Ecological Problems Research Articles

The Occurrences of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) Species and Trophic Status Update in Kedung Ombo Reservoir

Graphical Abstract Highlight Research Water quality conditions in Kedung Ombo Reservoir. Phytoplankton species and their abundance in Kedung Ombo. Potential existence and dominance of HABs species. The updated trophic status is mapped based on the TSI, Secchi depth, chlorophyll-a, and total phosphorus. Abstract Anthropogenic inputs affect the quality of freshwater ecosystems which causes ecological and health problems to aquatic ecosystems. Harmful algal blooms (HABs) associated with cyanotoxins often occur in nutrient-rich or eutrophic freshwater ecosystems. Kedung Ombo Reservoir in Indonesia has been previously classified as eutrophic to hypertrophic. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the occurrences of potential HABs species, measure the bio-physico-chemical water quality parameters, and update the trophic status of Kedung Ombo Reservoir. Sampling was done thrice during the dry season in 2022 from 5 stations. Twenty-two species of phytoplankton were observed in Kedung Ombo Reservoir. Anabaenopsis sp., Aphanizomenon sp., Ceratium sp., Mougeotia sp., Pandorina sp., and Ulothrix sp. were identified as potentially harmful species. Among those, the potentially HABs species, Aphanizomenon sp. was the most abundant (179,344 cells/L) and Cyanophyceae (205,539 cells/L) was the dominant group of phytoplankton. Kedung Ombo Reservoir had a water temperature of 29.49±0.41°C, phosphate of 0.27±0.25 mg/L, and alkaline pH of 7.90±0.39. Kedung Ombo Reservoir also had low transparency coupled with low dissolved oxygen concentration. The occurrences of HABs species were correlated with transparency and dissolved inorganic nutrients, especially phosphate concentrations. Kedung Ombo Reservoir showed eutrophic conditions based on Secchi depth, chlorophyll-a, total phosphorus, and TSI. Based on research findings, control and mitigation efforts are needed to overcome the eutrophication problems which disrupt the balance of the aquatic ecosystem in the Kedung Ombo Reservoir.

Navigating Socio-Political Threats to Amazonian Peatland Conservation: Insights from the Imiria Region, Peru

Tropical peatlands are critical for climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation globally, yet in many parts of the world, they are being destroyed for anthropogenic uses with catastrophic environmental effects. Despite Peru’s status as home to the second largest area of peatlands in Latin America, significant gaps persist in understanding both the geographical distribution and the socio-political landscapes that shape them, exposing these ecosystems to risk of irreversible damage. Focusing on the Imiria region in Ucayali, Peru, where newly discovered peatlands intersect with Indigenous communities, this study, through participatory methods and qualitative analyses, explores the complex socio-political dynamics posing risks to these ecosystems. Our findings highlight a range of threats: (a) the emergence of new actors and land uses, including Mennonite colonies, coca settlements, and illegal resource extractors; (b) challenges posed by the state, encompassing changing legislation, a limited understanding of Indigenous needs and power dynamics, alongside insufficient strategies for peatland science and protection; and (c) a southward shift of socio-political and ecological problems towards peatland areas. We discuss how these dynamics exacerbate degradation risks and undermine Indigenous sovereignty, hindering conservation efforts. The study suggests pathways for ethical peatland conservation and emphasizes the need for further research in Ucayali, Peru.

Spatial distribution of cliff plant species in the Balearic Islands under current and projected climatic scenarios

Cliff ecology has been studied for decades, providing information about its high biodiversity values and their vulnerability to climate change. Also, insular ecosystems present biodiversity hotspots with high endemicity, but they are also severely affected by anthropogenic effects. Together, insular cliff communities combine both biodiversity uniqueness and high vulnerability to global change, but few studies have evaluated these particular ecosystems. Our aim was to provide information on the spatial distribution of insular cliff-specific vegetation assessing which environmental and climatic variables contribute to the definition of cliff habitat conditions. Ecological niche modelling for cliff populations in Balearic Islands has been calculated with presences of 20 plant species and climatic and geographical variables using a Random Forest model. The most important climatic variables for the model generation were mean temperature of the driest quarter and precipitation of the coldest quarter. The map obtained showed that mountain ranges from all islands provide highly suitable conditions for rupicolous species. Both the pessimistic and optimistic models showed that the habitat suitability of cliff vegetation in the mountain ranges would decrease, while they are close to zero in lowlands for the period 2021–2040. This study emphasizes the vulnerability of cliff habitats to climate change due to their limited dispersal capacity and distribution and the strict requirements for habitat suitability. From this work, future studies can focus on single-species analysis to evaluate if any cliff specialist species can be at risk of extinction due to climate change.

On urban microclimate spatial-temporal dynamics: Evidence from the integration of fixed and wearable sensing and mapping techniques

Urban Heat Island (UHI) is acknowledged to generate harmful consequences on human health, and it is one of the main anthropogenic challenges to face in modern cities. Due to the urban dynamic complexity, a full microclimate decoding is required to design tailored mitigation strategies for reducing heat-related vulnerability. This study proposes a new method to assess intra-urban microclimate variability by combining for the first time two dedicated monitoring systems consisting of fixed and mobile techniques. Data from three fixed weather stations were used to analyze long-term trends, while mobile devices (a vehicle and a wearable) were used in short-term monitoring campaigns conducted in summer and winter to assess and geo-locate microclimate spatial variations. Additionally, data from mobile devices were used as input for Kriging interpolation in the urban area of Florence (Italy) as case study. Mobile monitoring sessions provided high-resolution spatial data, enabling the detection of hyperlocal variations in air temperature. The maximum air temperature amplitudes were verified with the wearable system: 3.3 °C in summer midday and 4.3 °C in winter morning. Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) demonstrated to be similar when comparing green areas and their adjacent built-up zone, showing up the microclimate mitigation contribution of greenery in its surrounding. Results also showed that mixing the two data acquisition and varied analysis techniques succeeded in investigating the UHI and the site-specific role of potential mitigation actions. Moreover, mobile dataset was reliable for elaborating maps by interpolating the monitored parameters. Interpolation results demonstrated the possibility of optimizing mobile monitoring campaigns by focusing on targeted streets and times of day since interpolation errors increased by 10% only with properly reduced and simplified input samples. This allowed an enhanced detection of the site-specific granularity, which is important for urban planning and policymaking, adaptation, and risk mitigation actions to overcome the UHI and anthropogenic climate change effects.

Anthropogenic Effects on Bat Activity and Diversity along the Eerste River, South Africa

Anthropogenic Effects on Bat Activity and Diversity along the Eerste River, South Africa

Renewable Power Systems: A Comprehensive Meta-Analysis

The ongoing amplification of climate change necessitates the exploration and implementation of effective strategies to mitigate ecological issues while simultaneously preserving economic and social well-being. Renewable power systems offer a way to reduce adverse anthropogenic effects without hindering economic growth. This study aims to conduct a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of renewable power systems to explore their historical context, identify influential studies, and uncover research gaps, hypothesizing that global contributions and policy support significantly influence the field’s dynamics. Following Preferred Reporting Items For Systematic Reviews And Meta-Analyses guidelines, this study utilized Scopus tools analysis and VOSviewer 1.6.20 software to examine the metadata sourced from scientific databases in Scopus. The outcomes of this investigation facilitate the identification of the most prolific countries and authors, as well as collaborative efforts that enrich the theoretical landscape of renewable power systems. The study also traces the evolution of research on renewable power systems. Furthermore, the results reveal key scientific clusters in the analysis: the first cluster concentrates on renewable energy and sustainable development, the second on the relationship between government policies and renewable power systems, and the third on the role of incentives that catalyse the advancement of renewable power systems. The findings of this meta-analysis not only contribute valuable insights to existing research but also enable the identification of emerging research areas related to renewable power system development.

Stakeholder Perceptions of Sustainable Tourism Development: A Case Study in Haikou, China

The development of sustainable tourism has various stakeholders such as local residents, businesses, governments, visitors, travel agencies, and tourism companies. Tourism destinations need to be protected not only to ensure a better travel experience but also to ensure that they can be enjoyed in the future. This study explored the degree of influence of key stakeholders such as the government, travel agencies, local residents, and tourists on the development of sustainable tourism in Haikou, the capital city of the island province Hainan, China. This city is rich in tropical natural resources and offers unique opportunities for the development of tourism. In 2018, Haikou was selected as one of the first “International Wetland Cities” by the 13th United Nations Ramsar Convention. However, the high dependence on tourism and centralized consumption have caused several ecological and environmental problems in Haikou. An online questionnaire survey of 419 stakeholders was conducted, and factor analysis was used to identify five dimensions. The structural equation modeling method was used to explore the degree of influence of different relationships on sustainable tourism development in Haikou. The results indicated that key stakeholders are most concerned about tourism awareness, ecological protection, and sociocultural development. Therefore, further efforts to promote and develop tourism must focus on ecological and environmental protection. Creating positive travel experiences and managing tourism wisely can meet the demands of today without compromising the future.

Anthropogenic and meteorological effects on the counts and sizes of moderate and extreme wildfires

AbstractThe growing frequency and size of wildfires across the US necessitates accurate quantitative assessment of evolving wildfire behavior to predict risk from future extreme wildfires. We build a joint model of wildfire counts and burned areas, regressing key model parameters on climate and demographic covariates. We use extended generalized Pareto distributions to model the full distribution of burned areas, capturing both moderate and extreme sizes, while leveraging extreme value theory to focus particularly on the right tail. We model wildfire counts with a zero‐inflated negative binomial model, and join the wildfire counts and burned areas sub‐models using a temporally‐varying shared random effect. Our model successfully captures the trends of wildfire counts and burned areas. By investigating the predictive power of different sets of covariates, we find that fire indices are better predictors of wildfire burned area behavior than individual climate covariates, whereas climate covariates are influential drivers of wildfire occurrence behavior.

Cauchy universality and random billiards

Motion in bounded domains represents a paradigm in several settings: from billiard dynamics, to random walks in a finite lattice, with applications to relevant physical, ecological, and biological problems. A remarkable universal property, involving the average of return times to the boundary, has been theoretically proposed and experimentally verified in quite different contexts. We discuss here mechanisms that lead to violations of universality, induced by boundary effects and we also emphasize the role played by replacing straight lines with random walks in this framework. We suggest that our analysis should be relevant where nonhomogeneity appears in the stationary probability distribution in bounded domain. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Evolution of riparian vegetation in response to anthropogenic effects: The Taleqan River, Iran

AbstractDuring the last decades, human interventions, such as dam construction and land‐use change, have caused changes in geomorphic patterns and riparian zones in many rivers in Iran. This study aimed to assess the spatio‐temporal evolution of riparian vegetation and the spatial area of biogeomorphic feedback windows (BFWs) located in the riparian Salicaceae vegetation patches and their traits responding to human interventions in the Taleqan River during 1990–2022. The river was divided into five reaches using the geomorphic unit system (GUS) method, and the river sensitivity index (SI), location of BFWs, vegetation typology and main cover typology were investigated in the reaches using aerial photographs and satellite images from 1990 to 2022. For this purpose, the main cover typology was classified into grassland, woody vegetation, bank‐attached bars, islands, vegetated islands, river channels and urban areas. The stem diameter and density, degradation level and longitudinal/latitudinal alluvial bars in each of the BFWs were investigated using the field survey. Based on the findings, the lowest values of the SI (braiding index [BI], channel activity [CA] and channel width [CW]) and the highest expansion of BFWs were observed in the upstream reaches of the Taleqan River. Human disturbances in these reaches were less than in the reaches downstream, allowing the expansion of vegetation habitats. The vegetation patches were unstable and scattered in the midstream and downstream, and the width decrease of the river channel was created by land‐use change and channelization. A significant direct relationship was observed between BFW establishment, stem diameter and density, and vegetation height. The BFWs create an opportunity for engineer vegetation to prevent erosion and expand new habitats by creating biogeomorphic accumulation landforms and trapping alluvial bars on the lee side of engineer woody vegetation. This study highlights the interactions between riparian areas and hydrogeomorphic processes within riparian corridors exposed to human disturbances to help better define a comprehensive plan for river management.

Coupling coordination between urbanization and ecosystem services value in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei urban agglomeration

While urbanization has increased people's well-being, it has also caused ecological problems, such as resource shortage, land degradation, and environmental pollution. As the highest form of spatial organization at the mature stage of urbanization, an urban agglomeration (UA) can be a key area for studying this urban-ecology interaction. This study integrated the urbanization evaluation, ecosystem services value (ESV) assessment, and optimized coupling coordination degree (CCD) models to explore the coupling coordination of urbanization and ESV at the UA scale. Analyzing data from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei UA (BTHUA) from 1985 to 2020 revealed that: (1) urbanization continues to increase and ESV fluctuates; however, both exhibit significant spatial heterogeneity. (2) The CCD is increasing annually but remains relatively low overall; spatially, it is high in the northeast and low in the southwest. (3) The main driving factors of the CCD are urbanization rate and slope, while all five selected factors have a positive effect. (4) Government decision-making can guide the CCD. For which, the development pattern of “One Belt-Four Zones-Multi Cores” and zoning strategies for improving the CCD are proposed. Overall, these findings suggest balancing development and protection to promote the coordinated development of BTHUA and provide valuable insights for enhancing the sustainability of UA.

Ecological and geological security risk assessment of underground space development in cold and arid canyon cities-Taking Ping'an District, Haidong City, Qinghai Province, as an example.

The ecological and geological problems caused by the rise of groundwater level due to the development of underground space in cold and arid canyon cities are particularly typical. Reasonably assessing the ecological and geological security risks of utilizing underground space is conducive to reducing the occurrence of ecological and geological problems during the construction and operation of underground engineering projects. Taking Ping'an District of Haidong City as an example, the topography and geomorphology of the research area were investigated in the field, and the distribution of topography and geomorphology in the research area was understood; through geological drilling and geotechnical engineering testing, the distribution of different strata in the research area was obtained; through pumping and seepage experiments, the recharge, runoff, and discharge relationship between surface water and groundwater in the research area and the water abundance of different strata are obtained, and the causes and mechanisms of geological safety risks in forest and grassland ecosystems, farmland ecosystems, and human settlements ecosystems were analyzed based on literature. Corresponding ecological geological safety risk assessment index systems and methods were established, and the ecological geological safety risks before and after the development of underground rail transit projects along both banks of the Huangshui River in the study area were evaluated. PRACTITIONER POINTS: The development of underground space in canyon type cities can easily lead to ecological and geological problems. Taking Haidong City, Qinghai Province, as an example, this study investigates the causes of ecological and geological problems caused by the development of underground spaces in canyon type cities. An ecological geological security risk assessment index system and method for canyon-type cities were established. An evaluation was conducted on the ecological and geological safety risks before and after the development of the underground rail transit projects on both sides of the research area.

Characterization of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus stoichiometry of plant leaves in the riparian zone of Dahuofang Reservoir.

Carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) are essential nutrients that promote plant growth and development and maintain the stability of ecosystem structure and function. Analyzing the C, N, and P characteristics of plant leaves aids in understanding the plant's nutrient status and nutrient limitation. Seasonal water-level fluctuations in riparian zones lead to various ecological problems, such as reduced biodiversity and decreased ecosystem stability. Therefore, comprehending the stoichiometric characteristics of riparian zone plants and their nutrient response to plant traits is important for a deeper insight into riparian zone forest ecosystems. This study analyzed the C, N, and P contents of the leaves of 44 woody plants in the riparian zone of the Dahuofang Reservoir to investigate the stoichiometric characteristics of C, N, and P of trees in the region. The results showed that the average C content of the leaves in woody plants was 446.9 g kg-1; the average N content was 28.42 g kg-1; and the average P content was 2.26 g kg-1. Compared to global and regional scales, woody plants in the riparian zone of the Dahuofang Reservoir exhibited higher N and P contents but lower N:P ratios. Compared to other riparian zones, woody plant leaves in the riparian zone of Dahuofang Reservoir had relatively high N content and N:P ratios. Variations in plant stoichiometric characteristics across different life forms were minimal, with only tree leaf P content significantly lower than its in shrubs. There was no significant correlation between leaf C, N, and P in woody plants, while specific leaf area showed a negative correlation with leaf C content. Trees in the riparian zone have high leaf N and P content and are primarily N-limited during the growing season. This study reveals the stoichiometric characteristics of leaves of woody plants in the riparian zone, which can contribute to an in-depth understanding of leaf stoichiometric patterns and the factors influencing them among plant life types in the riparian zone.

Predicting habitat suitability of the critically endangered Be'er Sheva fringe-fingered lizard.

Anthropogenic changes, such as land use, are the main drivers causing climate change and biodiversity loss, with hundreds of thousands of species lacking sufficient habitats for their populations to persist and likely to go extinct within decades. Endemic species are more susceptible to habitat changes and are at the forefront of the biodiversity crisis. We used species distribution models to generate a relative habitat suitability map and identified the habitat requirements of the critically endangered and endemic Be'er Sheva fringe-fingered lizard (Acanthodactylus beershebensis). The model showed that the species' suitable habitats are associated with arid loess plains characterized by scattered, low vegetation cover, primarilyon north-facing aspects, suggesting that these species-specific habitat requirements limit its distribution. The size of the potentially suitable area within the species' historical range is 1350.73 km2. However, anthropogenic changes decreased the remaining suitable habitat to 995.04 km2. Most of this area is unprotected and at risk of further adverse anthropogenic effects. Only 91.72 km2 of this area is protected by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, and 587.11 km2 may be considered indirectly protected because it is within military firing zones. Our study is the first attempt to map the remaining suitable habitat of A. beershebensis based on the results of a species distribution model. The results of this model can assist in prioritizing the protection of areas needed for the conservation of this critically endangered and endemic lizard species.

High contribution of an invasive macroalgae species to beach wrack CO2 emissions

Accumulations of macroalgal wrack are important for adequate functioning of the beach ecosystem. However, the sudden beaching of seaweed masses smothers the coastline and forms decomposing piles on the shore, harming tourism-based economies, but also affecting the beach ecosystem metabolism. The decomposition of sudden pulses of wrack can modify the biogeochemistry of beach sands and increase greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The presence of invasive species in the wrack deposits can superimpose harmful effects on the beach functioning. We quantified the wrack biomass of Rugulopteryx okamurae, an invasive species of extreme impact, on five sandy beaches from the Atlantic coast of the Strait of Gibraltar (Spain), and we tested the effects on in situ respiratory CO2 fluxes using an infrared gas analyser. All the beaches showed massive accumulations of Rugulopteryx wrack deposits. However, the biomass changed significantly between beaches, ranging (mean ± SE) from 968.3 ± 287.7 kg m−1 to 9210 ± 1279.4 kg m−1 of wet weight. Wrack supported high respiration rates, with CO2 fluxes averaging (±SE) 19.15 ± 5.5 μmol CO2 m−2 s−1 across beaches, reaching astounding maximum peaks of 291 μmol CO2 m−2 s−1. The within-beach variability was related to the distance of the wrack deposits from the shoreline, as the average metabolic rates tended to increase significantly from the swash to the drift line. Thicker wrack and a more degraded algae stage showed significantly higher CO2 fluxes. We estimated that the annual CO2 flux of R. okamurae in our study area ranged between 0.39 (±0.01) and 23.30 (±11.33) kg C m−2 y−1. We suggest that massive amounts of beach wrack can become a globally significant contributor to GHG emissions that can offset any potential carbon-sink capacity of macroalgal forests. However, the piles of wrack located several meters above the drift line showed non-measurable CO2 efflux. Transferring beach wrack from swash to drier upper-beach areas, a common practice in many coastal regions suffering from massive wrack accumulations, might help reduce GHG emissions while removing the wrack stockpiles from the intertidal. However, this practice is not necessarily suitable for all beaches and can create ecological and conservation problems in the dune system. There is an urgent need to implement practical and sustainable management practices for massive wrack deposits capable of presenting various solutions to achieve a balance between conservation and recreation actions, answering the consequences of a problem that links both, environmental and economic issues.

Climate resilience through ecocultural stewardship

The climate crisis has exacerbated many ecological and cultural problems including wildfire and drought vulnerability, biodiversity declines, and social justice and equity. While there are many concepts of social and ecological resilience, the exemplar practices of Indigenous stewardship are recognized in having sustained Indigenous peoples and their countries for millennia and past climate change events. California has been at the crossroads of many of these issues, and the historic and current contributions of Indigenous peoples to addressing these provide an excellent study of ecocultural stewardship and leadership by Indigenous peoples to achieve climate resilience.

Innovative educational and research center for monitoring forest resources of Siberia based on laser and microwave aerospace imaging

The possibilities of creating an innovative educational and scientific center for monitoring forest resources in Siberia on the basis of the Department of Space Facilities and Technologies of the Siberian State University of Science and Technology named after Mikhail Fedorovich Reshetnev are discussed, with the aim of training highly qualified engineering personnel and conducting promising scientific research in the field of monitoring, modeling, forecasting and management of forest resources. Methodological solutions and algorithms for three-dimensional modeling of forest structure and dynamics based on laser scanning data, digital aerial and space photography are proposed. These methods contribute to operational monitoring and can significantly reduce the cost of monitoring the condition and use of forest resources over the vast territory of Siberia. Remote sensing data is presented in the form of a geotransformed database and digital photo map, compatible in formats with computer-aided design systems and with the main geographic information systems – ArcView, ArcINFO, MapINFO. The innovative monitoring center will be used for operational state control and monitoring of forest management, the state of forest lands, forest management and forest inventory, solving problems of ecology and environmental management, geoecology, formation of a forest resource inventory, aerospace methods for studying natural resources and territories, information technology. Solving these problems will allow for the training of highly qualified specialists. The center's specialists plan to create information technologies for remote sensing of natural objects with the aim of import substitution of foreign software products. The main scientific directions of the created center: development and research of methods for system analysis of large-scale multidimensional remote sensing data based on nonparametric decision-making algorithms and parallel computing technologies; testing hypotheses about the distributions of large-volume remote sensing data based on nonparametric nuclear-type pattern recognition algorithms; detection of compact groups of large-volume remote sensing data corresponding to unimodal fragments of the joint probability density of multivariate random variables.

CHARACTERISTICS OF YEAST BIOMASS FROM THE WASTES OF WINE PRODUCTION

Re-utilization of vinification wastes is actual ecological problems that needs to be solved. The current study was carried out to evaluate biochemical composition of biomass of wine sedimentary yeasts. According to obtained results, yeast sediments used in natural white and red wine making present a good source of protein as well, as of essential and immunoactive amino acids. The studied types of sediments possess antioxidant activity and activity of antioxidant enzymes catalase and superoxid dismutase, the values vary, depending on the type of wine. So, yeast sediments of wine production can be proposed for the further development of new technologies for the production of bioactive extracts with antioxidants properties.

Factors driving human–elephant conflict: statistical assessment of vulnerability and implications for wildlife conflict management in Sri Lanka

Human–elephant conflict (HEC) is a serious social–ecological problem in Sri Lanka’s elephant range regions, as between 200 and 400 elephants have been killed annually over the last years, and more than 1200 people have died from the consequences of elephant encounters within a decade. Crop foraging causes economic damage to farming households. The study aims to understand factors driving vulnerability to HEC among the population. Employing a cross-communal multi-item large-N field survey (N = 651), authors were able to describe living conditions and perceptions of Sri Lankan villagers affected by HEC. By running a multiple regression analysis with correlated variables, the study is able to correlate independent variables to vulnerability, namely socio-economic conditions, environmental change and land-use, and awareness. Furthermore, a vulnerability map has been created, identifying Puttalam, Anuradhapura, Kurunegala, Matale, and Polonnaruwa districts as conflict hotspots. Private electric fences as a widespread protection measure were found to have unintended negative side-effects to non-protected households. The findings suggest the urgent need to upscale public policies mitigating the consequences of HEC on affected populations by reducing overall vulnerability to environmental hazards, including human–wildlife conflict.

Enhancement of BaCeO3 OER performance by generating a nanohybrid with gCN for electrochemical water splitting

Significant research is currently performed on electrochemical water splitting to solve ecological problems and energy issues. Sustainable and eco-friendly energy systems prefer to generate cost-effective electrocatalyst material with higher stability and excellent electrocatalytic activity to speed up the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) process. The current study followed a hydrothermal approach to develop a barium cerium oxide nanohybrid with g-CN (BaCeO3/g-CN) as an electro-catalyst for an efficient OER process in 1.0 M KOH. Physical characteristics analyses confirmed the enhanced activity of the synthesized BaCeO3 (BCO) and BCO/g-CN nanohybrid materials. The evaluated increased performance may be ascribed to improved morphological characteristics and substantial surface area (212 m2 g−1). The nanocomposite as mentioned above (BCO/g-CN) exhibits significant potential for effective OER in electrochemical assessments due to its abundant active spots and accelerated charge transfer process. Further, the electro-catalytic activity of the composite is improved, as demonstrated by a reduced overpotential (η = 210 mV) with Tafel value (36 mV dec−1) in comparison to pristine BCO (η = 262 mV and 52 mV dec−1) for OER. The material exhibited a reduced charge transfer impedance (Rct = 0.7 Ω), confirmed by EIS analysis. It also demonstrated a substantial ECSA (electrochemical active surface area) of 237.5 cm2 as compared to the pure BCO (137.5 cm2) material. Moreover, electrocatalyst material durability for 30 h was assessed by a chronoamperometric study. Thus, BCO/g-CN exhibits a notable rise in electrochemical properties, suggesting that it is a viable candidate for prospective OER applications.