
Mangroves vs. Storms: New ‘HU Method’ Offers Simple Way to Predict Coastal Protection
Imagine a natural wall rooted, green, and alive that stands firm when violent storms lash our shores. That’s the quiet power of mangroves and forested wetlands. Long praised for their ability to reduce flood risk, these natural guardians now have a new spotlight moment. A recent international study led by researchers from Sun Yat-Sen University in China and the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ) reveals a groundbreaking yet simple way to measure just how well these ecosystems shield coastlines during extreme weather events.
Nature’s Armor, Measured Simply
Until now, predicting the strength of mangroves during intense storms was a complex task. Models that attempted to calculate how much these forests could reduce wave heights were often too intricate or data-heavy fo...