By: Jordan Coll/Staff Writer
Dr. Stephen Leatherman, a professor in the Department of Earth and Environment, known by many as Dr.Beach for his popular beach guide, will be lecturing in the spring semester after taking a sabbatical from the university.
During his sabbatical, Leatherman was able to work on two books one titled “Dr.Beach’s Beach Book” focusing on the most popular beaches to visit in the U.S. including the formation of ocean currents. His second book features a fiction piece talking about the Burmese python, which is “still in the process of finishing up a few chapters,” he said.
Offering two new courses this upcoming spring semester, Dr.Leatherman will be discussing several topics concerning environmental conservationism as well as global environmental issues.
Changing Coastlines, a global learning course will cover how climate change has impacted the beaches along the U.S. East and Gulf Coasts causing them to experience coastal erosion. Additionally, the course will also be looking into issues such as red tide, technical, economic, political challenges faced with beachfront development in some of the most valuable real estate in the world.
His second course, Coastal & Marine Environmental Policy, will feature a field trip to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) facility in Davie while exploring the Burmese python habitat and other South Florida wildlife.
“Students will get a better feel of how certain species in south Florida ecology interact with their environment,” said Dr.Leatherman.
An American geoscientist, coastal ecologist, and author has published several research articles on coastal erosion management and potential impacts of accelerated sea-level rise on developing countries, Dr.Leatherman has also been interviewed on several local and national news coverage networks focusing on coastal storm impacts, beach erosion, and sea-level rise affecting coastal life.
His recent research on Sargassum growth in south Florida has only confirmed his earlier prediction on how climate change is affecting coastal life.
Sargassum is a seaweed with small air-filled “berries” that floats in island-like masses on the ocean.
Naturally, they are found in the ocean and are “a food source for migratory species such as crabs, shrimps, sea turtles and several other smaller species” said Dr.Leatherman.
They wash up on the shoreline originating from the West coast of Africa and several regions of Brazil.
He pointed out that the sea level rise is caused by the influx produced by climate change, “as the temperature rises, the quantity of sargassum rises since they thrive under a warmer climate,” he said.
With this species washing up in large quantities on the shores of South Florida, Mexico, and several Caribbean islands, Dr.Leatherman is concerned about the negative impact of the natural sights of these beaches.
Mass amounts of seaweed are also coming from the Gulf of Mexico to West Africa, serving as one of the biggest blooms of seaweed ever recorded, according to Dr.Leatherman.
“It’s not only unsettling for the people on the beach but the sargassum also rots quickly. leaving off a terrible smell” said Dr.Leatherman.
So how do we prevent such a large amount of Sargassum to wash up from the shore?
Dr.Leatherman offers a possible solution, by cutting the sargassum into several pieces it would essentially sink into the ocean which will “help reduce the population size,” he said.
The issue with having such a high population of Sargassum present in the ocean is affecting coral life. Corals, unlike plants, cannot make their own food but heavily rely on sunlight to reach them in the shallow water.
“Coral depends on the zooxanthellae, a form of algae that grows inside of them which are highly dependent on oxygen, without it Coral are unable to survive” he mentioned. Sargassum plants if exposed on the shore for a prolonged period of time they will begin producing an undesirably strong smell. “No one wants to be at a rotten smelled beach,” he said.
“I look forward to teaching students more about our ecology and breaking down several concepts concerning climate change this Spring,” said Dr. Leatherman.
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