Wetlands are often vital physical and social components of a country’s natural capital, as well as providers of ecosystem services to local and national communities. We performed a network analysis to prioritize Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets for sustainable development in iconic wetlands and wetlandscapes around the world. The analysis was based on the information and perceptions on 45 wetlandscapes worldwide by 49 wetland researchers of the Global Wetland Ecohydrological Network (GWEN). We identified three 2030 Agenda targets of high priority across the wetlandscapes needed to achieve sustainable development: Target 6.3—“Improve water quality”; 2.4—“Sustainable food production”; and 12.2—“Sustainable management of resources”. Moreover, we found specific feedback mechanisms and synergies between SDG targets in the context of wetlands. The most consistent reinforcing interactions were the influence of Target 12.2 on 8.4—“Efficient resource consumption”; and that of Target 6.3 on 12.2. The wetlandscapes could be differentiated in four bundles of distinctive priority SDG-targets: “Basic human needs”, “Sustainable tourism”, “Environmental impact in urban wetlands”, and “Improving and conserving environment”. In general, we find that the SDG groups, targets, and interactions stress that maintaining good water quality and a “wise use” of wetlandscapes are vital to attaining sustainable development within these sensitive ecosystems.

Marine debris is one of the most significant problems facing the marine environment, endangering wildlife, polluting oceans and is an issue which holds global significance. Plastics constitute a large proportion of marine debris, and their persistence can cause a number of negative consequences for biota and the environment, including entanglement and ingestion, which can lead to mortality. Most plastics never biodegrade and instead break down into smaller pieces which are more difficult to monitor and eventually become so small (micro and nanoplastics), that they are challenging to observe or intercept in the ocean. Marine-based Research Infrastructures (RIs) monitor several environmental parameters and are situated around the globe; however, none of these are routinely monitoring marine debris or plastics. Currently, the only infrastructures in place with regard to marine debris are ‘physical debris interception infrastructure’ in the form of barriers constructed to prevent marine debris from entering the ocean. Several knowledge gaps and restraints exist within current in situ infrastructure including technological immaturity, diverse methodologies and lack of data harmonisation. Nevertheless, marine RIs could monitor microplastics within the water column on a long-term basis and initial steps towards developing technology are promising.

Coastal erosion is a common phenomenon along the world’s coasts. Studying it is complex because such studies must cover large portions of land, and it is necessary to understand the multiple processes that interact in each area, so it is important to recognize regional patterns that allow for defining representativeness in relation to the surrounding dynamics. Spatial statistics can be used in coastal geomorphology to identify and quantify trends in coastal morphodynamics. This study analyzes and interprets the spatio-temporal patterns present in the changes in a shoreline, that is, the processes of erosion and coastal sedimentation in the Pacific and the Colombian Caribbean. The results are derived from the detection of significant changes in the coastline via satellite images. For this study, the shoreline of Colombia was digitized for the years 1986 and 2016, thus obtaining changes in the shoreline at a medium temporal scale. The Global Moran’s Index, Local Moran’s Index and Getis–Ord Index were used to explain the spatial statistics. The Global I Moran values for the Pacific were I = 0.190, z = 31.063 and p = 0.01, and for the Caribbean I = 0.624, z = 74.545 and p = 0.01, which suggests good grouping in the Caribbean and very low grouping for the Pacific. The local indices (Moran’s and Getis–Ord) allowed us to visualize and spatialize the significant points of coastal erosion and sedimentation. According to the results, three conceptual models are herein proposed that relate the indices with the geomorphological characteristics: (a) the greater the geomorphological heterogeneity, the greater the grouping; (b) the greater the geomorphological homogeneity, the lower the degree of clustering; (c) the greater the geomorphological complexity, the lower the degree of clustering. Finally, it is confirmed that coastal erosion and sedimentation processes predominate along low coasts.

Introduction: This study investigated the variability and main drivers of the carbonate system in Gayraca Bay and Chengue Bay, located on the northeastern Caribbean coast of Colombia, through monthly measurements of partial pressure of CO₂ (pCO₂), pH, total alkalinity (TA), and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) from 2017 to 2022. Statistical analyses and Taylor series decomposition were employed to determine the seasonal and interannual contributions of sea surface temperature, salinity, TA, and DIC to changes in pCO₂, pH, and calcium carbonate saturation state (Ω).Results: The results showed significant seasonal variability influenced by annual changes in coastal upwelling, rainfall, and river runoff. Low/high pH and Ω values were associated with high/low DIC and TA values during the dry and wet seasons, respectively, while pCO₂ exhibited an opposite pattern. During El Niño, negative anomalies in coastal upwelling produced negative anomalies in pCO₂ and positive anomalies in Ω, DIC, and TA. Conversely, during La Niña, alternating periods of positive rainfall and upwelling anomalies were observed. Higher rainfall corresponded to negative anomalies in pCO₂, DIC, and TA and positive anomalies in Ω, whereas stronger upwelling led to opposite trends. In early 2022, undersaturated levels of Ωcalc and Ωarag (<1) were observed, which could affect coral calcification and pose risks in future climate change scenarios. Taylor series decomposition analysis identified TA and DIC as primary drivers of carbonate system variability, modulated by seasonal and interannual changes in rainfall and river runoff, which are influenced by ENSO events. The observed trends in pH and pCO₂ were driven by a decrease in DIC and TA, attributed to increased river runoff, contrasting with typical ocean acidification trends driven by rising atmospheric CO₂ levels.Discussion: This highlights the region's unique dynamics and underscores the importance of local studies. This study provides a novel 6-year time-series dataset for the carbonate system in the Colombian Caribbean, offering a valuable baseline for assessing the impacts of global warming and ocean acidification in the region.