Land use shapes riverine nutrient and sediment concentrations on Moorea, French Polynesia.

ABSTRACT: Human activities drive changes in freshwater ecosystems by altering biogeochemical cycles. Freshwater networks provide important ecosystem services to human societies by purifying water and serving as an intermediary between terrestrial and marine systems. On high volcanic tropical islands, human activities are compartmentalized by steep terrain that delineates watershed boundaries. Patterns of land use affect adjacent stream ecosystems through runoff of sediment and nutrients, which fluctuates in the tropics as a result of seasonal rainfall. Here, we sought to reveal human impacts on nutrient and sediment regimes of tropical rivers by tracking patterns of river chemistry across a series of watersheds on Moorea, French Polynesia, between 2018 and 2019. Repeated sampling of rivers across a

SUBMITTER: Neumann K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12314069 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature