Construction and application of coastal ecosystem model coupling multiple human activities.

Area of Science:

• Marine ecology
• Environmental modeling
• Oceanography

Background:

• Coastal ecosystems face degradation due to multiple human activities.
• Understanding these impacts is crucial for adaptive management strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a coupled ecosystem model simulating multiple human activities.
• To quantify the contribution rates of different human activities to marine ecological factors in the Bohai Sea.

Main Methods:

• Coupled Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) and Carbon, Silicate, and Nitrogen Ecosystem (CoSiNE) model.
• Orthogonal experiment design for scenario analysis.
• Variance analysis to quantify activity contributions.

Main Results:

• Model validation showed high accuracy (R² > 0.81) for dissolved inorganic nitrogen, phosphorus, and Chlorophyll-a.
• Runoff discharge was the dominant contributor to nutrient levels and phytoplankton/zooplankton nitrogen content (up to 68.23%).
• Human activity impacts showed spatial heterogeneity, decreasing with distance from the coast.

Conclusions:

• The developed model accurately quantifies the combined impacts of human activities on coastal ecosystems.
• Runoff discharge is identified as a critical factor influencing the Bohai Sea ecosystem.
• The model serves as a valuable tool for simulating coastal ecosystems under anthropogenic pressure.