Department of Life Sciences, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, TX 78412, USA.
Texas General Land Office, Austin, TX 78701, USA.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 May;166:112231. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112231. Epub 2021 Mar 30.
Long-term assessments are needed to identify water quality trends and their socio-environmental drivers for coastal management and watershed restoration. This study provides the first long-term assessment of fecal bacterial pollution in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico using enterococci data spanning the Texas coast from 2009 to 2020. The data were representative of 66 beaches, 169 stations, and over 75,000 samples. Findings demonstrate that 22 beaches are 'hotspots' of pollution and experienced enterococci levels that frequently exceeded the USEPA beach action value. Further, enterococci were correlated with time, population size, and sea level. Weak correlations detected in some counties highlight the multifactorial nature of water quality; additional factors are likely influencing enterococci levels. The correlation with sea level is concerning, as counties vulnerable to sea level rise frequently reported enterococci concentrations exceeding the beach action value. In consideration of sea level rise predictions, targeted studies are needed to pinpoint drivers of fecal pollution.
需要进行长期评估，以确定水质趋势及其对沿海管理和流域恢复的社会环境驱动因素。本研究利用 2009 年至 2020 年跨越德克萨斯州海岸的肠球菌数据，首次对墨西哥湾西北部的粪便细菌污染进行了长期评估。这些数据代表了 66 个海滩、169 个站位和超过 75000 个样本。研究结果表明，有 22 个海滩是污染的“热点”地区，肠球菌水平经常超过美国环保署规定的海滩行动值。此外，肠球菌与时间、人口规模和海平面呈正相关。在一些县发现的弱相关性突出了水质的多因素性质；可能还有其他因素影响肠球菌水平。与海平面的相关性令人担忧，因为经常报告海平面上升的县的肠球菌浓度超过了海滩行动值。考虑到海平面上升的预测，需要进行有针对性的研究，以确定粪便污染的驱动因素。
