Coral Reef Project: Puerto Rico
Science Center Objects
To better understand how waves move across coral reefs and cause flooding on tropical shorelines, USGS scientists have installed video cameras and oceanographic instruments off San Juan and Rincón, Puerto Rico. Their work is part of a study funded by USGS after Hurricanes Irma and María. The offshore instruments measure wave heights and speeds; the onshore video cameras show where waves break on the reef and how high they run up on the shore. USGS is collaborating with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez, and Arrecifes Pro Ciudad to support reef-restoration efforts in the Isla Verde Coral Reef Marine Reserve and reduce flooding hazards to San Juan and its international airport.
Underwater instrument package that collected a unique, high-resolution dataset of underwater ocean observations during Hurricane María. The instrument package was deployed on a carbonate spur at a depth of 54 meters on the insular slope ~12 kilometers offshore of La Parguera, Puerto Rico. Photo taken on 27 July 2017 looking south-southwest by Evan Tuohy from the University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez. The instrument package included an acoustic current profiler, an acoustic current velocimeter, and temperature, salinity, and turbidity sensors.
Learn more: “USGS Scientists Add Another Piece to Puzzle of How Hurricanes Can Gain Strength”
(Credit: Evan Tuohy, University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez. Public domain.)
Four video cameras look westward over the coast and the coral reef at Tres Palmas in Rincón, on the west coast of Puerto Rico. Two cameras look out at the horizon and over the ocean for the mid-field view; one camera offers a zoomed-in, far-field view overlooking the reef and out to the island of Desecheo, a U.S. National Wildlife Refuge; and another camera focuses on the beach.
(Credit: Shawn Harrison. Public domain.)
A wave-tide gauge, pictured here on a coral reef amongst among sea rods, brain corals, and sea fans, is installed off Isla Verde in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
(Credit: Curt Storlazzi, USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center. Public domain.)
Coral Reef Project
Explore the fascinating undersea world of coral reefs. Learn how we map, monitor, and model coral reefs so we can better understand, protect, and preserve our Nation's reefs.
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Date published: September 30, 2021Status: ActiveUsing Video Imagery to Study Wave Dynamics: Tres Palmas
Four video cameras look westward over the coast and the coral reef at Tres Palmas in Rincón, on the west coast of Puerto Rico. Two cameras look out at the horizon and over the ocean for the mid-field view; one camera offers a zoomed-in, far-field view overlooking the reef and out to the island of Desecheo, a U.S. National Wildlife Refuge; and another camera focuses on the beach.
Contacts: Curt Storlazzi, PhD, Miguel Canals-Silander, Patricia Chardon Maldonado -
Date published: September 7, 2021Status: ActiveThe Value of U.S. Coral Reefs for Risk Reduction
Summary of the report, “Rigorously valuing the role of U.S. coral reefs in coastal hazard risk reduction”
Contacts: Curt Storlazzi, PhD, Michael Beck -
Date published: July 22, 2019Status: CompletedUsing Video Imagery to Study Wave Dynamics: Isla Verde
USGS scientists installed video cameras atop a building and oceanographic instruments off San Juan, Puerto Rico, to better understand how waves move across coral reefs and cause flooding on tropical shorelines.
Contacts: Curt Storlazzi, PhD -
2018 Supplemental Appropriations Activities
The Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Requirements Act, 2018 (P.L. 115-123) was signed by the President on February 9, 2018. This funding provided the USGS $42.2 million to support recovery and rebuilding activities in the wake of the 2017 Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria and the 2017 California Wildfires.
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Assessment of Coastal Impacts in Florida and Puerto Rico
During Hurricanes Irma and Maria, much of Florida and Puerto Rico experienced significant impacts to beaches, dunes, and coral reefs. Extensive erosion, flooding, and coral losses result in increased immediate and long-term hazards to natural and populated shorelines, putting critical infrastructure at risk to future flooding and erosion and causing economic losses.
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Equipment Repair and Replacement—Coral Reef Monitoring Equipment in Puerto Rico
The U.S. Coral Reef Task Force has ongoing priority studies to guide watershed and coral reef restoration to reduce coastal hazards and increase the resiliency of coastal communities in Puerto Rico. Hurricane Maria damaged or destroyed sensors and associated hardware related to this work.
Rigorously valuing the coastal hazard risks reduction provided by potential coral reef restoration in Florida and Puerto Rico
The restoration of coastal habitats, particularly coral reefs, can reduce risks by decreasing the exposure of coastal communities to flooding hazards. In the United States, the protective services provided by coral reefs were recently assessed in social and economic terms, with the annual protection provided by U.S. coral reefs off the coasts of...
Storlazzi, Curt D.; Reguero, Borja G.; Cumming, Kristen A.; Cole, Aaron D.; Shope, James B.; Gaido L., Camila; Viehman, T. Shay; Nickel, Barry A.; Beck, Michael W.
Rigorously valuing the impact of Hurricanes Irma and Maria on coastal hazard risks in Florida and Puerto Rico
The degradation of coastal habitats, particularly coral reefs, raises risks by increasing the exposure of coastal communities to flooding hazards. In the United States, the physical protective services provided by coral reefs were recently assessed in social and economic terms, with the annual protection provided by U.S. coral reefs off the coasts...
Storlazzi, Curt D.; Reguero, Borja G.; Viehman, T. Shay; Cumming, Kristen A.; Cole, Aaron D.; Shope, James B.; Groves, Sarah H.; Gaido L., Camila; Nickel, Barry A.; Beck, Michael W.
Land-based sediment sources and transport to southwest Puerto Rico coral reefs after Hurricane Maria, May 2017 to June 2018
The effects of runoff from land on nearshore ecosystems, including coral reef communities, are influenced by both sediment supply and removal by coastal processes. Integrated studies across the land-sea interface describing sources and transport of terrestrial sediment and its nearshore fate allow reef protection initiatives to target...
Takesue, Renee K.; Sherman, Clark E; Reyes, Aaron O.; Cheriton, Olivia; Ramirez, Natalia I.; Viqueira Ríos, Roberto; Storlazzi, Curt Rapid observations of ocean dynamics and stratification along a steep island coast during Hurricane María
Hurricanes are extreme storms that affect coastal communities, but the linkages between hurricane forcing and ocean dynamics remain poorly understood. Here, we present full water column observations at unprecedented resolution from the southwest Puerto Rico insular shelf and slope during Hurricane María, representing a rare set of high-frequency,...
Cheriton, Olivia; Storlazzi, Curt; Rosenberger, Kurt J.; Sherman, Clark E; Schmidt, Wilford The value of US coral reefs for flood risk reduction
Habitats, such as coral reefs, can mitigate increasing flood damages through coastal protection services. We provide a fine-scale, national valuation of the flood risk reduction benefits of coral habitats to people, property, economies and infrastructure. Across 3,100 km of US coastline, the top-most 1 m of coral reefs prevents the 100-yr flood...
Reguero, Borja G.; Storlazzi, Curt; Gibbs, Ann E.; Shope, James B.; Cole, Aaron D.; Cumming, Kristen A.; Beck, Mike
Rigorously valuing the role of U.S. coral reefs in coastal hazard risk reduction
The degradation of coastal habitats, particularly coral reefs, raises risks by increasing the exposure of coastal communities to flooding hazards. The protective services of these natural defenses are not assessed in the same rigorous economic terms as artificial defenses, such as seawalls, and therefore often are not considered in decision making...
Storlazzi, Curt D.; Reguero, Borja G.; Cole, Aaron D.; Lowe, Erik; Shope, James B.; Gibbs, Ann E.; Nickel, Barry A.; McCall, Robert T.; van Dongeren, Ap R.; Beck, Michael W.
2018 hurricane and wildfire supplemental funding: USGS recovery activities
The Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Requirements Act, 2018 (P.L. 115-123), was signed by the President on February 9, 2018. This funding provided $42.2 million to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for equipment repair and replacement, high-resolution elevation data collection in both hurricane- and wildfire-impacted...
Hinck, Jo Ellen; Stachyra, Joseph The effectiveness of coral reefs for coastal hazard risk reduction and adaptation
The world’s coastal zones are experiencing rapid development and an increase in storms and flooding. These hazards put coastal communities at heightened risk, which may increase with habitat loss. Here we analyse globally the role and cost effectiveness of coral reefs in risk reduction. Meta-analyses reveal that coral reefs provide substantial...
Ferrario, Filippo; Beck, Michael W.; Storlazzi, Curt D.; Micheli, Fiorenza; Shepard, Christine C.; Airoldi, Laura-
Date published: September 7, 2021Projected flooding extents and depths based on 10-, 50-, 100-, and 500-year wave-energy return periods for the State of Florida, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the Territory of the U.S. Virgin Islands for current and potentially restored coral reefs
This data release provides flooding extent polygons based on wave-driven total water levels for the coral lined coasts of Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The locations of the restoration lines along and across shore were defined by the presence of continuous coral/hardbottom habitat of greater than 100 m alongshore length and proximity to the 3-m depth contour. The wave and...
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Date published: September 7, 2021Projected flooding extents and depths based on 10-, 50-, 100-, and 500-year wave-energy return periods for the State of Florida and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico before and after Hurricanes Irma and Maria due to the storms' damage to the coral reefs
This data release provides flooding extent polygons based on wave-driven total water levels for the coral lined coast of Florida and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The wave and sea-level conditions were then propagated using the XBeach over 100-m spaced shore-normal transects modified to account for base and post-storm scenarios. In situ observations following hurricanes Irma and Maria
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Date published: March 26, 2021Cross-reef wave and water level data from coral reef environments
Direct field observations of wave dynamics across coral reefs and the resulting water levels are limited. Here we provide direct in situ measurements of waves and water levels across a number of coral reefs, extending from the fore reef, across the reef crest, and to the shoreline. These measurements are provided to help better understand the evolution of waves across coral reefs and...
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Date published: August 14, 2019Geochemical and isotopic compositions of stream sediment, parent rock, and nearshore sediment from southwest Puerto Rico, April 2017-June 2018
Geochemical and isotopic compositions were determined in stream sediment and parent rocks collected in April 2017 and June 2017 and in nearshore sediment collected bimonthly in sediment traps from May 2017 to June 2018 in the coastal zone and 12 drainages of southwest Puerto Rico: Rio Loco, Yauco, Guayanilla, Macana, Tallaboa, Matilde, Portugues, Bucana, Inabon, Jacaquas, Descalabrado, and...
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Date published: January 1, 2019Projected flooding extents and depths based on 10-, 50-, 100-, and 500-year wave-energy return periods, with and without coral reefs, for the States of Hawaii and Florida, the Territories of Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands,
This data release provides flooding extent polygons (flood masks) and depth values (flood points) based on wave-driven total water levels for 22 locations within the States of Hawaii and Florida, the Territories of Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. For each of the 22 locations there are eight ass
Attribution: Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Region 2: South Atlantic-Gulf (Includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Region 12: Pacific Islands (American Samoa, Hawaii, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands), Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center -
Date published: January 1, 2019Time series data of oceanographic conditions from La Parguera, Puerto Rico, 2017-2018 Coral Reef Circulation and Sediment Dynamics Experiment
Time-series data of water surface elevation, waves, currents, temperature, and salinity collected between 17 May 2017 and 17 Jan 2018 off the southwest coast of Puerto Rico in support of a study on circulation and sediment transport dynamics over coral reefs. The data are available in NetCDF format, grouped together in zip files by instrument site location. A README.txt file details the
Puerto Rico Coral Reefs and Coastal Hazard Risk Reduction
Rigorously Valuing the Role of Puerto Rico’s Coral Reefs in Coastal Hazard Risk Reduction
Estimated Annual Benefits
Maps of Puerto Rico showing the distribution of the value of averted direct building damages, indirect economic activity losses, and population annually protected from flooding by coral reefs. Results at 10 m2 resolution are
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The value of US coral reefs for risk reduction - Puerto Rico, 2
The value of U.S. coral reefs for risk reduction: Facts for Puerto Rico [See pamphlet page 1]
Key points
- The social and economic benefits provided by all U.S. reefs were rigorously assessed across more than 3,100 km (>1,900 miles) of coastline using hydrodynamic models
The value of US coral reefs for risk reduction - Puerto Rico
The value of U.S. coral reefs for risk reduction: Facts for Puerto Rico
Key points
- The social and economic benefits provided by all U.S. reefs were rigorously assessed across more than 3,100 km (>1,900 miles) of coastline using hydrodynamic models coupled with census data.
- Annually, reefs in Puerto Rico provide flood protection benefits to
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Date published: May 12, 2021USGS Scientists Add Another Piece to Puzzle of How Hurricanes Can Gain Strength
Unique observations collected by U.S. Geological Survey scientists during Hurricane María in 2017, revealed previously unknown ocean processes that may aid in more accurate hurricane forecasting and impact predictions.
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Date published: November 29, 2018Studying flood hazards in San Juan, Puerto Rico
USGS scientists from Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, along with with NOAA, the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez, and Arrecifes Pro Ciudad, are using video imagery and wave measurements to study flood hazards in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
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Date published: September 7, 2018Hurricane Maria’s impacts on deep-water coral reefs off Puerto Rico
USGS research geologist Curt Storlazzi was quoted in an August 22 Nature news article about Hurricane Maria’s effects on deep-water coral reefs off Puerto Rico.