The project is funded with 156,250 euros from the State R&D&I Plan. The study helps identify future risks associated with sea level rise
The Sedimentary Basin Analysis group of the Marine Research Center (CIM) of the University of Vigo is leading a project that seeks to study the geological and sedimentary dynamics of the Vigo estuary and analyze the response of coastal ecosystems to climate and sea level variations. The initiative has funding of 156,250.00 euros within the framework of the State Plan for Scientific, Technical and Innovation Research 2021-2023.
This research group had already provided relevant data on the Vigo estuary in the past, including a better dating of the sedimentary fill and evidence that it is the only Galician estuary confirmed as a composite incised valley, a structure excavated on rocky substrate and subsequently covered by sediments in different phases. This new project now attempts to fill knowledge gaps by investigating some shallow and still little-known areas, near the outer and intermediate banks of the estuary, as well as on the banks of the gas vent systems of the San Simón cove.
Reconstructing the environmental evolution of the estuary
The research will allow us to reconstruct in high resolution the evolution of sedimentation environments during marine transgression, a process by which sea level rises and progressively floods coastal areas, and to delve deeper into how fluctuating climate and relative sea level affected the spatio-temporal dynamics of sensitive ecosystems of high environmental value.
To do this, high-resolution seismic techniques, carbon-14 dating and geochemical and biological studies aimed at paleoenvironmental reconstruction will be combined. “What we are looking for is to reconstruct the changes in the configuration and filling of the estuary during the marine transgression and understand how they affected the coastal ecosystems”, explained one of the researchers responsible for the project, Castor Muñoz Sobrino, a member of a team that also includes Soledad García Gil, Gonzalo Méndez Martínez and Alejandro de Carlos Villamarín. “This will allow us to identify the main erosional events and sea level oscillations and relate these processes to the climatic events and anthropogenic impacts recorded in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula during the last thousands of years”, he explained.
Anticipating changes to improve ecosystem management
Castor Muñoz elaborated that “the idea is to identify the main discontinuities of the fill (tidal and wave erosion surfaces and maximum flood surfaces), still unknown, and to complete the high-resolution cartography to understand their relationship with the underlying geology, sedimentology, biogeochemistry and microbial ecology”. The researchers are also interested in relating the changes detected in the configuration, hydrology, sedimentary fill, productivity and biodiversity of the estuary to the main climatic/anthropogenic events recorded in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula during the Holocene.
“A better understanding of these connections would serve to assess the future risks that the increase in temperature, the rise in sea level and the lower intensity of the Atlantic Southern Gyre current may have in different types of coastal areas and could contribute to improving the management of marine/terrestrial ecosystems, as it would provide a good perspective of changes on scales of a few hundred years or even decades”, stated the researcher from the CIM, an institution that is part of the Cigus Network, an initiative of the Xunta de Galicia that integrates centers accredited for their quality and scientific impact
“Understanding the changes that have occurred in the past on relatively short time scales (centuries, decades) can also have applications in the planning of economic and environmental policies, and in the definition of coastal heritage conservation strategies,” he argued.
The CIM holds the CIGUS certification from the Regional Government of Galicia, which attests to the quality and impact of its research, and its activities are co-financed by the European Union through the 2021–2027 FEDER Program.
Source: DUVI
