Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, is located midway along the eastern coast of the Red Sea, halfway between the Gulf of Aqaba to the north and the Bab El Mandeb Strait to the south. Since the 1970s, the city has experienced an enormous growth of urbanization due to the success of the oil industry and Jeddah’s strategic location en route to the Islamic holy city of Mecca. In order to quantify the environmental impacts of rapid urbanization on Jeddah’s coastal ecosystems, this study analyzes sediment collected from four coring sites along Jeddah’s 62 km coast by examining quantities of decaying isotopes 210Pb and 137Cs to determine the rate at which sediment is being deposited. Natural rates of deposition throughout the Red Sea taken prior to the industrial boom range from 0.011 cm per year to 0.065 cm per year, so sedimentation rates exceeding these limits could indicate a potential for environmental degradation, particularly due to the ability of sediment to retain harmful toxins and chemicals that could pollute coastal waters and damage ecosystems. To calculate these rates, the CIC model of 210Pb analysis assumed a constant flux of 210Pb into sediment, and gamma ray spectroscopy and alpha spectroscopy were used to assess isotope quantity with constant decay in 2 cm core samples. Quantities of 210Pb,137Cs, 234Th, 7Be, and 226Ra were plotted against depth for each core, and the known decay constant of 210Pb was used to calculate the maximum rate of sedimentation as 0.014 cm per year for Core III, and 0.077 cm per year for Core IV. These results suggest that the maximum rate of sedimentation for both of these areas exceeds natural sedimentation rates. Further studies will be undertaken to assess levels of pollutants in sediment to determine the impact that these higher sedimentation rates could have on coastal ecosystems. Currently, Saudi Arabia has fairly unenforced environmental compliance regulations for the Red Sea, so the results of further studies in this region could provoke conversation to draft and strictly enforce environmental protection policies.
Date Awarded
2016
Department
Geology
Advisor 1
James M. Kaste
Recommended Citation
Stigall, Kaylin J., "Measuring the impact of land use on sedimentation rates along the industrialized coastline of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia" (2016). Geology Senior Theses. William & Mary. Paper 378.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/geologyseniors/378
