NORTH AFRI CAN COASTAL LAGOONS

An overview of integrated hydro-ecological studies

in the MELMARINA Project: monitoring and modelling
coastal lagoonsmaking management tools for aquatic
resources in North Africa
R. J. Flower J. R. Thompson
Published online: 28 December 2008
Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2008
Abstract As landscape disturbance and climate
conspire to accelerate global environmental change
towards unprecedented levels in the twenty-rst
century, the populated coastal regions of many
countries are facing major threats to sustainability.
Coastal water resources are particularly vulnerable in
dry regions. In view of the expected severity of future
environmental change in the Southern Mediterranean
Region, the European Commission supported an
integrated multidisciplinary project, MELMARINA,
on monitoring and modelling coastal lagoons in
Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt. This is a region where
water management for people and for agriculture has
been intense particularly during the twentieth cen-
tury, yet long-term environmental monitoring and
management of wetland ecosystems are under devel-
oped. Not only are biodiversity aspects at risk in
coastal lagoons and wetlands but the goods and
services that affect human welfare are also generally
in decline. Co-ordinated hydro-ecological monitoring
at key wetland lagoons was begun in 2003 with a
view to establishing environmental baselines and
calibrating site-specied hydro-ecological models.
This article introduces the project and its results that
range from lagoon typication and hydro-ecology to
the application of hydro-ecological models. Detailed
results and evaluations are presented in a linked
series of themed scientic articles within this special
issue. The present condition of the lagoons investi-
gated essentially results from various hydrological
modications combined with eutrophication prob-
lems, yet all still remain valuable aquatic ecosystems.
Adequate monitoring data are an essential part of
reliable predictive modelling and, despite several data
gaps, nutrient load reduction scenarios were under-
taken to help target restoration aims. Implementation
of aspects of the EU Water Framework Directive for
achieving good ecological status of transitional
waters is advocated. Nevertheless, as the twenty-rst
century advances the effects of global climate change
are expected to amplify current stresses making
intervention restoration and adaptation management
even more imperative. Long-term sustainability
depends upon detecting and measuring environmental
change (long-term water quality and ecological
quality) and incorporating the results into appropriate
hydro-ecological models to facilitate the develop-
ment of appropriate management initiatives.
Guest editors: J. R. Thompson & R. J. Flower
Hydro-ecological Monitoring and Modelling of North African
Coastal Lagoons
R. J. Flower (&)
Environmental Change Research Centre, UCL
Department of Geography, University College London,
Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
e-mail: r.ower@geog.ucl.ac.uk
J. R. Thompson (&)
Wetland Research Unit, UCL Department of Geography,
University College London, Gower Street,
London WC1E 6BT, UK
e-mail: j.thompson@geog.ucl.ac.uk
1 3
Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314
DOI 10.1007/s10750-008-9674-8
Keywords Coastal lagoons North Africa
Mediterranean Hydro-ecological monitoring
Modelling Environmental change
Introduction
Reconciling environmental sustainability with human
population growth and economic development is a
challenging global problem. As the twenty-rst
century begins, growing demands for water and other
resources, pollution, land-use intensication, together
with climate change are all increasingly threatening
the sustainability of natural resources in many
countries (Tilman et al., 2001; Ragab & Prudhomme,
2002). This is particularly so for freshwater resources
in most developing countries where pressing human
needs often overwhelm other environmental consid-
erations (Allan, 2000). In such countries, wetlands
are amongst the most vulnerable natural ecosystems
(Finlayson & Moser, 1992; Dugan, 1993; Zalidis
et al., 2002), and problems of freshwater availability
and land development are epitomised in North Africa.
Across the Southern Mediterranean Region (SMR),
water resources are under extreme and growing
pressure (Hollis, 1992; Biswas, 1993; Sultan et al.,
1999; Allan, 2000) with important implications for
wetland resources (e.g. Finlayson et al., 1992, Smart,
2002). Nowhere is the loss rate of natural wetlands
and associated water bodies more alarming than at
the coastal margins.
Recent work points to hydrological disturbance,
water pollution and land reclamation as the primary
causes of coastal wetland resource loss around the
Mediterranean (Flower, 2001; O

zhan, 2005; Perez-

Ruzafa et al., 2005). Many sites listed in wetland
inventories for North Africa (Kerambrun, 1986;
Hughes et al., 1997; Green et al., 2002) no longer
exist or are severely degraded. Some remaining
wetland lagoons nonetheless support high-value eco-
systems that are not only important resources for local
human populations (e.g. Benessaiah & Belhaj, 1999)
but also contribute substantially to regional biodiver-
sity (Pearse, 1996; Hughes et al., 1997; Chergiu et al.,
1999; Khedr & Lovett-Doust, 2000; Flower, 2001;
Green et al., 2002). The values of these sites are often
recognised by international bodies (for example, the
Ramsar Convention and MedWet, Farinha et al., 1996)
and by national legislation (e.g. Tunisias Forest Act
1988). However, effective management of coastal
wetland resources for sustainability requires reliable
integrated information about current site status, past
and projected changes in human usage and a variety of
other environmental change processes. Such informa-
tion is generally not currently available for North
African wetland lakes and lagoons. The need to
acquire this information is heightened given projected
climate change. Precipitation is predicted to decline
around the Mediterranean during the twenty-rst
century (e.g. Arnell, 2004). For example, it has been
suggested that a substantial area will experience
declines greater than 40 mm year
-1
(or 17%) in
successive 50-year periods and, as a result, the region
is likely to experience acute water stress (Shindell,
2007). In addition, it has been suggested that the
Mediterranean will experience some of the largest sea
level rise-induced losses of coastal wetlands (Nicholls
& Hoozemans, 1996; Nicholls et al., 1999; Nicholls,
2004).
Most North African coastal lagoons are strongly
exploited but few are used sustainably (Flower,
2001). The MELMARINA (monitoring and model-
ling coastal lagoons: making management tools for
aquatic resources in North Africa) Project was
conceived with the ambitious aim of establishing
integrated hydrological and ecological monitoring at
selected lagoons in three North African countries
(Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt). A major aim was to
improve understanding of the functioning of these
ecosystems and to ascertain the impacts of environ-
mental and management changes through hydro-
ecological modelling. As such, the project comprised
a multi-partner consortium formed with the objective
of applying internationally integrated research to
North African lagoonal systems in order to promote
potentially sustainable management options for these
aquatic resources. This article provides an overview
of the project activities including site surveys, lagoon
ecosystem monitoring and eld instrumentation,
palaeo-environmental studies and remote sensing.
Together with the collection of secondary data, these
activities have facilitated the establishment of envi-
ronmental baselines. They have also provided data to
develop hydro-ecological models which can make
major contributions to lagoon management when
parameterised and calibrated with sufcient site-
specic data (e.g. Rasmussen et al., 2000; Gonenc &
4 Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314
1 3
Woln, 2005). Such models can facilitate the simu-
lation of future environmental change scenarios
involving alternative management interventions, cli-
mate change and sea level rise.
The MELMARINA Project and its objectives
The MELMARINA Project was funded by the EU
INCO-MED initiative under the Framework V
Programme. It involved research teams from two
European countries and four institutions from three
North African countries (Table 1). MELMARINA
was coordinated by the UK institution (UCL). It was
initiated in 2002 and extended until February 2006.
The project employed common protocols developed
through a series of workshops which also established
a suite of specic objectives:
The implementation of integrated monitoring
programmes at selected lagoons to establish
space-time changes in hydrological and ecologi-
cal characteristics and to introduce automated
measurement and best practice procedures (with
reference to the EU Water Framework Directive,
Directive 2000/60/EC).
The establishment and monitoring of water
resources and the extent of aquatic vegetation
throughout each lagoon using the combination of
remotely sensing imagery and eld surveys.
The identication of key environmental variables
controlling vegetation characteristics and water
quality changes.
The development of dynamic hydro-ecological
models using state-of-the-art model codes and the
calibration of these models using data from the
monitoring programme.
The simulation of site-specic environmental
change scenarios using these models.
The development of integrated time series and
GIS databases for the MELMARINA lagoons and
making these data and the results of model
simulations available to end-users, especially to
national management agencies.
Site selection
Three primary lagoons were selected for detailed
assessment within MELMARINA, one located in each
of the North African partner countries (Morocco,
Tunisia and Egypt). Sites were selected following
consultations within and beyond the consortium
according to several criteria: (i) being a permanent
water body with at least one well-dened connection to
the sea, (ii) having signicance for biodiversity and
value (actual or potential) for sheries, (iii) providing
additional useful benets for people, (iv) having
accumulating subaquatic sediments and (v) being
amenable to regular sampling and the installation of
scientic instrumentation. The three sites selected
were Merja Zerga in Morocco, Ghar El Melh in Tunisia
and Lake Manzala in Egypt. All three of these coastal
lagoons are in areas of intensive agriculture (including
aquaculture) and all are highly disturbed multi-purpose
systems. Merja Zerga occurs on the Atlantic coast
whilst the other two sites are on the Southern Medi-
terranean coast. Despite declining environmental
quality, all sites nevertheless retain ecological signif-
icance including aquatic vegetation, sheries and birds
(see Ayache et al., 2009). A series of secondary sites
were identied which, although not monitored, pro-
vided context for the primary sites; they were Sidi Bou
Ghaba and Lagune de Nador (Morocco), Lac de Korba
Table 1 The MELMARINA consortium
No. Country Institution Acronym
1 UK Environmental Change Research Centre/Wetland Research Unit,
UCL Department of Geography
UCL
2 Denmark DHI-Water and Environment DHI-WE
3 Morocco Institut Scientique, Universite Mohamed V, Rabat ISRabat
4 Tunisia Institut National des Science et Technologies de la Mer, Salambo INSTM
5 Tunisia Department of Geography, Faculte des Lettres et des Science Humaines de Sousse FLSHS
6 Egypt National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Science, Cairo NARSS
Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314 5
1 3
and Halk El Menzel (Tunisia), Lake Bardawil and Lake
Qarun (Egypt). The locations of the MELMARINA
primary and secondary lagoons are shown in Fig. 1.
Rationale and methodology
Achieving the objectives of the MELMARINA Pro-
ject required an integrated approach which included a
novel combination of eld, laboratory, analytical and
modelling activities. These activities and their inter-
relationships are summarised as a series of inter-
linked work packages in Fig. 2. The formulation and
implementation of this project structure were guided
by a conceptual model of coastal lagoons within the
SMR. This model (Fig. 3) summarises the design
complexity of integrated monitoring and includes key
processes (e.g. inows of freshwater from inland
catchments, exchanges with the sea, sediment accu-
mulation), the ecosystem components they inuence
(e.g. aquatic vegetation, sh, plankton, birds) and the
dominant factors responsible for environmental
change. The latter include upstream abstraction of
water for agriculture, industry and domestic supplies,
all of which return waste water of varying quality to
water courses which potentially ow into coastal
lagoons. Similarly, human settlements and agriculture
around lagoons are frequently responsible for aquatic
pollution, in particular nutrient enrichment, whilst
lagoon reclamation for alternative use is common. As
indicated in Fig. 3, pressures upon coastal lagoons
will change in the longer term as a result of climate
change, sea level rise, population growth and eco-
nomic development. Figure 3 also summarises (in
italics) some of the key methodological approaches
adopted by MELMARINA within the different work
packages. Initial work packages (WPs) 14 focussed
on the collection of existing data from the primary
sites, integrated eld surveys and hydro-ecological
monitoring and the utilisation of remote sensing
techniques. A main objective of MELMARINA was
implicit in these work packages, to establish the
principal hydrological, sedimentological and ecolog-
ical processes operating in the primary lagoons. Few
previous attempts have been made to link aquatic
biology with environmental variables in North Afri-
can lagoons, and in WP 5 vegetation data were
combined with environmental data in order to inves-
tigate their inter-relationships. WPs 6, 7 and 8
concerned another main objective of the project, the
implementation and use of hydro-ecological models
for each key lagoon. These models were developed
within WP 6 whilst future environmental change and
management scenarios were devised within WP 7.
Subsequently, these scenarios were simulated in WP
8. Using relationships between ecology and environ-
mental change variables in hydrodynamic models,
which incorporate water availability and quality
information, has allowed changes in lagoon ecology
to be simulated. Nutrient load, land use, sea level
change, freshwater availability are all perceived as
major drivers on North African lagoons (e.g. Flower,
2001; Ramdani et al., 2001; EEA, 2006), and their
assessment are relevant to regional water resource
management plans. WP 9 was dedicated to enhancing
the capacity of North African institutions to manage
aquatic ecosystems and included quality control
assessments, training initiatives, external workshops,
conferences, and other dissemination activities
designed to present project ndings. The latter
included the projects web site (www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/
melmarina) and the suite of articles within this special
issue.
3
1
a
b
c
2
d
e
f
Primary: 1. Merja Zerga, 2. Ghar El Melh, 3. Lake Manzala
Secondary: a. Sidi Bou Ghaba, B. Lagune de Nador, c. Lac de Korba, d. Halk El Menzel, e. Lake Bardawil, f. Lake Qarun
Primary site Secondary site
Fig. 1 Location of the MELMARINA primary and secondary North African lagoons
6 Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314
1 3
Following mutual agreements on research proto-
cols (Flower et al., 2003), specic tasks were
assigned to institutions within the MELMARINA
consortium. Each North African institution undertook
specialist tasks and was responsible for the day-to-
day operation of the monitoring programme (includ-
ing hydrology, water quality, plankton, sh and
aquatic vegetation) and the collection of existing
data and other documentary information. Specialist
tasks included zooplankton and plant analyses for
Merja Zerga and Ghar El Melh (ISRabat), sh
diversity and growth rates (INSTM), land-use anal-
ysis (FLSHS) and remote sensing (NARSS). UCL
was responsible for analytical quality control,
sediment coring and analyses, hydrological analyses,
database management and GIS. They also acted as
advisors to institutions undertaken monitoring activ-
ities. DHI-WEs main responsibility was the hydro-
ecological modelling work packages.
Project results
The primary results of the MELMARINA Project are
summarised in Flower & Thompson (2006). This
special issue draws on these results and comprises a
suite of themed articles each dealing with the main
results of specic aspects of the MELMARINA
Project.
WP 9.
Quality Control and
Dissemination of
Information
WP 7.
Assessment of Future
Forcing Factors
WP 4.
Ecological Change Detection
and Monitoring using Remote
Sensing
WP 5.
Establishment of
Controls upon Wetland
Vegetation
WP 1.
Baseline Data
Collection
WP 2.
Spatial Assessment of
Sediment Accumulation
and Quality
WP3.
Contemporary Field
Hydro-Ecological
Monitoring
Data / Identification of Monitoring Requirements
Ground
Truth
Data
Ground
Truth
Data
Hydro-
Ecological
Data
Hydro-
Ecological
Data
Data (Bathymetry and
Sedimentation)
WP 6.
Hydrological / Hydraulic
Modelling including
Vegetation Distribution:
Historic and Contemporary
WP 8.
Hydrological / Hydraulic
Modelling including Vegetation
Distribution: Future and
Management Scenarios
Data: (Bathymetry and
Sedimentation Rates)
Model Input,
Calibration &
Validation
Data
Model Input,
Calibration &
Validation
Data
Vegetation Distribution
(Input, Calibration &
Validation Data.
Baseline Conditions
Vegetation
Distribution
Models
Models of
Contemporary
Conditions
(Initial
Conditions and
Baselines)
Changes to model
input and
boundary
conditions
Fig. 2 The MELMARINA
work package (WP)
structure
Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314 7
1 3
Site bathymetries, site characteristics and land use
issues
The three primary lagoons (Merja Zerga, Ghar El Melh
and Lake Manzala) are strongly contrasted according
to many of their physical and biological characteristics.
Ayache et al. (2009) present an overview of the three
sites. All are shallowwater bodies connected to the sea
by at least one well-dened channel and, except in
these channels, water depths are less than 2 m. The
lagoons vary in size from less than 20 km
2
(Merja
Zerga) to ca. 700 km
2
(Lake Manzala), and they are
also different in terms of hydrological characteristics
with Merja Zerga being ushed daily by the relatively
large Atlantic tides whereas Ghar El Melh and Lake
Manzala, being conuent with the Mediterranean, are
much less affected by tidal cycles (see Thompson et al.,
2009). All three lagoons occur at the termini of inland
drainage basins of varying size. Merja Zerga receives
freshwater from two inows, one of which (the Nador
Canal) is articial being created as a result of major
drainage works. Inows from both sources are highly
seasonal. Freshwater inows to Ghar El Melh are also
seasonal but are smaller unless the Mejerda River,
which was historically diverted away from the lagoon,
overspills its banks. Many of the small streams still
draining to the site have been dammed reducing their
already modest ows (Ayache et al., 2009). Conse-
quently, both Merja Zerga and Ghar El Melh are
dominated by marine water, especially in summer. On
the other hand, Lake Manzala is predominantly
freshwater, since it receives large year-round inows
of Nile River water via agricultural and domestic
drainage. All three lagoons are delineated from the sea
by sand bars, dunes and spits but the landscape on the
inland margins of each has become strongly agricul-
tural, especially during the latter part of the twentieth
century, with intensive crop production for cereals,
vegetables and fruit. The impacts of these activities are
most vividly demonstrated around the southern mar-
gins of Lake Manzala where extensive areas of lake bed
have been reclaimed for agriculture.
Sediment characteristics
During the rst phase of MELMARINA, lagoon
surveys were carried out and although activities
focussed on the three primary lagoons, secondary
Fig. 3 Conceptual model of a coastal lagoon in the Southern Mediterranean Region (see text for explanation)
8 Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314
1 3
sites were also visited to investigate surcial sedi-
ments through grab sampling and sediment coring
(Fig. 3). In addition to bathymetric measurements,
spatial assessment of sediment quality was under-
taken at each primary lagoon and Flower et al. (2009)
describe the variations found. Bioclastic material
(mainly mollusc shell fragments) was most common
in central areas of the lagoons where oxygenated
marine water predominated and where silts were
common. Sands predominated in the deeper marine
channels where benthic biomass was low. Freshwater
mollusc remains were only common in surcial
sediment from the most western parts of Lake
Manzala. Sediment cores from Merja Zerga indicated
that below about 30 cm depth (either in the mainly
clays and silts of the southern part of the lagoon or in
the more sandy sediment in the north) marine shells
were abundant and in the northern part they made up
the bulk of the sediment. This was similar to the
secondary site Lagoon Nador where shell debris
constituted the sediment bulk. In cores from Ghar El
Melh and Lake Manzala, shells (usually Cerastoder-
ma) were occasionally present. In contrast, grab
surveys of surface sediments contained few living
molluscs indicating major and recent declines in
marine shellsh abundance. A shift to more fresh-
water conditions (Birks et al., 2001; Flower, 2001) is
probably a factor in Lake Manzala, but elsewhere
eutrophication and oxygen depletion are suspected as
the cause of shellsh decline.
Sediment cores were used for radio-isotope dating
so that sediment accumulation rates could be calcu-
lated (Flower et al., 2009). Despite dating problems
caused by low rain washout of the atmospheric
radionuclide
210
Pb (see also Appleby et al., 2001),
137
Cs fallout usually provided a good marker for the
1963 sediment horizon in the lagoon sediments.
Surface sediment accumulation rates (SARs) were
similar in the primary lagoons at around 0.7
0.8 cm year
-1
. Past changes in SAR were also
indicated but dating was restricted to about the past
50 years. Ghar El Melh and the Nile Delta lakes
including Manzala typically showed a reduced SAR
in the most recent period, whilst Merja Zerga showed
little change and several secondary sites showed
increased SARs. Reduced SAR probably indicated
the diminished effects of oods and sediment inwash,
either as a result of regulation of the Nile (for Lake
Manzala) or impounding inowing streams thereby
compounding the earlier impacts of diversion of the
Mejerda River (for Ghar El Melh). Irrespective of
past changes in SAR, the current sediment accumu-
lation rates indicate that considerable quantities of
sediment are retained in the primary lagoons. Sedi-
ments of approximately between 2 and 5 kg (dry
mass) m
-2
year
-1
are stored in each lagoon. The
lowest dry weight sediment accumulation occurred in
Lake Manzala and this reects a relatively higher
proportion of organic sedimentary material from
within lake productivity. Consequently, and despite
the strong similarity of contemporary sediment
accumulation rates in the primary lagoons, sediment
dynamics appear to be quite different between and
within sites and are related to both within lagoon and
within drainage basin processes as well as to the
magnitude of sea water incursions.
Hydro-ecological monitoring
MELMARINA hydro-ecological monitoring was
undertaken in two ways: by employing in situ
instrumentation to record hydrological and some
water chemistry changes and by undertaking regular
eld sampling for water quality and ecology over
15 months during 20032004. Additional data for
this period, most notably meteorological station and
tide gauge records, were obtained from appropriate
secondary sources (Fig. 3). Thompson et al. (2009)
describe the eld instrumentation and monitoring
activities with an emphasis on the hydrological work.
Several digital water level recorders were installed in
each lagoon using supporting frameworks designed
according to local site conditions. In addition, one
conductivity, temperature and pressure (CTD) logger
was employed at each site with its location being
rotated between monitoring stations. As backup,
water level readings from stage boards were also
made on monthly monitoring visits and using local
observers. Water samples (for water chemistry and
for plankton) from several strategically selected
monitoring stations within each lagoon were acquired
on each visit. Unsurprisingly, large daily changes in
water level were recorded at Merja Zerga due to the
inuence of Atlantic tides and these were much less
at the two Mediterranean sites. Water level changes at
all sites generally diminished with distance from the
sea connections. Freshwater inows were highly
seasonal at Merja Zerga and Ghar El Melh being
Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314 9
1 3
dependant on rainfall over the inland catchments.
Therefore, except in the winter months, freshwater
inows to these sites were characterised by very low
or no ow. At Lake Manzala, however, regulation of
the Nile provided by upstream impoundments, most
notably the High Aswan Dam, and the development
of perennial irrigation in the Nile Delta have greatly
diminished the seasonality of freshwater inows (e.g.
Stanley & Warne, 1993; Randazzo et al., 1998). The
balance of freshwater inows and tidal cycles largely
regulates the salinities of each lagoon so that summer
water levels are maintained by seawater at Merja
Zerga and Ghar El Melh. At the latter site, because
tidal ushing is relatively small, hypersalinity devel-
ops in these months. Lake Manzala displays a
persistent and strong salinity gradient where the
southern and western parts are essentially freshwater
with higher salinities in the north where sea water
enters the lake.
Plankton
Phytoplankton communities in coastal lagoons are of
major importance for food web structures and
ecosystem health. However, water quality changes,
especially through eutrophication, are major prob-
lems for coastal lagoons inuenced by human
activity. These changes can alter the species compo-
sition of plankton communities but precise species
changes are difcult to predict. Plankton monitoring
of the three MELMARINA primary lagoons is
described by Ramdani et al. (2009). Phytoplankton
numbers are shown to uctuate markedly with
decreased numbers during NovemberJanuary but
with the spring increase occurring around March. The
highest cell number was found during the summer
period when relatively larger individuals were dom-
inant. The summer increase at Merja Zerga was
attributed to the increase in cell numbers of Pseudo-
nitzschia spp. and Pleurosigma elongatum which
reached 24,400 cells l
-1
. Diatoms and dinoagellates
comprised the bulk of the crops in Merja Zerga and
Ghar El Melh and a total of 211 phytoplankton taxa
were identied. Only occasionally were harmful
toxin producing dinoagellates recorded during the
20032004 monitoring period. As in most lakes and
lagoons, changes in phytoplankton species were
related to nutrient levels rather that to salinity
changes.
Aquatic plants
Seasonal vegetation surveys were undertaken at each
of the primary lagoons (Flower & Thompson, 2006).
Results from the transects undertaken at the margins
of Merja Zerga and Ghar El Melh revealed the
dominance of ruderal plants indicating the disturbed
nature of the landscape. A variety of marginal plants
was present with little seasonal succession. Within
lagoon vegetation at Lake Manzala comprised a
complex mosaic of plants dominated by emergent
species (Phragmites and Typha). Submerged aquatic
plants (most notably Ceratophyllum and Potamog-
eton) were also common in the less saline and less
polluted parts of the lake in particular those in the
west of the site. Vegetation data were compared with
environmental data obtained from the hydro-ecolog-
ical monitoring programme in order to identify the
key controlling variables affecting the distribution of
vegetation. Ordination analysis showed that water
salinity exerted the strongest inuence upon vegeta-
tion distribution with water depth and nutrients
having more localised inuence.
Fisheries
Kra em et al. (2009) describe the sampling of sh
communities within the three MELMARINA primary
lagoons. Lake Manzala supports a markedly different
shery from that in Ghar El Melh and Merja Zerga.
Its ichthyofauna consisted essentially of freshwater
species (especially tilapia) some of which are char-
acteristic of the Nile system. Furthermore, Manzala
supports by far the most important shery with an
annual catch of around 8,000 tonnes. In comparison,
sh production in Merja Zerga and especially Ghar El
Melh is small and is declining. The exploited shery
within Merja Zerga mainly comprises two species of
mullet (Mugil cephalus and Liza ramada) and eels
(Anguilla anguilla) together with shellsh including
Cerastoderma and Ruditapes. The Ghar El Melh
shery is very restricted by the characteristics of the
site: summer hypersalinity develops in the central and
western parts and water quality problems due to
nutrient enrichment occur particularly in the area of
Ghar El Melh town (the largest population centre on
the lagoon shore, Ayache et al., 2009). Such problems
are not so manifest at Merja Zerga because of the
ushing effect of the large Atlantic tides. Fish growth
10 Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314
1 3
rates and condition show small differences for mullet
in the three lagoons reecting the ecological state
during the last 10 years. As with catch decline, these
are associated with disturbed sea connections,
increasing eutrophication and intensication of
human activities generally. Remarkably, however,
overall sheries production in Lake Manzala has
remained relatively stable in the last few decades
despite major changes in sh species and widespread
pollution and intense shing activity.
Remote sensing
The use of remotely sensed data for monitoring of
wetlands has signicant potential, especially in large
sites where traditional eld techniques are problem-
atical and are unable to provide large spatial coverage
(e.g. Hess et al., 2003; Cozar et al., 2005). When
combined with ground surveys aimed at calibrating
the spectral signatures of different wetland plant
communities, remote sensing techniques provide an
exceptional means of distinguishing spatial vegeta-
tion cover as well as determining the extent of open
water and marginal disturbance (e.g. Schmidt &
Skidmore, 2003; Castaneda & Herrero, 2005; Maheu-
Giroux & de Blois, 2005; Fig. 3). Remote sensing
approaches can also be employed to investigate water
quality issues within water bodies. Ahmed et al.
(2009) apply remote sensing techniques to the three
MELMARINA primary lagoons and discuss the
issues of geometric correction and image classica-
tion, primarily to distinguish vegetation patterns. Of
the three sites, Lake Manzala has by far the most
extensive cover of aquatic macrophytes and these
plant communities displayed 13 different spectral
patterns which were categorised into different groups,
depending on species (most plant communities were
dominated by emergent plants Phragmites and Typha
or by the oating Eichhornia). A particularly valu-
able aspect of remote sensing imagery is that there is
now approximately 35 years of data available
enabling assessments of long-term changes in the
nature of sites to be investigated. For Lake Manzala,
examination of the older data is used by Ahmed et al.
(2009) to track the reduction in the area of open water
as the southern margin of the lake has been
reclaimed. They also show signicant uctuations
in the area of emergent vegetation. Similarly, Ayache
et al. (2009) employ a combination of historical
maps, aerial photographs and satellite imagery to
track large-scale landscape evolution at Merja Zerga
and Ghar El Melh. The expansion of the delta within
the rst of these sites which is associated with the
Nador Canal is clearly identied, whilst a seaward
movement of the sand bars separating Ghar El Melh
from the Mediterranean is revealed.
Hydro-ecological modelling
Two further articles (Rasmussen et al., 2009a, b)
describe the development of coupled hydrodynamic
ecological models for two of the primary lagoons
(Ghar El Melh and Lake Manzala). Hydrodynamic
models were developed using the MIKE 21 nite
element modelling systems (Fig. 3). These models
were parameterised using available historical data and
the results of eld survey and monitoring programmes.
Parameterisation included the specication of lagoon
bathymetry, upstream (freshwater inows) and down-
stream (tidal curves) boundary conditions, wind speed
and direction and evaporation. Hydrodynamic models
were primarily calibrated through comparisons with
salinity and observed water levels within the lagoons.
Subsequently, the ECO Lab model (DHI-WE) was
linked to these hydrodynamic models in order to
simulate water quality. This necessitated further
parameterisation including the specication of water
quality at the upstream and downstream boundaries.
Simulated water chemistry was subsequently com-
pared to eld data, whilst biomass distribution
simulated by ECO Lab was also compared to vegeta-
tion surveys. Rasmussen et al. (2009a, b) describe how
model results are able to highlight specic aspects of
the functioning of the primary lagoons including the
relative importance of freshwater inows and
exchanges to the sea and their inuence upon salinity,
circulation patterns and sources and distribution of
nutrients within the lagoons. A range of scenarios and
their simulation developed for each lagoon involving
site-specic impacts are subsequently discussed and
their results evaluated. It is, for example, shown that a
25%reduction in nutrient load to Ghar El Melh coupled
with similar declines in suspended sediment will
reduce macroalgae and increase transparency permit-
ting the re-establishment of extensive Ruppia beds
which have declined in recent years (Rasmussen et al.,
2009b). Increasing ltration by bivalves, the popula-
tions of which have also declined over the past
Hydrobiologia (2009) 622:314 11
1 3
decades, is shown to enhance this recovery. Scenarios
investigated using the model of Lake Manzala
(Rasmussen et al., 2009a) focussed on the impacts of
reducing nutrient loading with particular reference to
water quality and the restoration of aquatic vegetation.
Conclusions
Coastal lagoons of the SMR are valuable economic
and ecological resources, yet they are also highly
impacted by human activities which include hydro-
logical modication, pollution and habitat loss.
Pressures on these environments are set to amplify
during the twenty-rst century as demands for water
continue to grow whilst the impacts of climate
change and sea level rise will increase. The long-
term sustainability of coastal lagoons will depend
upon improved understanding of ecosystem function-
ing and the ability to detect and measure
environmental change. The development of manage-
ment plans for coastal lagoons which maintain or
improve environmental quality whilst also enhancing
the well-being of local human populations can benet
from hydro-ecological models capable of represent-
ing the often complex hydrodynamic and ecological
processes operating within them. This form of
modelling will be important in the development of
mitigation measures in the face of climate change and
sea level rise. By addressing all these issues and
identifying a series of key issues for environmental
science and management of coastal lagoons in the
SMR (see Thompson & Flower, 2009), the MELM-
ARINA Project has provided the foundations for the
sustainable management of these aquatic resources.
Acknowledgements The MELMARINA Project was
nanced by the EU Framework V INCO-Med Programme
(Grant ICA3-CT2002-10009). The authors of this article, who
coordinated the project, thank the other members of the
MELMARINA team for their contributions which were
instrumental in the success of the project. We gratefully
acknowledge the support provided by the UCL Department of
Geography and in particular Maria Rodriguez.
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