Hazards

On Florida and Caribbean coral reefs, stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) has caused widespread destruction and loss of coral cover since its first appearance off the coast of Miami in 2014. So far, the only intervention found to be effective at halting progression of this disease and saving the lives of infected coral colonies is applying an amoxicillin paste, a type of antibiotic, to the...

Coral disease was first documented on Florida reefs in the 1970s. Since then, outbreaks of diseases have increased, and disease is now one major reason why coral reefs worldwide are in decline. Although what causes most coral diseases is not known, the few with known causes have been linked to microorganisms, highlighting the need for studies of microbes associated with diseased corals.

In nature, microbes typically exist in communities made up of many different types of microorganisms (for example, bacteria, viruses, etc), all interacting with and influencing one another. Therefore, in order to understand the role that microbes play in an environment, it is often important to think of microbes operating as complex communities rather than as individual microorganisms.

This project aims to understand the microbial processes, including disease, that influence the health of coral reef communities. We use microbiology and molecular biology techniques to better understand the role of microorganisms in shaping reef structure and function.

This page is a collection of USGS coastal hazard research in Puerto Rico, including shoreline changes, coral reef assessments, and coastal flooding. A brief description of highlighted projects can be found below. All coastal hazard publications, data releases, and news for Puerto Rico can be accessed on this page. Esta página es una recopilación de investigaciones del USGS sobre los riesgos...

Discover USGS products, tools, and data with the Coastal Science Navigator! The Coastal Science Navigator serves as a gateway to USGS Coastal Change Hazards resources and assists users in finding products and tools that will meet their specific needs.

The goal of the estuarine shoreline change project is to define shoreline positions for historical and modern wetland shorelines and calculate rates of change along the U.S. East and Gulf coasts.

DUring Nearshore Event eXperiment (DUNEX) is a multi-agency, academic, and non-governmental organization (NGO) collaborative community experiment designed to study nearshore coastal processes during storm events. The experiment began in 2019 and is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2021. USGS participation in DUNEX will contribute new measurements and models that will increase our...

Coastal environments are dynamic systems that provide high ecological, economical, recreational, and cultural value. Managing coastal systems requires a comprehensive understanding of the complex interactions between geological and ecological processes, as well as the ability to predict both the near-term and long-term impacts of storms and sea-level rise. The Coastal Resource Evaluation for...

The potential vulnerability of a particular stretch of coast can be assessed using a conceptual model that scales the impacts of storms on barrier islands.

Natural processes such as waves, tides, and weather, continually change coastal landscapes. The integrity of coastal homes, businesses, and infrastructure can be threatened by hazards associated with event-driven changes, such as extreme storms and their impacts on beach and dune erosion, or longer-term, cumulative changes associated with coastal and marine processes, such as sea-level rise...

Coastal change forecasts and pre- and post-storm photos documenting coastal change for landfalling storms. Currently responding to Hurricane Dorian.