Cozumel’s future physical geography?

When thinking of Cozumel’s geographic future, it’s hard to determine exactly what will happen in the next 1,000 to 1,000,000 years to this quiet, Pleistocene limestone island off the coast of the Yucatan peninsula. From before, we know Cozumel emerged from a Horst block (table of land pushed up between two normal fault lines) capped by 122,000 year old Pleistocene limestone deposited over older Miocene and Pliocene bedrock. For 125,000 years relative to the mainland, no movement of Cozumel has occurred because of the tectonically stable platform it sits atop of. If two words were used to describe Cozumel’s landscape they would be: Karst and Coastal. Cozumel is part of the Caribbean Reef physiographic district of the Atlantic-gulf coastal plain province. Cozumel has barrier and fringing reefs, coral heads and an atoll formation. With the coral reefs and very desirable climate, Cozumel has become a top vacation and scuba diving destination for many tourists, and this in my opinion will have the greatest impact on Cozumel’s future geography; that is until nature takes back over of course.

1,000 years from now

The isle of Cozumel in my prediction will look much different than it does now, both above and below the surface; specifically below its coastal waters. With an increase in popularity Cozumel will become littered with resorts and all the amenities a tourist desires. This all has a cost, a cost of Cozumel’s delicate resources. The mangroves, salt marshes, lagoons, coral reefs and wildlife will fall victim to the “human element”.  What remains of the resistant but not invincible limestone coastline will be turned into more resorts with beaches; this will mess up the natural sand recycling that takes place along most coastlines and reefs. The inland soil, sand, and plant debris will not be able to migrate to the sea or decompose properly, leading to possible ground water pollution, sterile soil, loss of vegetation and a coral reef now dead, covered in sand. I feel the island’s natural karst topography, underground and or exposed canotes, and landscape will begin to change (weather, erode, or destroyed) a 1,000 years from now, but in 10,000 years to 1,000,000 years from now is when the greatest changes will occur.

10,000 to 1,000,000 years from now

Cozumel’s atoll formation will begin to expose itself through erosion, weathering and decay. The island will become sterile, supporting little to no life terrestrial or marine life because of humanities impact on such a delicate island/ecosystem. The human element will disappear from Cozumel in the future because the island will have nothing left to give. Then, from hurricanes and vicious storms will come years of heavy rainfall, weathering the limestone, causing more cracks to form, more underground caverns and caves will be created through chemical erosion and a changing water table. The island will begin to collapse in on itself because of these caverns and underground rivers. Eventually the island will become a classic barrier reef with a few remnants of humanity, ex: concrete, rebar possibly old cars and pieces of metal. After years and years life will return to the new Cozumel and again become a pristine marine ecosystem with birds nesting on the resistant, remaining pieces of limestone that once made isle Cozumel.

I can’t decide Cozumel’s future or precisely predict its future but I can tell you one thing, even though the island will change it will outlast mankind. 


Sources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cozumel

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karst_topography

http://books.google.com/books?id=MUCc_u2hFWMC&pg=PA98&lpg=PA98&dq=cozumel+plate+tectonics&source=bl&ots=i9rstDbmTL&sig=Uesd7yGXJM0q8O0OmcPOEJTk4UI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=WZBbUPvvHYbM9gTa8YCwDw&ved=0CDEQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=cozumel%20plate%20tectonics&f=false

http://etd.fcla.edu/UF/UFE0041046/batunalpuche_a.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karst

http://geography.about.com/cs/physicalgeography1/a/rockcycle.htm

http://geography.about.com/od/physicalgeography/a/soil.htm 

Cozumel's Weather

     

Beautiful Cozumel sunset

Cozumel’s blue skies and warm crystal clear waters are offered year round, making it a destination no matter what time of year it is. Most of the year tourists and natives experience a sub-tropical climate with cloudless blue skies and a warm beach to lay out on, all while feeling a cool ocean breeze. Cozumel begins to warm up starting in May, continuing through August as the world’s tilt moves Cozumel southward.                                                                                                                                                           

          Chart showing Cozumel's Avg. monthly temp. and precipitation.           

During this time Cozumel experiences changes in the Gulf stream, trade winds and ocean currents, bringing in humidity, warm weather and Cozumel’s wet season. Don’t let this fool you; there are still plenty of opportunities to enjoy everything Cozumel has to offer. Thunder Storms and rain don’t roll in until the late afternoon or evening and by that time everyone is getting ready for a night on the town.

Hurricane Wilma over Cozumel 2005

Now if Cozumel had a time that is least desirable, it would fall between the months of September and October. During this time Cozumel has been known to have varying climate and weather, sometimes experiencing hurricanes and vicious tropically storms that can murk up the water and cool off the beaches. Cozumel’s natural landscape can handle these turbulent weather systems and recovers quickly. However, the most recent, slow moving, hurricane “Wilma” left her mark on the small island, destroying or damaging everything on the island, from buildings, roads, piers and natural vegetation; everything was hit.“Wilma’s” strong current and wind brought in mountains of sand, covering most of the coral reefs surrounding Cozumel. 

Mexico Beach Cozumel

With the sand also came new invasive aquatic species, such as the lion fish; which are wreaking havoc on the native fish. Fear not, both nature and human interventions are doing their parts in returning Cozumel back to its beautiful homeostasis.

Sources

http://www.globeimages.net/img-mexico-cozumel-beach-2819.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cozumel#2005_Hurricane_Season

http://www.cozumel.travel/

http://www.abam.com/portfolio/project/138

  

Cozumel's Rocky Soil

Cozumel is part of the Carrillo Puerto geological formation. This formation is a limestone (chemical sedimentary rock) platform of coralline origin, composed primarily of calcite and dolomite. The upper stratum surface is a hard limestone layer sometimes covered by a few centimeters of Pedosphere (soil); underlying this compact limestone layer is a layer of white to yellow permeable marl. Below this marl is the limestone bedrock.

The thin covering of soil on the island is mainly Rendzina, or humus rich soil, made up of weathered limestone. This type of soil contains a significant amount of gravel and stones. Illustration of this soil feature can be seen in the photo to the right.  

Areas near the beaches on Cozumel are mostly Regosol, or weakly developed mineral soil made up of unconsolidated material, in this case eroded calcareous sandstone. Layers of unconsolidated rock, or aragonite, that never crystallized into calcite can be found interspersed between layers of bedrock and are often exposed in quarries and sometimes Canotes, as shown below.

        

         

Important in the formation of localized microenvironments on the island and for agricultural practices in these geological areas, is the process that occurs when limestone rock is exposed to ground or rainwater and the calcium is made soluble and carried off. This process causes breaks and faults in the natural topography, where soils and sediments carried from slopes and more elevated areas accumulate. This natural process is known as the karst process, and results in what are known as, karst landforms.

Sources

http://etd.fcla.edu/UF/UFE0041046/batunalpuche_a.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karst

http://geography.about.com/cs/physicalgeography1/a/rockcycle.htm

http://geography.about.com/od/physicalgeography/a/soil.htm

Introduction

Hola,

Unfortunately I’m not fluent in Spanish so I will not be dazzling you with an entire blog written in Spanish. To start off I’ll tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Travis Owens; I’m currently a business student at ucdenver, hoping one day to finally end this career. I have taken my sweet time finishing school and like to reference it as my career as opposed the boring thing most people face after high school. I have attended UNC, Aims community college (had to boost the GPA) and now Denver. Anyway, I was born and raised here in Colorado, I have lived here my whole life with a blip on the radar when I went nomad and lived in Saskatchewan Canada for six months; I wish I was still there to be honest. I traveled to Canada in search of their abundant natural resources, you know Bambi, the ugly duckling and yogi the bear. If that sentence didn’t make sense that’s ok I was making a joke about me being an avid hunter, fisher and outdoorsman. I truly love the outdoors, from the arctic to the Caribbean Ocean; I have fish and hunted all over North America. However, this blog is not about my hunting and fishing adventures but about Cozumel’s natural, geographical history along with some tid-bits of my personal experiences while visiting.

Cozumel is located off the Yucatán peninsula in the free and sovereign state of Quintana Roo. My family and I have traveled to Cozumel nearly every year since I was 7 years old for one thing and one thing only scuba diving. Cozumel is blessed with gorgeous waters, exceptional reefs, currents and abundant aquatic life, making it a top destination for many divers and tourists. So, sit back and enjoy the waves while I tell you a little bit more about Cozumel’s natural.