Selection of Suitable Ecosystem Indicators as Tools to Assess the Ecosystem Health of Coastal Lagoons and Their Implications in Management
In recent years, coastal lagoons have been recognized for their significance as productive ecosystems as well as for their important roles in maintaining ecological balance. However, for understanding the structure and functioning of coastal lagoons for preserving their natural quality one has to take into account the rapid degradation of these unique ecosystems. Hence, tools for indicating rapid changes in lagoon ecosystems in order to assess and maintain their health are the needs of the hour. Ecological indicators available to ecosystem managers for this purpose are numerous and often inappropriately selected within the context of lagoon management. Thus it is important to select suitable ecosystem indicators to accurately determine the status of the lagoon ecosystems. This article provides a comprehensive review of the existing ecosystem indicators used in the monitoring of lakes and lagoons. Further, it explores the functionalities of these indicators and correlates them with their applicability in conservation and management of a coastal lagoon. The purpose of this work is to provide a chart of reference for managers of coastal lagoons for easy and suitable selection of ecosystem indicators as tools for use in a cogent environmental monitoring programme.
Allen, M.D. and J.N. Wilton (1982). Algae as biological indicators of water quality. J. Inst. Wat. And Env. Mgmt., 12: 112-121.
Carle, F.L. (1979). Environmental monitoring potential of the Odonata with a list of rare and endangered anisoptera of Virginia, United States. Odonatologica, 8(4): 319- 323.
Cook, S.E.K. (1976). Quest for an index of community structure sensitive to water pollution. Env. Poll., 11: 269-
288.
De Pauw, N. and G. Vanhooren (1983). Method for biological quality assessement of water courses in Belgium. Hydrobiologia, 100: 153-168.
Hobson, G.J. and V.L. Kerrans (1986). Biological Indicators. J.N.Amr. Benthgl. Soc. 4: 115-199.
International Lake Environment Committee (2005). Managing Lakes and their basins for sustainable use: A report for Lake basin managers and stakeholders, Lake Basin Management Initiative, International Lake Environment Committee Foundation, Japan, 200 p.
Jorgensen, S.E., DeBernanardi, R., Ballatore, T.J. and V.S. Muhandiki (2003). Lake Watch 2003: The Changing State of the World’s Lakes, International Lake Environment Committee Foundation, Japan, 100 p.
Jorgensen, S.E., Xu, F.L. and R. Constanza (2005). Handbook of Ecological Indicators for the Assessment of Ecosystem Health. Elsevier, New York, 300 p.
Lagoons of India State-of-the-art report (2001). ENVIS Publication Series: 3/2001 CAS in Marine Biology, Parangipettai, 50 p.
Metcalfe, J.L. (1989). Biological water quality assessment of running waters based on macroinvertebrate communities: History and present status in Europe. Env. Poll. 60: 101-139.
Moyle, R.M. and E.B. Sladekova (1994). Role of periphyton as an indicator of water quality. J. Res. and Devt., 9: 38-46.
Pratt, J.M. and R.A. Coler (1976). A Procedure for the routine biological evaluation of urban run-off in small rivers. Wat. Res., 10: 1019-1025.
World Bank (2005). Lessons for Managing Lake basins for Sustainable Use, Environment Department Report No 32877, World Bank, Washington D.C., 100 p.
World Lake Vision Action Report (2007). Implementing the World Lake Vision for Sustainable Use of Lakes and Reservoirs. International Lake Environment Committee, Japan, 250 p.