Estuarine ecosystems deliver essential functions and services that support biodiversity and are beneficial to humankind worldwide. Yet, these ecosystems are subjected to multiple anthropogenic pressures affecting their biodiversity, functions, and services. Deterioration of functions, services, and estuarine health have spurred the development of strategies for conservation and management of coastal ecosystems. In this study, we provided a novel flexible spatial framework for informing the management of estuarine ecosystems recognizing both ecological and stressors states. We offer a real-world interpretation of 12 theoretical (ecological and stressors) principles and methods for converting the principles into spatial layers for use in management. Our flexible framework can be used to depict areas of interest, identify at-risk ecosystems, and identify potential restoration sites. In our case study, an estuary in northern New Zealand, we were able to identify areas with the best restoration prospects (based on their ecology) and highest degradation status by applying our spatial flexible framework. These findings aligned with field observations as well as local and Indigenous knowledge. The flexibility of the framework also enables its application in different estuaries, with adjustments made depending on data availability. Our framework presents several opportunities for future development and applications and will provide numerous benefits for managing estuaries.
Lam-Gordillo et al. (Thu,) studied this question.