In this work a hydrodynamic model of Ria Formosa (South of Portugal) is presented. Ria Formosa is... more In this work a hydrodynamic model of Ria Formosa (South of Portugal) is presented. Ria Formosa is a large (ca 100 km2) mesotidal lagunary system with large intertidal areas and several conflicting uses, such as fisheries, aquaculture, tourism and nature conservation. This coastal ecosystem is a natural park where several management plans and administrative responsibilities overlap. The work presented here is part of a coupled hydrodynamicbiogeochemical model that includes pelagic and benthic processes and ...
is a large (c.a. 100 km 2) mesotidal lagunary system with intertidal areas with conflicting uses ... more is a large (c.a. 100 km 2) mesotidal lagunary system with intertidal areas with conflicting uses such as fisheries, aquaculture, tourism and nature conservation. Its watersheds cover an area of approximately 864 km 2 , with a perimeter of 166 km and a maximum altitude of 522 m. Land use may be classified into six major groups: 1) urban, 2) agricultural, 3) forest, 4) rangeland and pastures, 5) wetlands and 6) water bodies. The main objectives of this work are to: (i) Evaluate the relative importance of land drainage, waste water treatment plants (WTP) and water exchanges across the lagoon inlets, for nutrient dynamics; (ii) Analyse management scenarios related to changes in lagoon bathymetry and their potential effects on system dynamics. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT model) has been applied to the catchment areas in order to simulate water discharges into Ria Formosa providing forcing to a twodimensional vertically integrated coupled physical-biogeochemical model, implemented with EcoDynamoan object oriented modelling software. This model includes water column and sediment processes as well as their interactions and several biological sub-models (e.g. phytoplankton dynamics and bivalve growth). Obtained results suggest that the river network may have a significant effect on lagoon concentrations, in spite of the relatively low river flows, due to the high ammonium and nitrate loads. Scenarios reflecting increases in lagoon bathymetry through dredging operations suggest an increase in lagoon water washout time with potential impacts on water quality and impacts at a scale of tens of km. The obtained results are being used by the Ria Formosa Natural Park authority for management purposes and may be useful to feedback future updates of the watershed management plans, within the scope of the European Union Water Framework Directive. The use of a lagoon scale models is therefore justified in this work.
is a large (c.a. 100 km 2) mesotidal lagunary system with intertidal areas with conflicting uses ... more is a large (c.a. 100 km 2) mesotidal lagunary system with intertidal areas with conflicting uses such as fisheries, aquaculture, tourism and nature conservation. Its watersheds cover an area of approximately 864 km 2 , with a perimeter of 166 km and a maximum altitude of 522 m. Land use may be classified into six major groups: 1) urban, 2) agricultural, 3) forest, 4) rangeland and pastures, 5) wetlands and 6) water bodies. The main objectives of this work are to: (i) Evaluate the relative importance of land drainage, waste water treatment plants (WTP) and water exchanges across the lagoon inlets, for nutrient dynamics; (ii) Analyse management scenarios related to changes in lagoon bathymetry and their potential effects on system dynamics. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT model) has been applied to the catchment areas in order to simulate water discharges into Ria Formosa providing forcing to a twodimensional vertically integrated coupled physical-biogeochemical model, implemented with EcoDynamoan object oriented modelling software. This model includes water column and sediment processes as well as their interactions and several biological sub-models (e.g. phytoplankton dynamics and bivalve growth). Obtained results suggest that the river network may have a significant effect on lagoon concentrations, in spite of the relatively low river flows, due to the high ammonium and nitrate loads. Scenarios reflecting increases in lagoon bathymetry through dredging operations suggest an increase in lagoon water washout time with potential impacts on water quality and impacts at a scale of tens of km. The obtained results are being used by the Ria Formosa Natural Park authority for management purposes and may be useful to feedback future updates of the watershed management plans, within the scope of the European Union Water Framework Directive. The use of a lagoon scale models is therefore justified in this work.
Ecological models may be very complex due to the large number of physical, chemical, biological p... more Ecological models may be very complex due to the large number of physical, chemical, biological processes and variables and their interactions, leading to long simulation times. These models may be used to analyse different management scenarios providing support to decision-makers. Thus, the simultaneous simulation of different scenarios can make the process of analysis and decision quicker, provided that there are mechanisms to accelerate the generation of new scenarios and optimization of the choices between the results presented. This paper presents a new simulation platform-EcoSimNet-specially designed for environmental simulations, which allows the inclusion of intelligent agents and the introduction of parallel simulators to speed up and optimize the decision-making processes. Experiments were performed using Eco-SimNet computational platform with an agent controlling several simulators and implementing a parallel version of the simulated annealing algorithm for optimizing aquaculture production. These experiments showed the capabilities of the framework, enabling a fast optimization process and making this work a step forward towards an agent based decision support system to optimize complex environmental problems.
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Papers by Pedro Duarte