滨海湿地位于陆地和海洋之间，具有各种生态系统服务，例如风暴和洪水保护，粮食供应，水净化，气候调节和生物多样性保护等。然而，由于强烈的湿地开垦或侵占，滨海湿地在世界范围内遭受严重退化或损失；在全球变暖的背景下，海平面上升极大地影响了沿海湿地生态系统的健康。但是，关于\土地利用/土地变化、湿地质量和湿地保护意识管理对湿地生态系统健康影响方面的研究还不多见，尤其利比里亚的相关研究未见报道。本研究利用1985、2002和2020年的遥感影像分析了滨海湿地的景观格局变化，预测了2070年的滨海湿地面积，并进行了景观碎片分析，以识别碎片的强度。论文基于景观格局指数、水样和土样的化学指标分析以及湿地保护意识的问卷调查采用压力-状态-响应模型创建了Mesurado湿地健康评估指标体系，并使用层次分析法（AHP）评估所研究的滨海湿地健康指标的权重值，评估了利比里亚滨海湿地的健康状态。论文区主要研究结果如下：

（1）土地利用覆被变化分析结果表明，在气候变化和人为活动等的双重压力下滨海湿地面积在研究期内呈现持续萎缩的变化。例如，1985年滨海湿地的总面积为64.65 km2（占研究总面积的15％），而至2002年则急剧减少至33.27 km2（7.74％）。之后湿地面积继续减少，由于占用湿地至2020年滨海湿地面积进一步减少至29.15 km2。最严重的滨海湿地损失发生在1985年至2002年之间。而且，变化预测分析还预测到2070年滨海湿地面积将显著减少。景观破碎化分析结果表明在研究时段内利比里亚滨海湿地景观总体呈现破碎化状态且破碎化强度持续增加。

（2）研究区滨海湿地水质很差，而土壤质量指标在允许的范围内。在测定的五个水质参数中，只有一个指标处于允许的浓度范围内。例如，硝酸盐的允许值小于或等于60 mg/L，但其浓度水平高达97mg/L。铅、锌、铜和铬的浓度均低于允许的限值。鉴于此，提出了一些保护湿地免受进一步退化并恢复已经退化的地区的对策建议。

（3）对随机选择的384位受访者进行的滨海湿地保护意识问卷调查结果显示了有关受访者对湿地利用和保护的公共知识，态度和看法存在巨大的性别知识鸿沟。其中，78.1％受访者（300）无知地表示，他们从未与Mesurado沿海湿地进行互动，即使有明确的证据表明他们依赖湿地生活，其中女性占64.9％，男性占13.2％； 大约21.9％（84）的人同意他们在该生态系统居住期间与湿地存在相互作用。与受访者对Mesurado沿海湿地生态系统的一般公众知识水平相一致，72.3％的受访者之间存在巨大的知识鸿沟，他们不知道需要对该地区进行全面的湿地保护，而72.5％的受访者同意承担湿地保护责任。即使有许多人对湿地产生了错误的认识，也付出了很大的努力，仍有80.2％的人同意，这些年来人们意识到由于人类居住，捕鱼，采砂、生活污水和工业废水排放等活动而导致湿地被改变为其他用途。由于受访者之间的知识鸿沟巨大，因此反对这一主张的比例为13.0％。湿地保护意识调查的结果总体上表明梅苏拉多滨海湿地损失或退化可归因于当地居民间的知识差异，需要制订相关的湿地保护政策。

（4）滨海湿地健康评估结果表明梅苏拉多湿地处于亚健康状态。采用压力-状态-响应模型构建了滨海湿地健康评价指标体系用于评估梅苏拉多湿地的生态健康状态。该指标体系包括十六个指标，其中，四个指标用于评估湿地的压力状态，三个指标用于评估湿地对压力的响应以及九个指标用于评估湿地状态。压力指标系统的评价结果显示，由于1985-2002年期间为逃离战争而涌入国内得流离失所者得增加引起湿地丧失，导致1985-2002年对湿地的压力几乎是200-2020年的两倍，压力指标的平均得分表明处于亚健康状态。景观格局指数分析表明滨海湿地破碎化程度逐年增加，至2020年达到破碎化的峰值，导致景观指标的总体得分略显病态。考虑到仍有多少人依靠湿地为生，水质分析结果令人担忧。在检查的所有参数中，仅pH和氨气都在可接受的范围内，其他四个水质参数均不在允许的范围内，总体得分相当于稍微健康状态。土壤质量分析的结果表明，所有土壤质量参数均在可接受的范围内，表明Mesurado湿地的土壤处于非常健康状态。梅苏拉多湿地对人类活动和环境条件变化的压力随着时间的推移而有所不同，应对措施的总体评分略显健康，其原因可能是由于政府和非政府组织的管理水平更高以及越来越多的人开始意识到保护湿地的必要性

Coastal wetlands are located between land and ocean, which have various ecosystem services such as storm and flood protection, food provision, water purification, climate regulation and biodiversity conservation etc. However, coastal wetlands are suffering from serious degradation or loss worldwide due to intense reclamation or occupation and sea-level rise in the context of global warming, which greatly impacts coastal wetland ecosystem health. However, little information is available on the effects of land use/land change, and wetland quality and wetlands protection awareness on coastal wetland ecosystem health, especially in Liberia. In this research, the changes in landscape pattern of coastal wetlands were analysed using remote sensing images in 1985, 2002 and 2020, and the coastal wetland area in 2070 were predicted;  Landscape fragmentation analysis were also conducted to identify the intensity of the fragmentation. A health evaluation index system for Mesurado wetland was created using pressure - state – response model based on landscape indicators, chemical indicators of water and soil samples and questionnaire for wetlands protection awareness, and the Analytical Hierarchy process (AHP) analysis was used to evaluate the values of weight of the selected indicators of wetland health in order to assess the healthy status of coastal wetlands in Liberia. The main results are listed as follows:

(1) Land use land cover change detection analysis has shown that the coastal wetland area continues to shrink in size under pressure from climate change and anthropogenic activities. For example, the total area of coastal wetland extend in 1985 was 64.65 km² (15% of the total study area), while drastically reduced to 33.27 km² (7.74%) in 2002. After that this trend of wetland area reduction continues, with the area occupied by wetland reducing further to 29.15 km² in 2020. By far the highest losses occurred between 1985 and 2002. Moreover, change prediction analysis also predicts a significant reduction in the size of the coastal wetland in Liberia by 2070. Landscape fragmentation analysis results have shown that the wetland landscape is fragmented overall during 1985-2020 and the intensity of the fragmentation continues to increase into later years.

(2) The water quality in the studied coastal wetlands was very bad, while soil quality indicators were within the permissible limits.  Among the five water quality parameters analyzed, only one fell within the permissible level of concentration. For example, Nitrate has a permissible value of less than or equal to 60 mg/L, but its concentration level is as high as 97 mg/L. The concentrations of lead, zinc copper, and chromium were all below the limits.  Some countermeasures that would protect the wetland from further degradation and restore already degraded areas have also been recommended.

(3) The survey conducted for the wetlands protection awareness presented results from data that were collected from randomly selected 384 targeted respondents that indicated a vast gender knowledge gap concerning the respondents’ public knowledge, attitudes, and perception toward the wetlands utilization and protection.   Among the respondents, 78.1% of respondents (300) ignorantly stated that they have never interacted with the Mesurado Coastal Wetlands even with clear evidence of their dependency for livelihood with 64.9% female and 13.2% male alongside 21.9% (84) who approved of their interaction with the concerned wetlands over the period of their stay in this ecosystem. In line with the respondents’ general public level of knowledge of the Mesurado coastal wetland ecosystem, 72.3% of the targeted respondents showed a vast knowledge gap among respondents who were not aware that this area needed to be protected nationally with 72.5% who agree to take responsibility for the conservation effort even with the wrong perception embedded in the minds of many concerning the wetlands alongside 80.2% who agree of being aware of the wetlands being change to other uses based on human encroachment over the years via human settlements, fishing, sand mining, dumping of household and industrious waste with 13.0% objection to this assertion due to a vast knowledge gap between respondents. The overall result from the awareness survey clearly pointed to the fact that the loss and degradation within the Mesurado coastal wetland can be attributed to the disparity in knowledge among wetland residents with need for the crafting of policies meant to safeguard the wetlands. 

(4) Wetland health assessment results revealed that the Mesurado Wetland was sub-healthy. An indicator system was established to assess the ecological health of the Mesurado wetland using the pressure- state –response model. Sixteen indicators were used overall in the indicator system, with four indicators used to assess the pressure state on the wetland, three indicators were used to assess the response of the wetland to pressure, and nine indicators were used to assess the wetland state.  The pressure from 1985-2002 on the wetland was almost twice that of 2002-2020 due to the huge loss of wetland caused by the influx of internally displace people fleeing fighting from 1985-2002.. The average score for the pressure indicators based on the evaluation system is subhealth. The analysis from the landscape indices showed that the wetland had gotten progressively fragmented over the years, with  the peak of the fragmentation in 2020, with the overall score for the landscape metrics of slightly morbid. The water quality result is worrying given how many people still depend on the wetland for their livelihood. Among all of the parameters checked, ony the pH and ammonia are within the acceptable limits, which caused the overall score equated to slightly healthy. Comparatively, the result from the soil quality analysis shows that all of the soil quality parameters are within the acceptable limits, hence, the soil quality of the Mesurado wetland is very healthy. The Mesurado wetland responded to pressures fro human activities and changes in environmental conditions differently over time, and the overall score for the response is slightly healthy, which was probably due to better management from government and NGOs and the fact that more and more people are becoming aware of the need to protect wetland.