Impacts of sediment derived from erosion of partially-constructed road on aquatic organisms in a tropical river: The Rio San Juan, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.

ABSTRACT: Throughout the humid tropics, increased land disturbance and concomitant road construction increases erosion and sediment delivery to rivers. Building road networks in developing countries is commonly a priority for international development funding based on anticipated socio-economic benefits. Yet the resulting erosion from roads, which recent studies have shown result in at least ten-fold increases in erosion rates, is not fully accounted for. While effects of road-derived sediment on aquatic ecosystems have been documented in temperate climates, little has been published on the effects of road-induced sediment on aquatic ecosystems in developing countries of the tropics. We studied periphyton biomass and macroinvertebrate communities on the deltas of Río San Juan tributaries, comparing

SUBMITTER: Touma BR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7671519 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature