Baseline assessment of coastal water quality, in Vanuatu, South Pacific: Insights gained from in-situ sampling

Devlin, Michelle ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2194-2534, Smith, Andy, Graves, Carolyn A., Petus, Caroline, Tracey, Dieter, Maniel, Michael, Hooper, Eryn, Kotna, Krishna, Samie, Erie, Loubser, David and Lyons, Brett P. (2020) Baseline assessment of coastal water quality, in Vanuatu, South Pacific: Insights gained from in-situ sampling. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 160. ISSN 0025-326X

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Abstract

Nearshore deterioration of water quality in Pacific coastal waters is a growing problem, associated with increasing urban and industrial sewage discharges, and agricultural runoff. Published water quality studies in the Pacific region are limited in both number and scope, making it difficult to resolve the extent of the issue or quantify the variability of water quality across Pacific islands and countries. This study collected water quality measurements over three years in the coastal waters around the Island of Efate (Vanuatu) with majority of work carried out in Port Vila, its capital. Port Vila is the key urban centre for Vanuatu where the increasing population and pollution inputs are placing substantial pressure on the coastal environment. Highest concentrations of dissolved nutrients and suspended sediments were measured adjacent or near the urban drains that enter the coastal areas along the capital's seafront, highlighting many of the issues around anthropogenic inputs are linked to the increasing urbanisation in Port Vila Bay. We provide baseline data that explores variability of coastal water quality and these types of datasets for Pacific islands are a first step towards facilitating development of long-term monitoring programmes and informing coastal zone management decision making.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	commonwealth marine economies,eutrophication,human health,pacific,remote sensing,vanuatu,water quality,pollution,aquatic science,oceanography,sdg 11 - sustainable cities and communities ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2300/2310
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Environmental Sciences
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Collaborative Centre for Sustainable Use of the Seas
Related URLs:	http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	20 Nov 2020 00:53
Last Modified:	22 Oct 2022 07:29
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/77737
DOI:	10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111651

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