/urban development may increase stream water cations concentration and inputs of sediment to downstream ecosystems. Future studies evaluating the effect of management practices such as pavement or other stabilization of dirt roads and their impact on stream water quality and quantity and sediment yield are crucial for the proper sediment management in the study watersheds and potentially in other rural-urbanizing tropical watersheds.

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Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Stephen V. Smith, Alejandro Hinojosa Corona, María Elena Solana Arellano, María Isabel Pérez Montfort, Matthew Brand, Jochen Schubert, Brett Sanders, Robert Harrington, Whitney Sears, Esther Araiza, Mario Vega, Eloisa Aparício, Ivonne Pedrin, Belinda Sandoval, and the Virgin Island Environmental Resource Station (VIERS).

Funding

This study was funded by Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACyT), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Ecological Effects of Sea Level Rise Program (award NA16NOS4780206). Field and some lab work were supported by funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Coral Reef Conservation Program to Dr. Sarah C. Gray from University of San Diego.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA

    Napoleon Gudino-Elizondo

  2. Departamento de Geología, Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada, 22860, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

    Napoleon Gudino-Elizondo & Thomas Kretzschmar

  3. Marine Science and Environmental Studies Department, University of San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA

    Sarah C. Gray

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  1. Napoleon Gudino-Elizondo
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Correspondence to Thomas Kretzschmar.

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Gudino-Elizondo, N., Kretzschmar, T. & Gray, S.C. Stream flow composition and sediment yield comparison between partially urbanized and undisturbed coastal watersheds—case study: St. John, US Virgin Islands. Environ Monit Assess 191, 676 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-019-7778-4

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