Participation in the 4th Water Resources and Wetlands International Conference Xavier Casamitjana participates in the 4th Water Resources and Wetlands International Conference, held in Tulcea (Romania) from 5 to 9 September 2018, with the oral presentation entitled “A one dimensional model as a tool to predict the hydrological regime of three coastal lagoons in la Pletera salt marshes”. This work has been conducted within the “Hydrodynamics and Physical Processes in Natural Aquatic Systems” research line. 15 de febrer 2019 Recerca i transferència
Xavier Casamitjana gives the oral presentation entitled “A one dimensional model as a tool to predict the hydrological regime of three coastal lagoons in la Pletera salt marshes” in the 4th Water Resources and Wetlands International Conference, held in Tulcea (Romania) from 5 to 9 September 2018. This research has been conducted in collaboration with members of the Department of Environmental Sciences and of the Institute of Aquatic Ecology of the University of Girona. The objectives of this conference are based on the need to integrate various approaches and angles in the research of inland and sea waters in order to establish sustainable ways of solving present and future problems generated by the ever more intensive use of water resources for human activities. Within this context, the authors point out that coastal wetlands are among the most productive and fluctuating ecosystems of the world. These ecosystems, however, are affected by human activities that may change their nutrient dynamics and water regime, thus causing water quality degradation, lagoons and wetlands disappearance or the establishment of invasive species. In this context, La Pletera salt marshes are composed of several coastal lagoons and wetlands that were affected by the incomplete construction of an urban development in 1987. This area has been the focus of two Life+ restoration projects aimed to recover its ecological functionality. A first creation of new lagoons was undertaken in 2002 simply based on the excavation of a hole below sea level, which ensured water permanency all year round. In 2016, during the second Life+ project, some new lagoons were excavated. Between 2014 and 2017, regular sampling campaigns have been carried out to measure temperature, salinity, water levels and other physicochemical parameters, including main ions, environmental isotopes and nutrients in La Pletera salt marshes lagoons. In this study the hydrological regime of two old lagoons (named Life A and Life B), and a new one created in 2002 (Life C), is studied by means of the dimensional model GLM (General Lake Model) in La Pletera salt marshes. The main objective of this research is to assess their main hydrochemical and hydrological characteristics and dynamics. This model computes vertical profiles of temperature, salinity and density. In the lagoons, GLM has been used to evaluate the water inflows and outflows, by adjusting them to the daily known water volumes, and also the evaporation fluxes. The study is mainly focused in dry periods, when the inflows of the lagoons decrease and evaporation increases. Results show that the old lagoons are more affected by evaporation and in the new lagoon water circulation is higher. This work has been conducted within the “Hydrodynamics and Physical Processes in Natural Aquatic Systems” research line.