A joint study by Pakistani and Chinese scientists has found that coastal wetlands along Pakistan’s shoreline are undergoing significant structural changes, with human activity emerging as the dominant driver.

The research, titled “Spatiotemporal reorganization of coastal wetlands along the Pakistan coast under climatic variability and human modification (2019–2024)”, was published in April 2026 in the international journal Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science.

The research provides one of the first high-resolution, nationwide assessments of Pakistan’s coastal wetlands, offering insights for environmental planning and sustainable development, Gwadar Pro reported on Tuesday.

The study was conducted by Muhammad Asgher Ali, Yaseen Laghari, Zhenguo Niu, and Qingyu Li, affiliated with institutions including the Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Aerospace Information Technology University, Jinan.

Using Sentinel-2 satellite imagery and machine learning techniques, the researchers analyzed wetland changes along Pakistan’s coastline from 2019 to 2024.

The key findings of the study report that coastal wetlands did not simply decline or expand overall, but instead experienced internal restructuring.

According to the authors, wetlands “underwent pronounced spatiotemporal reorganization” during the study period.

Mangrove forests and lagoons showed resilience, with expansion observed, while coastal marshes faced instability and decline. The researchers note that “mangrove swamps and lagoons exhibited relative persistence and expansion, whereas coastal marshes showed high instability and net decline.”

The study shows that human impact outweighs climate factors, and one of the most significant conclusions of the study is the dominant role of human activity in shaping coastal ecosystems.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP) — Pak-China