Does Human Activities Growth Lead to Biodiversity Loss in the Moroccan Coastal Lagoons?: A Diagnostic Comparison Study

Abstract

Over 40% of the world's population lives alongside the coastal zone. Furthermore, the continued increase of many identified and unidentified human activities nearby the coastal environment, such as estuaries, lakes, and lagoons, can harm the fauna, flora, and human health. Coastal environmental quality takes into account physical, chemical, biological, and geological characteristics, which are used as indices of determining the coast's suitability for human consumption or recreational use. The present study aims to review the impact of human activities on the coastal environmental quality of five Moroccan lagoons; Nador, Moulay Bouslham, Oualidia, Sidi Moussa, and Khnifiss lagoons. For this reason, sediments diagnostic comparison has been made on several studies of these five lagoons for Arsenic (As), Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), Copper (Cu), Lead (Pb), Nickel (Ni), Zinc (Zn), and elements. The diagnostic comparison showed a moderate and severe affection of Nador, Oualidia, and Sidi Moussa lagoons by Fishing, aquaculture, tourism, and industrial activities, which is clear by the high concentration of toxic trace elements such as As, Cd and Cr in lagoon sediments. These results indicate the negative effect of those toxic elements on marine biota, which could cause biodiversity loss. This study demonstrated the real impact of the human activities on these lagoons, especially industrial activities, and suggests the need for providing a new environmental politics for protecting and surveying the Moroccan lagoons.