Coastal accretion and sea-level rise in the Cuban Archipelago obtained from sedimentary records

Abstract

Sea-level rise (SLR) is one of the most pervasive consequences of global warming, and the Cuban Archipelago is threatened by current and future SLR. In order to support adaptation plans, it is essential to have reliable information about sea-level change during the last decades at the local scale, particularly in the most vulnerable regions. Here, we use sedimentary records to evaluate coastal accretion and to estimate the relative sea-level rise (RSLR) in two vulnerable coastal sites in central Cuba: Cayo Santa María (CSM) and Península de Ancón (PA). Both sites showed sediment sections with a continuous record of sediment accretion as a result of relative SLR and tropical storms. The sedimentary process was different between CSM and PA owing to differences in geomorphology and primary mineral composition. Sedimentary records also showed recent impacts of anthropogenic activities, likely increasing the vulnerability of the shoreline to SLR. The estimated RSLR values agreed with tidal gauge records, although they spanned a much longer time period (CSM: 0.5 ± 0.1 mm a−1, span of 38 years; PA: 1.5 ± 0.3 mm a−1, span of 92 years). Our results confirm that this methodology may be used to estimate the RSLR in places where data by instrumental records do not exist.

Records of plutonium isotopes in marine sediments from the southern Gulf of Mexico

“…Among the fallout radionuclides, plutonium (Pu) isotopes have been found useful application in the GoM region (Scott, Salter et al 1983, Oktay, Santschi et al 2000, Yeager, Santschi et al 2004, Corcho-Alvarado, Diaz-Asencio et al 2014. 137 Cs, another commonly used chronostratigraphic marker, is present at low or negligible levels in deep-sea sediments of the GoM (Yeager, Santschi et al 2004, Corcho-Alvarado, Diaz-Asencio et al 2014, Carnero-Bravo, Sanchez-Cabeza et al 2018, Díaz-Asencio, Armenteros et al 2020.…”