Assessing the potential for restoring Mediterranean coastal dunes under pressure from tourism

Mediterranean dune systems have undergone a large reduction in the last decades. The main factors involved in this process are urbanisation promoting an alteration of dune morphology and changes in plant communities. The most representative coastal dune systems of Sardinia have been selected as a study case and analysed to evaluate their environmental status, vulnerability, and the potential for dune restoration. Thirty coastal-dune systems, ranging from high natural sites to urbanised areas were analysed. A matrix of 35 variables × 30 sites was built to calculate the relationship among dune development (StaDun) and other indices related to the coastal dunes potential to host dunes (BeaPot), the conservation actions and management of coastal-dune systems (CoMan), and the anthropogenic pressure and the transgression capacity of the sand (SurLan). The values obtained for StaDun and Dune restoration potential index (DPR) were clustered. The results highlighted the relationship among StaDun, BeaPot and CoMan indices. The geomorphological and ecological characteristics determine the main factors that influence the presence, typology, and development of dunes in each site. Conversely, StaDun was weakly correlated to SurLan index. The DPR index allowed to discriminate the coastal dunes that required management actions. The first group included well-developed dune systems for which conservation and management actions were not necessary. The second one consisted of sites for which these previous actions and restoration measures were necessary. DPR index provides a tool useful to assess and classify coastal dune areas based on their potential for restoration, and to plan appropriate management actions. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]