the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Flow patterns, hotspots and connectivity of land-derived substances at the sea surface of Curaçao in the Southern Caribbean
Abstract. The South Caribbean Island of Curaçao is abundant in coral reef communities, but they are declining. Land-derived nutrients and pollutants are a potential contributing factor to this decline, as these substances after entering the ocean, can be transported towards reef sites by ocean currents. To study the movement of the substances and their potential impact on coral reefs, we developed SCARIBOS, a fine-resolution hydrodynamic model of the South CARIBbean Ocean System, with a 1/100° resolution. SCARIBOS covers the period from April 2020 to March 2024 (excluding spin-up time) to analyse flow patterns within that period around the close proximity of Curaçao. Furthermore, SCARIBOS is used as hydrodynamic input for Lagrangian particle tracking analysis with the Parcels framework, where we assess the distribution of positively buoyant substances and explore connectivity within Curaçao’s coastlines as well as with nearby regions of Aruba, Bonaire, the Venezuelan islands, and a portion of the Venezuelan mainland. Results reveal two dominant processes: the northwest-directed Caribbean Current and weaker cyclonic eddies moving in the opposite direction. These flow patterns influence hotspot locations of higher substance concentrations observed during eddy events. Our analysis also highlights increased particle accumulation of land-derived substances in the northwest of Curaçao, corresponding to the prevailing currents. While the focus is on land-derived nutrients and pollutants, this methodology can be extended to study other particle types such as plastic debris and coral larvae, providing valuable insights for marine conservation efforts and environmental management.
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Status: open (until 16 Dec 2024)
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RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2024-3112', Anonymous Referee #1, 08 Nov 2024
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Bertoncelj et al. describe a 1/100 degree configuration of the CROCO ocean model for the Netherlands Antilles. Using four years of model surface current output combined with Lagrangian particle tracking experiments, they focus on the island of Curaçao and investigate (i) accumulation ‘hotspots’, (ii) intra-island connectivity, and (iii) the potential for nearby islands and the Venezuelan mainland to act as sources of pollutants for Curaçao. I enjoyed reading the manuscript and, assuming the model output is indeed made publicly available prior to publication, I imagine that these data will be valuable more broadly, for a part of the ocean that appears to be somewhat data sparse. I was particularly impressed with the quality of many of the figures. I recommend the manuscript for publication, but would ask the authors to consider the suggestions in the attached supplement, which can be considered as major revisions. These suggestions mainly relate to (i) more rigorous assessment of model hydrodynamics, and (ii) the clarity of some analyses/discussion, particularly relating to scenario 1.
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RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2024-3112', Anonymous Referee #2, 15 Nov 2024
reply
Bertoncelj et al. introduce SCARIBOS, a regional configuration of the CROCO ocean model for the South CARIBbean Ocean System with a kilometre-scale horizontal resolution of 1/100 degree. The authors use four years (2020-2024) of surface velocity fields output by the model to undertake three Lagrangian particle tracking experiments using the OceanParcels framework to explore the surface connectivity of flows surrounding the island of Curaçao. The Lagrangian experiments allow the authors to investigate potential hotspots of marine pollutants around Curaçao, intra-island coastal connectivity, and the connectivity between the Curaçao coast and the neighbouring Aruba, Bonaire, Venezuelan islands, and the Venezuelan mainland. The authors should be commended for the Figures, especially those relating to the Lagrangian analysis, which convey the central findings both clearly and creatively. The manuscript is generally well written, although a more comprehensive description of the numerical modelling approach (including validation), further exploration of the role of mesoscale eddies in driving surface connectivity, and an improved discussion on the limitations and wider relevance of the findings are needed. I would recommend the manuscript for publication subject to major revisions addressing the comments attached below and the excellent suggestions made by Reviewer #1.
Data sets
ADCP data for model validation Vesna Bertoncelj https://doi.org/10.25850/nioz/7b.b.xh
Detailed bathymetry around Curacao Data portal: EMODnet; Data collected during research expedition 64PE500 https://doi.org/10.12770/ff3aff8a-cff1-44a3-a2c8-1910bf109f85
Model code and software
SCARIBOS configuration scripts and analysis Vesna Bertoncelj https://github.com/OceanParcels/SCARIBOS_ConnectivityCuracao/
OceanParcels simulation scripts and analysis Vesna Bertoncelj https://github.com/OceanParcels/SCARIBOS_ConnectivityCuracao/
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