A geographic perspective of the coastal resources of Puerto Rico in the aftermath of hurricane Maria Co-PIs: Antonio González Toro1,2 and Tania del Mar López Marrero1,3 1Interdisciplinary Center for Coastal Studies, University of Puerto Rico – UPRM, 2GeoInformatica, Inc., 3Department of Social Sciences and – UPRM
Introduction Hurricane Maria has been the most destructive natural event in the history of Puerto Rico. The hurricane impacted different sectors and systems and current estimates of the physical damages range from $94 to $120 billion dollars. Impacts were also noticeable in the coastal resources of the island; including for example, coastal erosion, impacts of ecosystems such as coral reefs and mangroves, and coastal infrastructure. Documenting such impacts and what was learned from that experience, constitute a source of knowledge and memory that could be used to manage the occurrence of future hurricanes and to promote systems resiliency.
Project objective Keeping with NOAA/Sea Grant objective of promoting resilient coastal communities and ecosystems, we propose to publish a publication that will (1) highlight some of the coastal resources of Puerto Rico and (2) describe their relationship to hurricane occurrence and impacts using Hurricane Maria experience as a base. This publication will directly address the question: What were the general impacts of hurricane Maria across several important coastal resources in Puerto Rico? The publication will also include lessons learned or recommendation for promoting management and increasing resiliency in the face of future hurricanes. The following topics will be included as part of the publication: •
Coral Reefs Coral reefs are important ecosystems that provide multiple ecosystem services both to humans as well as other species. Hurricanes have significant impacts on coral reefs and their surroundings. This topic would focus on the variety of impacts that coral reefs suffers due to the passage of hurricane Maria. Potential case studies include: Reserva del Condado, Reserva Natural de la Bahía de Jobos, Reserva Natural Los Arrecifes de Guayama.
•
Coastal estuaries Similar to coral reefs, coastal estuaries serve both natural and human populations in various way. Mangroves, which are a type of estuarine system, for example serve as sanctuaries for both endemic and migratory birds; they also serve as buffers from storms -1-