Increase In Urban Development Research Articles

Spatial analysis of land use change in a flood-prone watershed: S. Ore Creek, MI, USA

The S. Ore Creek watershed in Hamburg, Michigan is a 93.2 km2 watershed that flows into Ore Lake, whose community is vulnerable to increasing flooding. There have been no studies investigating the influences of upstream inputs on flooding in this watershed, such as urban development and vegetation changes within wetlands. The current study uses the Online ArcGIS software to examine shifts in wetlands and urban development from 2000 to 2019 in the S. Ore Creek watershed. We divided the watershed into four sections from north to south, and identified regions of land use changes within and surrounding wetlands in each section. Using the National Land Cover Database, we identified the area of urban and wetland land use change. We found that there were changes within wetlands (e.g., herbaceous to woody wetlands) in 745,200 m2, increases in intensity of urban development surrounding wetlands in 150,300 m2, and urban development encroaching into wetlands in 62,100 m2. Urban development encroaching into wetlands (and some waterways) occurred in the southern half of the watershed (31,500 m2) with some encroachment in the northernmost section of the watershed (30,600 m2). Relatedly, regions where herbaceous and woody wetlands disappeared occurred in 50,400 m2. Studies have found that increases in urban development and shifts in vegetation within wetlands have been found to increase the potential of flooding. The current study has potential implications for the recent increases in downstream regional flooding.

Energy consumption structure model considering urban green and low-carbon transportation

<p class="Abstract">The importance of energy conservation and emission reduction has become the consensus of the international community, and Iraq is also actively improving the urban public transportation system to control carbon emissions. This paper collects panel data of Tikrit city in Iraq in the past 3 years, constructs a random effect variable coefficient model, and studies the impact of the development of urban low-carbon transportation system on the energy consumption structure. The study finds that the government can use public transportation pricing strategies to influence consumers. In order to realize the optimization of energy consumption structure, the impact of electric vehicles on energy consumption structure will decrease with the increase of urban development. The transportation sector can increase the purchase and travel costs of traditional cars by restricting travel, purchases, and charging parking fees, which affects the number of private cars and reduces the obstacles to optimizing the energy consumption structure. The government should increase financial subsidies, improve rail transit and reasonable bus (electric) vehicle operation systems, increase investment in new energy vehicle research and development, and encourage high energy density and low power consumption technologies. development, increase residents’ demand for new energy passenger vehicles, and optimize the energy consumption structure.</p>

Flood modelling for a real-time decision support system of the covered Lower Paillons River, Nice, France

Abstract Nice Metropolis in Alpes Maritimes, France is prone to flood. The city is crossed by the Lower Paillons River (LPR). Its discharge for a return period of 100 years is estimated at 794 m3/s. Part of the river is covered by 2 km. In addition, there are two retention storages in the river bed and a floodable road tunnel on the left bank. Due to the increase in urban development, flood management is challenging. An existing decision support system, Aquavar, uses DHI Mike tools to reproduce runoff for the Lower Var River in the same region. To extend this system to the LPR and reinforce flood management, a new modelling tool adapted to the characteristics of the LPR is needed. Consequently, this research utilizes the DHI MIKEPLUS tool to develop a 1D -2D coupled model for real-time flood management. The results demonstrate that flood events like those in 2017 and 2019 were correctly reproduced. The linear regression R2 is above 0.8 for all stations. It was also estimated that the covered river should stay clean to avoid widespread flooding in the urban area. Overall, the model is useful for simulating flow in real time and can help sustain urban development.

Urban land cover and El Niño events negatively impact population viability of an endangered North American songbird

AbstractPopulation dynamics of migratory species are influenced by land use and climate patterns experienced across the full annual cycle. Identifying environmental factors influencing productivity, survival, and their relative contributions to abundance and population growth is critical for the recovery and management of at‐risk species in the face of continuing global change. The golden‐cheeked warbler (Setophaga chrysoparia) is an endangered passerine that breeds exclusively in the mixed Ashe juniper (Juniperus ashei)–oak (Quercus) woodlands of Central Texas, USA, and winters at high elevations in Central America. We evaluated the effects of precipitation, climate, and land cover on golden‐cheeked warbler productivity, adult male survival, and territory abundance using data from a long‐term monitoring site, the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, in Austin, Texas. We jointly analyzed annual productivity, mark–recapture, and territory count data collected on 10 plots from 2011 to 2019 in an integrated population model. The number of young fledged per male territory was negatively related to percent urban land cover within 1 km of monitoring plots, and adult male survival was negatively related to a strong El Niño event. Estimates of population growth and abundance indicated a decline in abundance across our study period. We forecasted population viability 25 years into the future given increases in urban development and frequency of El Niño events. Quasi‐extinction probability increased from 0.17 under current urban land cover conditions and El Niño frequency to 0.41 under the scenario of a 10% increase in urban development around all plots and an increase in El Niño frequency. Productivity and adult survival were positively correlated with population growth, highlighting the need for conservation and management actions to maximize these vital rates on the breeding grounds and range‐wide.

Development of a map for land use and land cover classification of the Northern Border Region using remote sensing and GIS

The land use and land cover study (LULC) play an essential role in regional socio-economic development and natural resource management to develop sustainable development in vegetation changes, water quantity and quality, land resources, and coastal management. This study uses remote sensing data to investigate LULC in the Northern Border Region (NBR) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The purpose of this study is to obtain a better understanding of the patterns and drivers of changes in LULC in the NBR over the past three decades. Remote sensing data from Landsat imagery between 1990 and 2022 were used to classify LULC types, and a time series analysis was performed using Landsat imagery to detect changes over time. The classification finds four main classes: bare land, built-up area, rocks, and vegetation. The results indicate a significant increase in urban development. The outcomes revealed that most urbanization occurred in the outskirts of the cities, where previously there were bare soil lands. The main drivers of urbanization were population growth and economic development. These findings have important implications for city planning, the management of green spaces, and the sustainable development of cities. Maximum Likelihood classifier was used to perform the classification. The accuracy assessment demonstrated satisfactory results, with an overall accuracy of 92.6%. The study paves the way for further monitoring LULC changes in the NBR geographic location. The technique used was adequate to address the objectives of this study.

Challenges of sustainable mobility: Context of car dependency, suburban areas in Thailand

Urbanization and transportation have caused two critical issues in the challenge of sustainable development, particularly, challenges to sustainable mobility in the context of car dependency. This is due to all aspects of environmental, social, and economic has been continued influenced by transportation related issues. The challenges of sustainable mobility in the context of suburban areas have become aggravating situation due to massive migrations, thus Pathumthani province, represented as vicinity area of Bangkok, Thailand was selected as a case study. Data were collected from 1,998 respondents by questionnaire survey and analyzed using statistical analysis and visualization based on geographic information system, GIS application. The study results revealed that the urbanization process has led to an increase in urban development that attracts enormous migrations in searching for their opportunities (working and education trips). This phenomenon has positioned Pathumthani to serve as a supportive area for the spillover of rapid urbanization in the country's capital area which has led to the development of private car-dependent travel and public transport network, mainly concentrated in urban areas with exclusion to residents in remote areas. On the other hand, most areas sprawl with a scattered density of residential settlements, which existing transportation system development can no longer serve the continued rising travel demand as before. The findings confirmed that the current development pattern could not promptly meet the needs of suburban development, requiring the policymakers to launch an effective plan to meet appropriate transportation demands and promote good quality of travelling for the residents and commuters.

A Procedural Framework to Identify Critical Indicators for the Protection of Environment and Ecosystem during Sustainable Urban Development in South-Western Saudi Arabia

This paper investigates the strategies and priorities to identify the critical indicators for the protection of the environment and ecosystem in the mountain regions of southwest Saudi Arabia, considering the natural resources, renewable energy potential, local economy, urban development issues, and compatibility with the Saudi Vision 2030. The southern region of the country is characterized as having cooler climatic conditions than the other regions of Saudi Arabia and is rich in natural resources and renewable energy potential. It also has potential in the sectors of agriculture, forests, and animal production, and the region’s heritage is valuable for its tourism industry. During the past years, the region is experiencing a misbalance in its resources and population due to a quick increase in urban development. It is seen that there has been no strategy in place for the management of development. Hence, it is important to establish a framework designed to manage urban planning and sprawl that considers the topographical conditions, wildlife and forest protection, and investment in natural and renewable resources. This study employs a focus group approach to investigate these issues. Different expert panels were invited to Al-Baha University in December 2019 to discuss the sustainable development priorities of Saudi Arabia’s southern regions. These included decision-makers from governmental sectors, and academics from the university’s faculties of engineering, economics, sciences, and social sciences. The study highlights the issues of urban sprawl management in cities that impact the environmental conditions and wildlife habitat, concluding that the agriculture and tourism industries are the most important factors that should be targeted by developers in the southwestern regions of the country.

Host Cell Binding Mediated by Leptospira interrogans Adhesins.

Leptospirosis is a neglected infectious disease with global impact on both humans and animals. The increase in urban development without sanitation planning is one of the main reasons for the disease spreading. The symptoms are similar to those of flu-like diseases, such as dengue, yellow fever, and malaria, which can result in a misleading clinical diagnosis. The characterization of host-pathogen interactions is important in the development of new vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics. However, the pathogenesis of leptospirosis is not well understood, and many gaps remain to be addressed. Here, we aimed to determine if Leptospira strains, virulent, culture-attenuated, and saprophytic, and the major outer membrane proteins OmpL37, OmpL1, LipL21, LipL41, and LipL46 are able to adhere to different endothelial, epithelial and fibroblast cell lines in vitro. We showed that virulent leptospires robustly bind to all cells compared to the culture-attenuated and saprophytic lines. The recombinant proteins exhibited certain adhesion, but only OmpL1 and LipL41 were able to bind to several cell lines, either in monolayer or in cell suspension. Blocking OmpL1 with polyclonal antibodies caused a decrease in bacterial binding to cells, contrasting with an increase observed when anti-LipL41 antibodies were used. The adhesion of OmpL1 to HMEC-1 and EA.hy926 was inhibited when cells were pre-incubated with collagen IV, suggesting that both compete for the same cell receptor. We present here for the first time the interaction of five leptospiral outer membrane proteins with several cell lines, and we conclude that LipL41 and OmpL1 may have an impact on leptospiral adhesion to mammalian cells and may mediate the colonization process in leptospiral pathogenesis.

A dynamic simulation study on the sustainability of prefabricated buildings

With the increase of urban development in China, new construction, extension, renovation, and demolition of prefabricated buildings have also increased, leading to a huge amount of carbon emissions, which poses a great threat to the natural environment and ecological civilization, and goes against the ideas of creating a low-carbon city and sustainable development. How to develop prefabricated buildings efficiently and sustainably is a question governments and environmental organizations around the world wish to solve quickly. However, the sustainable development of prefabricated buildings is an issue with complexity and fuzziness. Thereby, to sustainably develop prefabricated buildings should consider the comprehensive benefits systematically instead of just considering from one certain perspective. In this study, TBL theory was applied to set the boundary of the comprehensive benefits of the prefabricated building system model (CBPBSM), thus the model was divided into three subsystems: economic, environmental, and social. System dynamics (SD) was utilized to identify and quantify the relationships between relevant parameters in the subsystems. This study emulated different scenarios using the CBPBSM and simulated the main parameters with sensitivity analysis. The results indicate that: (1) the greatest advantage of prefabricated building construction is a positive impact on the environment. CO2 emission from the construction of prefabricated buildings is 37% of the emission generated from the construction of traditional buildings. (2) The construction of prefabricated buildings improves the resource utilization rate. When the resource utilization rate increases by 20%, the amount of construction waste will be reduced by 34.55% and the land will be conserved by 29.29%. (3) The development of the market for prefabricated buildings can promote local economic growth. (4) Cluster development of the prefabricated building industry can adjust the employment structure of workers and increase about 132% of their jobs. (5) The quantity of CO2 reduced by applying combined measures is 6.08 times that of applying a single measure. These conclusions can serve as guides for related enterprises and government departments that work with the construction industry and help them create policies to ensure the sustainable development of prefabricated buildings.

Urban Sustainability through Innovative Open Space Design. A Novel Approach to the Regeneration of Historic Open Spaces in Some Eastern European Countries and China

Looking at the urban development of the past two centuries, we can conclude that engineers and architects have been dominating the field of urban design all over Europe. Architects played the most important role, which became even more significant with the increase of urban development. Beyond the architectural approach, a greater importance had been attributed to ecological aspects of urban planning by the turn of the 20th century as, for example, the advance of the garden city movement illustrates. This article focuses on the review of crucial open-space renewal projects from two Eastern European cities and China. The case studies are used to shed light on the characteristics and historical values of contemporary open-space design, based on innovative and landscape architectural approaches and artistic solutions. The study shows that the original role of urban open spaces was significantly extended during the first decades of the 21st century. The increased needs for representation—commercial, cultural and living functions, and ecological and healthy benefits—led to a multifunctional approach in design and planning. The renewal of the historic urban open spaces is carried out under an integrated framework and a unified goal: the development-oriented heritage conservation. Based on strong economic aspects, the general tendency is clearly positive—in spite of still-existing problematic issues (for instance, the management of public transport or the status of public utilities). In the time of a growing awareness of open-space heritage, this overview tries to depict possible general principles of a long-term renewal strategy built on local identity, heritage values and social sustainability.

Response of benthic invertebrate assemblages to seasonal and habitat condition in the Wewe River, Ashanti region (Ghana).

Aquatic macro-invertebrates play a vital role in the food chain of river ecosystem at several trophic guilds and consumer levels, and are used as biomonitoring tools for aquatic ecosystem health. However, hydrologic conditions of these ecosystems have been severely altered because of the increase in urban development and agricultural expansion. This study examined benthic invertebrate response to processes that structure their community in the Wewe River, segmented into intact, medium, and severe condition zones. We sampled in 100 stations in a period of 4 months in the wet (June–September, 2019) and 3 months in the dry (January–March, 2020) seasons. Geometric series, rarefaction, and Hill numbers models were used to quantify invertebrate assemblages, while ordination technique, canonical correspondence analysis, was used to evaluate the influence of predictive factors on their assemblages. A total of 2,075 individuals belonging to 20 family taxa were registered. There was no significant difference in benthic assemblages between the dry and wet seasons. Predictive factors accounted for 47.04 and 50.84% variances, respectively. Taxa distribution patterns differed significantly only in the severely disturbed zone during the wet season. Neptidae, Libellulidae, and Chironomidae were the most abundant taxa, indicating their broad range habitat preference and their ability to adapt to seasonal changes. Asellidae and Perlidae were the least detected, suggesting their sensitivity to elevated levels of some water quality parameters. The findings highlight the threats to the benthic community and overall functional state of the Wewe River, with the need to consider the proposed conservation interventions indicated in this study.

A fuzzy-analytic hierarchy process approach for measuring flood resilience at the individual property level

PurposeRecent changes in climate, rainfall patterns, snow melt and rising sea levels coupled with an increase in urban development have increased the threat of flooding. To curb these threats and mitigate these damages, property-level approaches to improving resilience are now being encouraged as part of an integrated approach to flood risk management. This raises questions such as, what are the flood resilient attributes within individual properties, what is their importance and how can these be quantified. This research sought to develop a quantitative approach for the measurement of property-level flood resilience.Design/methodology/approachA synthesis of literature was undertaken to establish the main resilient attributes and their relevant sub-attributes. This process led to the development of a new method, named the Composite Flood Resilient Index (CFRI) to weight the attributes and sub-attributes of flood resilience based on their importance. The approach adopts the use of the fuzzy-analytic hierarchy process (F-AHP) approach to quantify flood resilience.FindingsThe implications of the proposed methodology in determining the flood resilience of individual property, including the potential use in retrofitting activities, and the benefits to a range of stakeholders are considered.Social implicationsThe methodology offers the potential to support the measurement of flood resilience of individual properties, allowing the identification and prioritisation of specific interventions to improve the resilience of a property.Originality/valueWhereas previous attempts to quantify flood resilience have adopted qualitative approaches with some level of subjectivity, this proposed methodology represents an important advancement in developing a scientific and quantitative approach.

Transformation of flood risk management with evolutionary resilience

The occurrence of flood disasters has become a vicious problem in many urban regions. Operationalization of flood resilience has become a significant concern with the increase of urban development and climate change. The objective of this paper is at first to analyze how flood resilience has been framed over the past period of time. Second, this paper has focused to identify the practical difficulties related to the available flood risk assessment and management frameworks for operationalization of flood resilience. The results show that the flood risk and resilience has been framed differently throughout the time, in diverse perspectives but still remains as contested concepts. Evolutionary resilience has been reframed the flood risk management system as an integrated and adaptive system with the recognition of the uncertainties due to the dynamics of socio-spatial interdependencies of flood risk. Therefore, the integration and the adaptive capacity of spatial planning has become a crucial aspect for operationalizing flood resilience which is governed through the knowledge base of the dominant discourses of stakeholders and the way of power and the resource exercised in the context.

Environmental Study of Water Reservoirs for the Watershed Management in Pakistan

Water reservoirs in most parts of the world face the problem of sedimentation. Environmental impacts and land-use changes/landslide have enormous potential to generate more sediment load in water reservoirs. Hence, the capacity of water reservoirs in Pakistan has been constantly reducing due to sedimentation. In this study, we have computed the environmental impacts on sedimentation load in Tarbela and Mangla water reservoirs using multi-satellite and ground-based data. The total drainage area of watershed is calculated using Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission data. Satellite data from NOAA-AVHRR are used to monitor urban development and changes in vegetation area, while MODIS data are used to estimate the snow area in the watershed region. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index is used to estimate the temporal changes in vegetation cover, whilst principle component analysis is applied to monitor urban changes in watershed region. Similarly, snow cover area in the study region is estimated using Normalized Difference Snow Index algorithm. Rainfall data obtained from Pakistan Meteorological Department are used to evaluate the relationship between sedimentation deposited in water reservoirs and annual rainfall amount. Results of the current study reveal that increase in urban development and high amount of precipitation has direct relationship with the load of sedimentation, while amount of vegetation has inverse relationship with the load of sedimentation in water reservoirs of the country.

Developing a 1 km resolution daily air temperature dataset for urban and surrounding areas in the conterminous United States

High spatiotemporal resolution air temperature (Ta) datasets are increasingly needed for assessing the impact of temperature change on people, ecosystems, and energy system, especially in the urban domains. However, such datasets are not widely available because of the large spatiotemporal heterogeneity of Ta caused by complex biophysical and socioeconomic factors such as built infrastructure and human activities. In this study, we developed a 1 km gridded dataset of daily minimum Ta (Tmin) and maximum Ta (Tmax), and the associated uncertainties, in urban and surrounding areas in the conterminous U.S. for the 2003–2016 period. Daily geographically weighted regression (GWR) models were developed and used to interpolate Ta using 1 km daily land surface temperature and elevation as explanatory variables. The leave-one-out cross-validation approach indicates that our method performs reasonably well, with root mean square errors of 2.1 °C and 1.9 °C, mean absolute errors of 1.5 °C and 1.3 °C, and R2 of 0.95 and 0.97, for Tmin and Tmax, respectively. The resulting dataset captures reasonably the spatial heterogeneity of Ta in the urban areas, and also captures effectively the urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon that Ta rises with the increase of urban development (i.e., impervious surface area). The new dataset is valuable for studying environmental impacts of urbanization such as UHI and other related effects (e.g., on building energy consumption and human health). The proposed methodology also shows a potential to build a long-term record of Ta worldwide, to fill the data gap that currently exists for studies of urban systems.

Changes in Exposure to Flood Hazards in the United States

This article conducts a national, county-based assessment of the changes in population and urban areas in high-risk flood zones from 2001 to 2011 in the contiguous United States. The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) 100-year flood maps, land cover data, and census data were used to extract the proportion of developed (urban) land in flood zones by county at the two time points, and indexes of difference were calculated. Local Moran's I statistic was applied to identify hot spots of increase in urban area in flood zones, and geographically weighted regression was used to estimate the population in flood zones from the land cover data. Results show that in 2011, an estimate of about 25.3 million people (8.3 percent of the total population) lived in high-risk flood zones. Nationally, the ratio of urban development in flood zones is less than the ratio of land in flood zones, implying that Americans were responsive to flood hazards by avoiding development in flood zones. This trend varied from place to place, however, with coastal counties having less urban development in flood zones than the inland counties. Furthermore, the contrast between coastal and inland counties increased between 2001 and 2011. Finally, several exceptions from the trend (hot spots) were detected, most notably in New York City and Miami, where significant increases in urban development in flood zones were found. This assessment provides important baseline information on the spatial patterns of flood exposure and their changes from 2001 to 2011. The study pinpoints regions that might need further investigations and better policy to reduce the overall flood risks.

Research on the optimization of air quality monitoring station layout based on spatial grid statistical analysis method

ABSTRACTIn recent years, with the significant increase in urban development, it has become necessary to optimize the current air monitoring stations to reflect the quality of air in the environment. Highlighting the spatial representation of some air monitoring stations using Beijing’s regional air monitoring station data from 2012 to 2014, the monthly mean particulate matter concentration (PM10) in the region was calculated and through the IDW interpolation method and spatial grid statistical method using GIS, the spatial distribution of PM10 concentration in the whole region was deduced. The spatial distribution variation of districts in Beijing using the gridding model was performed, and through the 3-year spatial analysis, PM10 concentration data including the variation and spatial overlay (1.5 km × 1.5 km cell resolution grid), the spatial distribution result obtained showed that the total PM10 concentration frequency variation exceeded the standard. It is very important to optimize the layout of the existing air monitoring stations by combining the concentration distribution of air pollutants with the spatial region using GIS.

Engineering practice of mechanical soil aeration for the remediation of volatile organic compound-contaminated sites in China: Advantages and challenges

In recent years, many industrial enterprises located in the urban centers of China have been relocated owing to the rapid increase in urban development. At the sites abandoned by these enterprises, volatile organic compounds have frequently been detected, sometimes at high concentrations, particularly at sites abandoned by chemical manufacturing enterprises. With the redevelopment of sites and changes in land-use type associated with these sites, substantial amounts of contaminated soils now require remediation. Since China is a developing country, soil remediation warrants the usage of techniques that are suitable for addressing the unique challenges faced in this country. Land shortage is a common problem in China; the large numbers of contaminated sites, tight development schedules, and limited financial resources necessitate the development of cost-effective methods for land reclamation. Mechanical soil aeration is a simple, effective, and low-cost soil remediation technique that is particularly suitable for the remediation of large volatile organic compound-contaminated sites. Its effectiveness has been confirmed by conducting laboratory studies, pilot tests, and full-scale projects. This study reviews current engineering practice and developmental trends of mechanical soil aeration and analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of this technology for application in China as an emerging soil remediation market. The findings of this study might aid technology development in China, as well as assist other developing countries in the assessment and implementation of costeffective hazardous waste site soil remediation programs. Open image in new window

Dynamic simulation of urban expansion through a CA-Markov model Case study: Hyrcanian region, Gilan, Iran

Urban sprawl has become a remarkable feature in urban development, especially in developing countries, in the last decades. To face this phenomenon, it is required to first forecast auto-spreading orientation rural areas over time in order to avoid shapeless urban growth. Although GIS/RS and CA- Markov models are applied to study urban growth patterns the world over, very few studies have applied these methods to examine the urban growth of Iran. A major land use change is detected here from 1989 to 2013. In this study the future sprawl of this province is forecasted for target years of 2025 and 2037 through a simulation. The results predict an alarming increase in urban development for the target years of 2025 and 2037, with an expansion is predicted to develop of 11510 and 18320 ha, respectively. In sum, this model is an efficient tool for the support of urban planning decisions and facilitates the process of sustainable urban development providing decision-makers.

Comunidades de equinodermos en la región de Tunantal, Golfo de Cariaco, Venezuela

Echinoderms are relevant in the structure of marine benthic assemblages, both due their diversity and their ecological niche. However, studies related with occurrence, abundance and patterns of distribution of echinoderms in Venezuela are still scarce. In the present study we describe the echinoderms in shallow-waters habitats (corals patches, Thalassia beds, sandy bottom, rocky subtidal shore, and mouth of river) at Tunantal bay, Golfo de Cariaco, Venezuela, an area that face threats related with the increase of urban development. Samples were performed during September - October 2010 and February - April 2011, using quantitative (1 m2 plots) and qualitative diving observations. Measurements include density, number of species, evenness, Shannon diversity and similarities between habitats based on Bray-Curtis and Sorensen Indexes. Differences in the structure of echinoderm assemblages were detected between habitats. The overall number of echinoderm species in the area was estimated in 40 ± 3.02. Coral patches and rocky shores showed more species and abundance, evenness and Shannon diversity than others habitats. Although the former habitats are similar in evenness and Shannon diversity, differences in the structure of the assemblages were detected. In coral habitats Echinometra viridis, Ophiactis savignyi and Ophiothrix angulata were the dominants species of the assemblages, meanwhile in rocky shores E. lucunter and Ophiocoma echinata were dominants in abundance followed by Ophionereis reticulata. Other habitats of the bay (Thalassia beds, sandy bottom and mouth of river) showed very low diversity and abundance of echinoderms, in some cases only occasional occurrence. Substrate heterogeneity is proposed as the main driving factor of the diversity and structure of the echinoderms assemblages in the bay. Moreover coral patches and rocky shores offer a substratum to dominant species (E. viridis, E. lucunter and O. echinata), but habitat differences in terms of substratum, depth and wave stress could explain the differences in the echinoderm assemblage. The overall echinoderm diversity is promoted by the differences of habitats in the bay and the changes of species composition between habitats.