Environmental quality of Korean coasts as determined by modified Shannon-Wiener evenness proportion.
The coast of the Korean peninsula experiences a range of human impacts, including pollution, shipping, reclamation, and aquaculture, that have motivated numerous local studies of macrobenthic organisms. In this paper, 1,492 subtidal stations were compiled from 23 studies (areas) to evaluate environmental quality on a broader scale. A common index in biomonitoring, Shannon-Wiener evenness proportion (SEP), could not incorporate azoic or single-species samples. This shortcoming was overcome by developing an inverse function of SEP (ISEP), which was positively correlated with independent measures of water quality available for nine sites and was not biased by the size of the sampling unit. Additionally, at Shihwa Dike, where samples were collected before and after reinstating a tidal connection with the ocean, ISEP values improved over time, as expected. Thus, it is now possible to assign Korean subtidal sites to seven ISEP "grades" and to use their values and trends to guide coastal management.
Korea Institute of Coastal Ecology, Inc., #801~3, IT 302, Ssangyong Technopark III, 36-1, Samjung-Dong, Ojeong-Gu, Bucheon-Si, Gyeonggi-Do, 421-808, Korea.
Jae-Won
JW
Yoo
Yong-Woo
YW
Lee
Jennifer L
JL
Ruesink
Chang-Gun
CG
Lee
Chang-Soo
CS
Kim
Mi-Ra
MR
Park
Kon-Tak
KT
Yoon
In-Seo
IS
Hwang
Jun-Ho
JH
Maeng
Rutger
R
Rosenberg
Jae-Sang
JS
Hong
D059001:Aquatic Organisms / Q000145:classification*; D044822:Biodiversity; D018533:Biomass; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical