The complex nature of coastal ecosystems and their protection require a deeper understanding of land cover change and dynamics.Although a number of ecological studies have been conducted to realise this important obje...The complex nature of coastal ecosystems and their protection require a deeper understanding of land cover change and dynamics.Although a number of ecological studies have been conducted to realise this important objective,little information is available regarding the quantification of this land cover change.The role of mangroves as living barriers was under appreciated prior to the 2004 tsunami event.In this paper,we investigate the buffering functions of mangroves in the 2004 tsunami by employing the methodology developed in our companion paper.We focus more on mangrove distribution patterns in different buffer zones before and after the 2004 tsunami.The presence of mangroves before and after the event was statistically significant for the North(χ^(2)=154.08,p50.001)and Upper South(χ^(2)=62.25,p50.001).We observed positive linear relationships suggesting a loss of mangrove resulted into a gain of barren and sand land cover as a result of a devastating impact from the 2004 tsunami event.There are pockets of inland tsunami inundations and penetrations in the North and Upper-South in part owing to the river mouth profiles and dense mangrove trees.Although the North and Upper South Regions of the study area with large mangrove forest areas suffered slight damages,these regions put up a strong buffer against the tsunami suggesting that mangrove forests play a significant role in shoreline protection.展开更多
文摘The complex nature of coastal ecosystems and their protection require a deeper understanding of land cover change and dynamics.Although a number of ecological studies have been conducted to realise this important objective,little information is available regarding the quantification of this land cover change.The role of mangroves as living barriers was under appreciated prior to the 2004 tsunami event.In this paper,we investigate the buffering functions of mangroves in the 2004 tsunami by employing the methodology developed in our companion paper.We focus more on mangrove distribution patterns in different buffer zones before and after the 2004 tsunami.The presence of mangroves before and after the event was statistically significant for the North(χ^(2)=154.08,p50.001)and Upper South(χ^(2)=62.25,p50.001).We observed positive linear relationships suggesting a loss of mangrove resulted into a gain of barren and sand land cover as a result of a devastating impact from the 2004 tsunami event.There are pockets of inland tsunami inundations and penetrations in the North and Upper-South in part owing to the river mouth profiles and dense mangrove trees.Although the North and Upper South Regions of the study area with large mangrove forest areas suffered slight damages,these regions put up a strong buffer against the tsunami suggesting that mangrove forests play a significant role in shoreline protection.
