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BMBF funds joint project TRACES

Jun 19, 2018
MARUM coordinates cooperation between international universities
Sediment deposits in an estuary, various reservoirs and in a coastal wetland are examined in detail. Photo: MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen
Sediment deposits in an estuary, various reservoirs and in a coastal wetland are examined in detail. Photo: MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) finances the new joint project TRACES (Tracing Human and Climate Impacts in South Africa), starting on July 1st. The German-South African Project is coordinated at MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences at the University of Bremen.

South Africa's ecosystems are affected by climate change as well as anthropogenic impacts such as land use change and industrial and agricultural pollution. Soil erosion, eutrophication of water bodies, pollutant inputs with negative effects on local biodiversity are often the result. For the sustainable use of natural resources, a detailed and data-based understanding is essential to assess the relationships between the named consequences, climate change and regionally different, anthropogenic factors, states Dr. Matthias Zabel from MARUM who coordinates TRACES.

In addition to current inventories, the distinction between developments from changes in land use and pollution and climatic causes is of great importance. In the joint project TRACES sediment deposits in an estuary, various reservoirs and in a coastal wetland are examined in detail. Particular attention should be paid to sediment archives of the last 250 years.

Partners in TRACES are scientists from the German universities Jena, Greifswald and Bremen, the South African universities in Durban / Pietermaritzburg and Johannesburg, as well as the South African Council for Geoscience. Project partners at MARUM are Dr. Enno Schefuß and Dr. Matthias Zabel.

Contact: 
PD. Dr. Matthias Zabel
Phone: 0049 421 218 65103
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